UBILI SU BATLERA

Location: Belgrade, Serbia

Year active: 2021 - ?????

Members: Damjan Vitorović, Luka Lazarević, Matija Ilić, Relja Blagojević

Related bands: ????

FFO: Free Throw, Joyce Manor, The World Is A Beautiful Place, Snowing, Casper Elgin

I've following this band for quite some time now and it is about time that they've released an official debut EP for us to hear. Before that, lemme tell you all on how i found out about this Belgrade-based band from the beginning.

Photo by me

Back in 2022, the frontman guitartist/vocalist Luka dropped a two-track EP 'avgust' under the moniker Luch0 on Bandcamp. The tracks in question are instrumental math-rock/post-hardcore demonstration of his skills. At the time adding it to my list, i didn't realize that he was connected to the Butlers until he contacted me via their IG page. He was admittedly surprised and validated to find his stuff on there, given that he completely forgot about the project. That’s how far back this band quietly existed in the background, slowly crafting something more solid.

Anyway, Ubili su Batlera (trans. They killed the butler) was founded in 2021. They shared demos around YT or somewhere else and started performing around 2022. I actually had the luck to see them twice while reporting the gigs on here in between January and February 2024, especially when they released their first track 'Utorkom, ponekad' (trans. Sometimes on Tuesdays), as part of Hali Gali Kompilacija Vol. 2.

That track alone was a standout. A booming bassline leads the way, with swirls of guitar drenched in emotional nuance. The vocals walk the tightrope between anguish and resignation, held together by steady, deliberate drums. The lyrics hover between existential dread and emotional loyalty:

“U svojoj glavi držim eter
a u rukama prazninu,”

“Biću tvoj nezaposleni ortak utorkom
Biću tvoj poslednji pas u trci s vremenom.”

Then the breaking point:

“Ovde nema nikog
Nikog osim nas...”

It’s an anthem for those fighting quiet battles, trying to make presence mean something again.

Now, fast forward to May 2025: the band drops their long-awaited self-titled EP, recorded between February and March at Down There Studio, with cover artwork by Milica Berić.

Its opener 'Novi Svet' gets the listeners hyped up in pure 'Twinkle Daddies' fashion,  only 1:40 long, but it delivers that punchy, glittering introduction. It only continues with 'Smrt i Filozofije Palanke', merging twinkly guitars with pop punk elements and catchy hooks. My favorite being the next track 'Jedan! Dva!! Tri!!!' where the melody gets more infectious and It hits with a stream-of-consciousness urgency, pairing emotional volatility with vivid summer imagery:

“Opet samoća 

I ideje koje stvorilo je avgustovsko sunce”

“Svaka reč će 

na julskom suncu da ispari.”

Even lines like this carry a poetic weight that feels honest and unfiltered:

“I svaki korak koji naprave 

ove ofucane patike

u jednom smeru vode me

Bez cilja, ali iz potrebe”

The last one being the alt-rock-ish 'Ko Nema u Glavi¿'  where things seem to slow down a little, going straight to the alt. rock route. Think Dinosaur Jr. if filtered through a modern emo lens, less about fuzz and more about that 90s brand of youthful burnout. The unexpected trumpet adds a sense of dramatic finality that works way better than expected.

While many bands from this region tend to lean on trendy aesthetics without depth, Ubili su Batlera are a rare exception. Their music isn’t just stylish—it’s deeply lived-in. There’s an authenticity in their writing that makes them feel essential. They're in fact one of the few bands, whose songwritings actually carry justice in an otherwise the quasi 'emo-free' region. 

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Pratim ovaj bend već neko vreme i došao je trenutak da konačno imamo njihov zvanični debi EP pred sobom. Ali hajde prvo da ispričam kako sam ih uopšte otkrio.

Još 2022. godine, frontmen Luka (gitara/vokal) izbacio je dvotrekovni EP avgust pod pseudonimom Luch0 na Bandcampu. Te stvari su bile instrumentalni math-rock/post-hardcore showcase njegovih veština. Kad sam ih dodao na listu, nisam ni kapirao da ima veze sa Batlerima, dok mi se nije javio preko njihovog Instagram naloga. Bio je prijatno iznenađen i pomalo oduševljen što sam iskopao taj materijal, jer je i sam bio zaboravio na njega. To vam govori koliko je ova priča tinjala dugo u pozadini, dok nisu sklopili nešto ozbiljnije.

Ubili su Batlera (prev. They killed the butler) nastali su 2021. godine. Demosi su kružili po YouTube-u i ko zna gde sve, a svirke su krenule 2022. Imao sam sreće da ih vidim dva puta uživo, u januaru i februaru 2024, dok sam izveštavao sa koncerata – taman u trenutku kada su izbacili prvu pesmu Utorkom, ponekad, kao deo Hali Gali Kompilacije Vol. 2.

Ta stvar je odmah iskočila. Bas otvara, ogroman i pulsirajući, oko njega gitare pune emotivnih nijansi, dok vokali balansiraju između rezignacije i očaja, a bubnjevi ih drže čvrsto i promišljeno. Tekstovi lebde negde između egzistencijalnog očaja i odane bliskosti:

“U svojoj glavi držim eter

a u rukama prazninu,”

“Biću tvoj nezaposleni ortak utorkom

Biću tvoj poslednji pas u trci s vremenom.”

Pa onda kulminacija:

“Ovde nema nikog

Nikog osim nas...”

Himna za sve one tihe borce koji pokušavaju da povrate smisao samim svojim postojanjem.

Fast forward – maj 2025. Bend konačno izbacuje istoimeni EP snimljen u februaru i martu u Down There Studio, sa omotom Milice Berić.

Otvara ga Novi svet – čisti “Twinkle Daddies” momenat. Kratko, 1:40, ali direktno u čelo, svetlucavo i energično. Sledeća, Smrt i filozofije palanke, prepliće twinkly gitare sa pop-punk elementima i zaraznim refrenima. Meni lično favorit dolazi odmah posle – Jedan! Dva!! Tri!!!. Melodija tu kulminira, sa stream-of-consciousness urgencijom, ljetnjim slikama i emotivnim haosom:

“Opet samoća

I ideje koje stvorilo je avgustovsko sunce”

“Svaka reč će

na julskom suncu da ispari.”

Čak i jednostavne slike nose težinu:

“I svaki korak koji naprave

ove ofucane patike

u jednom smeru vode me

Bez cilja, ali iz potrebe.”

Poslednja stvar, Ko nema u glavi¿, vuče više na alt-rock, malo usporenija, kao da svesno pravi otklon. Pomišljaš na Dinosaur Jr. kroz savremeni emo filter – manje fuzz-a, više tog ’90s osećaja mladalačkog sagorevanja. Truba u završnici je potpuno neočekivana, ali daje pesmi teatralan kraj koji legne savršeno.

Za razliku od mnogih bendova iz regiona koji često skliznu u estetiku bez suštine, Ubili su Batlera odišu autentičnošću. Njihove pesme nisu samo “stajliš” – one se osećaju proživljeno. Njihov songwriting ima težinu, iskrenost i smisao, nešto što retko ko u ovoj kvazi “emo-free” zoni ume da ponudi.

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