Jingle bell rock

If there is one Czech band that comes to mind during the Christmas season, it's Jablkoň.

Their 2004 Christmas album, Hovada Boží/Animantes Dei, not only won the band a prestigious Czech Anděl award, but also charmed children across the nation with its contagious holiday countdown track "7 Weeks Until Christmas."

Jablkoň's capacity to subvert folk tradition and their general lack of a fashionable attitude has roots in Czech Cold War-era surrealism that betray the band's origins in the 1970s. Jablkoň's first recording, which they produced in 1988 after nearly a decade of live performances, gained the band an international following and bewildered more than a few locals. In an attempt to describe Jablkoň's quirky yet accessible debut album Devátá vlná, distinguished Czech music critic Jiří Černý mentioned a bicycle pump, a coin purse, green-bean pods and foot tambourines. What does that tell you?

With clownish acoustic wizardry, Jablkoň used mostly instrumental tracks to scream freedom with every note on Devátá vlná. But the band isn't another crew of decibel fiends confusing high voltage with high concept. Jablkoň layers their unplugged sophistication in a rich musical DNA, from the cave etchings of Czech basin Neanderthals to the expressive ambition of Rachmaninoff.

Driven by impulses that seem eccentric, Jablkoň's knack for melody and humor has earned them 14 well-received albums and tours in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Germany, France and Belgium.

Any band whose work has been compared to Frank Zappa, and who has also received funding from Prague's premiere country and western radio station, Country 89.5, for an album may seem strange, but can't be accussed of not having wide appeal.

The group's success may have more to do with meteorology than music, however. As Jablkon's percussionist and multi-instrumentalist Peter Chlouba tells The Prague Post, "We are not only influenced by folk but also everything around us including rock, experimental music, classical music and even some mainstream popular music, if you can stand listening to that. And even things not found in the musical, theatrical or visual arts influence us. Right now it can be said we are influenced by Prague being buried under snow."

With 30 years of history, Jablkoň ranks as one of the Czech Republic's longest-running alternative bands. But anyone who has seen the group perform in recent years will know the word "tired" is simply not in the band's vocabulary. Even with the momentum of several successful decades behind them, keeping up the necessary energy takes hard work, according to Chlouba.

"We greatly respect the spirit of Jablkoň; we regularly dance with him, play with him, we wine and dine him and give him presents. We give him everything we can so he thrives," he says.

Jablkoň couldn't have found a more spirit-filled site for throwing their spirit into Christmas reverie than Malostranská beseda, the 11th-century venue the band has booked in the heart of Malá Strana. Jablkoň will present a special Yuletide program that includes what Chouba calls "the special guest actress and performer Anička Duchanová performing some wacky Christmas skits to bring us Christmas cheer."

"Otherwise, we are preparing Jablkoň Christmas classics, and this includes our carols, old carols and new carols. We are ready to carol," he says.

Putting the band's twisted Christmas spirit into focus, Chouba refers to one of Jablkoň's more popular lyrics: "A všechna ta hovada boží teď nakupují zboží" or "May all the creatures of God now buy goods."

Twisted Christmas spirit indeed.

Darrell Jónsson can be reached at
features@praguepost.com