Episode 24
Tuesday? Therapy Thursday? Hmm. The lack of sleep got to me, I admit.
It’s the festival season
This weekend started with a long drive towards the border, to Kostel, where Siddharta was headlining the annual Castle festival.
I missed it. I missed the band, the crew, the fans, the energy. The whole night delivered. Despite going on stage a minute after midnight, there was no lack of energy, just love and some proper rock and roll. With an occasional double kick by Boštjan setting the stage for the following days.
Long drive back, 3h of sleep, 3h of editing, and another two and a half hours of driving to Tolmin.
*Insert rant about the fu*king parking lot of a road between Brezovica and Vrhnika. I’ll never understand the fascination and half of Europe migrating to the Croatian coastline during the summer.*
On the topic of rants, crediting the photographer – it’s hard. It’s really hard! Am I right, D.S.M. of RTV Slovenija?
Despite the traffic, Tolmin holds a special place in my heart and the memory of winding roads quickly disappeared. We got lucky with the weather, the people were amazing, and as long as I don’t have to calculate my hourly rate, it was a blast.
Shoutout to Klemen, Saša, Tim – best partners in crime and roommates, motivating each other with much-needed sit-down and take-a-breather reminders. Tim and I also made sure the coffee was not an issue – we do apologise to Saša and Klemen for geeking over filter papers, v60 recipes, Nestor Lasso, grind settings and overpriced scales. Maybe you learned something? Hah, an optimist, I know.
Check out Klemen‘s, Saša‘s and Tim‘s Instagram. Besides being awesome human beings, they are exceptional photographers!
As a fun little game, we decided to have a small internal competition for the best photo/composite of the festival – if you’ve been to the festival and taken some photos – submissions accepted until Sunday at 8 pm. If anyone wants to apply for a seat in the jury, let me know. The reward? Whoever wins must buy a round for everyone. For honour!
The photo crew had Robi behind the steering wheel; Matej & Črt were driving the festival ship, with the wholehearted crew – the paramedics, security, the merch team, volunteers and media. Also, the food and drink vendors – you were lifesavers.
Highlights? Psychonaut 4 stole the show for me music-wise; Infected Rain were the most photogenic, with Hatebreed a close second. The kebab from Fast Food 13 and falafel and shawarma by Okusi Orienta “wrapped” the whole experience as a success.
I missed a few bands the first day, including the almighty In Flames for the second time in a row, but… Such is life.
Steps?
69485 taken, roughly 50 kilometres.
Photographs?
15928 taken, 940 edited.
Hours of sleep?
Solid 14h for three nights – a badge of shame.
See you next year? No doubt about it, just wishing it’s not back-to-back festivals across the country. Old AF.
Double newsletter time
Still feeling a little bad for not delivering the episode on Tuesday, but half-proud to have delivered the first mailing for the Alpijada event. If you’re not subscribed yet, head over to alpijada.com and leave your email.
I fought the battle with commas, but lost the war with shape and fact. Despite checking the pre-final and final draft a couple of times with a second pair of eyes, there were too many mistakes. I apologise and still blame it on the lack of sleep. Partially. Let me set the record straight.
- Dob’r Bob’r is a five-man band.
- This is how you should format lists.
- Only Bobr typos were by design.
This was also a good reason to bring the alpner.si domain back to life, with the newsletter available here (in Slovene) for anyone to read.
PSA
It’s getting really popular for people in my inbox to request photos from the event, before even driving home. I know you’re excited and want to send me a kind reminder so I don’t forget, but please have just a tiny bit of patience and respect for my time and rest, and give me a day or two.
Learning to say no
On the topic of inbox requests …
- Both Siddharta x Big Foot Mama Red Bull SoundClash concerts are sold out – if you didn’t buy the ticket soon enough – tough luck. Sadly, I can’t help you. Also, if you’re selling the ticket, I’d love to buy one from you.
- Some schools in Slovenia have mandatory internships for their classes, one of which is photography. Based on my not-so-fun experience in the past, I decided not to offer said activities.
- However, there is a possibility small group or individual workshops, if you’re interested in something like that.
Pogi Challenge
Vasja from Alpe.cc and I made a deal last year to tackle this year’s S Klanca v klanc and gave ourselves an optimistic task – a sub-50 effort, which in theory should be achievable. In practice, we both didn’t want it bad enough and also, life happened.
Recced Krvavec by myself last week, and with the current state of my weight, lungs, legs and shape, I’ll be really happy with a sub-60 result. First race day after a few years, should be fun.
Vasja got some new stock in his store; if you need some proper cycling apparel, now is the time. Not an ad, just supporting a friend as I’m really enjoying and (ab)using his products for years.
Music
Feeling a bit all over the place with my current playlist and mood, so here are a few that left a mark.
- Riječke pičke by Let 3
- Scotty Doesn’t Know by Lustra
- Nanana by The Kelly Family
- Sanjaj by I.C.E.
- Always with Me, Always with You by Joe Satriani
My friend Tadej Pišek shared the live recording of The Gathering from Wacken* today – I think we both wish we were there. Maybe sometime soon? *the video has already been removed
The Hu released HUN, which I really enjoyed whilst editing the photos. The same goes for My Mirage, an EP by Her Last Sight. What a fun band!
That’s Episode 24.
Marko