Croatian Band Keen To Take Up New Zealand Band Offer

Popular Croatian surf-rock band The Bambi Molesters say that they would gladly accept an invitation to play on the other side of the world in the town which a song they recorded almost 20 years ago was named after…

The opening track of The Bambi Molesters’ 1997 debut album Dumb Loud Hollow Twang titled ‘Wanganui’, caught the attention recently of a band from the town the song was named after in New Zealand. The Pussywhippers, who are from Wanganui, a town on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand, stumbled across The Bambi Molesters’ tune and were immediately intrigued. Now the Kiwi band want to bring the Croatians to New Zealand to play together.

“It’s almost like a mirror on the other side of the world. They’d have to play with the Pussywhippers, if only for crazy name vs crazy name. We can do it, we can get them here. Croatia to Wanganui,” Pussywhippers’ Matt Edmonds told the Wanganui Chronicle.

Wanganui in New Zealand, nicknamed the River City

The Bambi Molesters, who are from the central Croatian city of Sisak, named the tune after the small New Zealand town as a good friend of their guitarist Dalibor Pavičić moved to live there at the same time they were recording the album.

“If we get an invitation to perform in New Zealand we would gladly accept of course,” The Bambi Molesters’ bass guitarist Lada Furlan told Tportal, adding that she was happy that the tune had reached all the way to the Kiwi surf band.

It would not be the first time the Croatians would have played there.

“Last time we were there it was great. We played there in 2002 as part of the New Zealand Festival. If contact is made, then why not, we are always up for playing. We would accept an invite from The Pussywhippers’,” Lada concluded.

Since their formation in 1995, The Bambi Molesters have taken part in the revival of the 1960s surf genre. They have managed to build their reputation as a contemporary surf rock band and perform regularly in Croatia and all over Europe, often opening for the US rock band R.E.M. The track “Chaotica” (from their third album Sonic Bullets: 13 from the Hip) was featured in the soundtrack of Season 5 of the TV series Breaking Bad.