Emir Kusturica released a western and gave himself top billing, behind the mike. Of course, since it’s an episode of the adventures of the No Smoking Orchestra, the movie is sonorous. You can hear the Mexican army and its vibrant trumpets, cowboys leaning on a saloon bar who drink gallons of rotgut, to the sound of a dance piano or a twang guitar, just like the one from Hank Marvin and the Shadows. There’s the cavalry galloping through vertiginous landscapes and even some Balkan reminiscences. A song about beer, Cerveza, is followed by another singing the praises on drunk ska rhythms of Balkan kebab on the Yankee burger Hamburger Versa Kebab.
Further, Kusturica, who pens lyrics in English, Spanish or Serbian, shoots down MTV on “Fuck You MTV” or puts himself in the shoes of a Mafioso who tells the story of his life during a trip in his coffin from Chicago to Naples in From Chicago to Napoli and the whole thing ends by an homage to the king of salsa, Tito Puente, written by the Puerto Rican Noro Morales. The music in most of the titles is penned and arranged for guitars, bass, brass instruments, keyboard, accordion and drums by the faithful violinist Dejan Sparavalo. Throughout the album, Emir Kusturica and The No Smoking Orchestra yell, laugh, sing in chorus, jump all over the place and encourage us to party wildly. © Benjamin MiNiMuM/Qobuz March 2018