AZRA - "SUNČANA STRANA ULICE" (1981)

For Azra's second album Branimir Štulić obtained as much freedom as he can get from the publishers of Jugoton Records. He produced it in person (unlike their debut effort) and he wrote some of his most powerful lyrics, equally dividing them between love songs and political anthems. Some tracks contain really harsh slogans ("Poljska u mome srcu"/"Poland Is in My Heart"; "Užas je moja furka"/"Horror is My Vibe"; "Kurvini sinovi"/"Bastards"), which testify that the Yugoslavian government policy wasn't as strict as the Soviet ones (as you probably know, Yugoslavia didn't sign the Warsaw pact and it wasn't technically part of the Eastern Bloc).

"Sunčana strana ulice" is the opus magnum of Azra's studio career. It is a double vynil, with six songs on each side, and it lasts over an hour. 
Štulić worked hard on the acoustic guitar sound (particularly high and sharp) and on echo techniques (in some moments the percussion are threated as in Jamaican dub records), while the arrangements ranged from folk ballads to rock'n'roll, crossing some cripple post-punk miniatures. Mišo Hrnjak's bass guitar is often prominent, and some songs are heavily marked by the presence of wind instruments (saxes, trumpet, tuba, harmonica).

The biggest hit of the album, "Odlazak u noć", is a jangle pop gem which predates English-speaking indie pop (only Orange Juice's "Falling and Laughing" was released before it). Other impressive numbers are the choral power pop anthem "Užas je moja furka", the obscure tango of "Kurvini sinovi", and the indolent post-punk of "Poljubi me", but honestly, nearly every song deserves attention. 

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