Biography
Uz Jsme Doma began its career performing in the underground scene of Czechoslovakia. Once the Velvet Revolution ended Communist rule, the band ranked among the earliest acts to break through and shape an alternative rock identity for the emerging republic. Sharing that role with Plastic People of the Universe, the musicians served as representatives of Central European rock, repeatedly crossing the United States and building a devoted American audience. Where the PPU captured the repression of the 1970s and 1980s through somber, despair-driven music, Uz Jsme Doma embodied the energy of newfound freedom. Punk at their core, activists by conviction, and experimental in their dissonances, intricate compositions, and wit, they stood as the Czech Republic’s foremost ensemble of the 1990s.
Jindra Dolansky formed the group in 1985 in the border town of Teplice, contributing saxophone and vocals. The name derives from a Czech expression roughly equivalent to “now we’re at home,” conveying sudden understanding. Branded antisocial by the Communist regime, the musicians played unauthorized shows, endured repeated personnel shifts, and assembled a substantial body of avant-punk material shaped by Pere Ubu, the Residents, the Sex Pistols, and the Rock-in-Opposition movement. After the student demonstrations of November 17, 1989, and the rapid political changes that followed, Uz Jsme Doma came to symbolize the new era. On December 3 they appeared before 15,000 people, and co-leader, lyricist, and lead singer Miroslav Wanek was soon enlisted by the interim government in their hometown.
With Communist restrictions lifted, the band could finally record. Uprostred Slov appeared in 1990 and Nemilovany Svet in 1991. During those years the lineup settled around Wanek, Dolansky, saxophonist Alice Kalousková, guitarist Romek Hanzlík, bassist Pavel Kerka, and drummer Pavel Pavlicek. Although painter Martin Velisek never performed with them, he has always been regarded as a full member; his visual work has defined the group’s public image.
Beginning in 1991, Uz Jsme Doma launched a continuous touring regimen that soon carried them to America, where they developed followings in New York and along the West Coast and acquired the label “touring monsters.” An English-language version of Nemilovany Svet, titled Unloved World, reached the United States in 1992 and led to a BMG contract for the album Hollywood. Frustrated by insufficient support from the major label, the musicians returned to Czech imprint Indies and issued Pohádky ze Zapotrebí in 1996. That release introduced bassist Jan Cerha and drummer Milan Novy. Numerous American visits during this period included their appearance as the circus band on the Residents’ Freak Show tour, album, and CD-ROM, as well as the live recording Vancouver 1997. Hanzlík left shortly afterward. For the 1999 album Usi, Wanek and Dolansky rebuilt the rhythm section with guitarist Radek Podvesky and drummer Petr Böhm.
Jindra Dolansky formed the group in 1985 in the border town of Teplice, contributing saxophone and vocals. The name derives from a Czech expression roughly equivalent to “now we’re at home,” conveying sudden understanding. Branded antisocial by the Communist regime, the musicians played unauthorized shows, endured repeated personnel shifts, and assembled a substantial body of avant-punk material shaped by Pere Ubu, the Residents, the Sex Pistols, and the Rock-in-Opposition movement. After the student demonstrations of November 17, 1989, and the rapid political changes that followed, Uz Jsme Doma came to symbolize the new era. On December 3 they appeared before 15,000 people, and co-leader, lyricist, and lead singer Miroslav Wanek was soon enlisted by the interim government in their hometown.
With Communist restrictions lifted, the band could finally record. Uprostred Slov appeared in 1990 and Nemilovany Svet in 1991. During those years the lineup settled around Wanek, Dolansky, saxophonist Alice Kalousková, guitarist Romek Hanzlík, bassist Pavel Kerka, and drummer Pavel Pavlicek. Although painter Martin Velisek never performed with them, he has always been regarded as a full member; his visual work has defined the group’s public image.
Beginning in 1991, Uz Jsme Doma launched a continuous touring regimen that soon carried them to America, where they developed followings in New York and along the West Coast and acquired the label “touring monsters.” An English-language version of Nemilovany Svet, titled Unloved World, reached the United States in 1992 and led to a BMG contract for the album Hollywood. Frustrated by insufficient support from the major label, the musicians returned to Czech imprint Indies and issued Pohádky ze Zapotrebí in 1996. That release introduced bassist Jan Cerha and drummer Milan Novy. Numerous American visits during this period included their appearance as the circus band on the Residents’ Freak Show tour, album, and CD-ROM, as well as the live recording Vancouver 1997. Hanzlík left shortly afterward. For the 1999 album Usi, Wanek and Dolansky rebuilt the rhythm section with guitarist Radek Podvesky and drummer Petr Böhm.
Albums
Live
