The month of June is usually a sort of an endurance test; because that is the time when several vintage and rockabilly festivals take place. The last in the in the row was Trash’n’Burn, festival now held for the seventh year in Sveti Martin na Muri, in the country side. It’s known for being one of the oldest festivals of that kind around here. The place is in fact a wide meadow with a meditational pond and the accompanying catering facilities, so there is no real need to leave the complex (if you don’t want to), because all the people are there, it’s like a small retro-town. Since the festival is primarily an American car meeting, the highlights are the cars and motorcycles, but there are also other things related to that culture: rockabilly concerts, pin-up girls, a photo-contest (which is a must), burlesque, a hair & make-up shop, a barber shop, burn-out, a retro market and many more. The food and the booze are pretty affordable, and there are several locations where you can buy them, so it’s not crowded and there’s no waiting. Camping is free all the time, so you can freely take a tent and install it on the meadow. If you’re into a more comfortable accommodation, there are also bungalows which we didn’t have a chance to see from the inside, but we’ve heard that they are pretty nice.
Trash’n’Burn has this special energy – it’s an enthusiastic project which becomes bigger and bigger every year… but not so big that you couldn’t see and talk to most of the people you know or have met in the previous years. Besides American cars, small and big blocks, always comes and burnout – or as I would call it: the art of destroying tires and producing smoke, which, for unknown reasons, always cheers everyone up.
Here’s an example:

There is also a photo-contest every year in which the best photographers and models are announced. This Boštjan’s group photo is from the last year, but paints the picture of the idea of the contest in the best way:

Two bands impressed us the most. We discovered The Dead Beatz two Austrian guys – one plays a mouth accordion, bass drum and beats the cymbals with his hands (all this simultaneously, of course) and the other sings and plays the contrabass while he performs stunts with it. The genre is something like rock’n’roll blues, but I have to admit that we have never heard something like that before. It started to rain just before their gig, so people crowded under the tent in front of the stage and when the band started, we were all euphoric. So, we have two instruments that sound like a small orchestra, an energetic performance, the bassist with the beard that Goga fancies… That’s what it’s all about! After the gig we felt like we had done our business there and could already go home. We also liked their personality, illustrations and the EP cover made by the illustrator Marcel Bontempi. We put a few photos of the cover of their single and poster in our photo gallery.

But – Fia Sco & the Majestics also played on the same night, a band which, I must admit, we haven’t heard before that. The first phenomenon of that concert was the singer herself. Everybody who have seen and heard Fia Sco singing, fell in love with her. It’s best to describe her as a fallen angel, and we know how pathetic it sounds. And again, the thing we like the most about Trash’n’Burn is the genre diversity. Fia Sco & The Majestics play country, western swing, hillbilly boogie… Goga had difficulties with the lighting and the disobedient camera so we are putting here a photo from the band webpage, whose author is Reinhard Dlapa, the drummer in the band, with his artist name: Ray Big Balls Hammer.

We bought the both bands’ EPs. Fun fact: we went to Fia Sco with a Slovenian friend who, besides buying a CD, almost proposed to her. There you go…

The general conclusion is that this is a great event that has something to offer to everyone. Whether you came just to relax, chill with your feet in a lake with rockabilly music in the background, watch fancy American cars and cycles, stare at pin-up models, attend concerts, dance or simply eat and drink with friends in an extremely positive environment – you will have a great time. See you next year! And of course, click on the gallery below…