Amajlija (Serbian Cyrillic: ÃÂüðÃÂûøÃÂð; transl. Amulet) is a Serbian and Yugoslav rock band formed in Novi Sad in 1979. Led by vocalist and guitarist Bogoljub "ÃÂombe" Banjac, Amajlija reached the peak of popularity in the late 1980s and early 1990s with their melodic hard rock sound.
The band was formed in 1979 by Bogoljub "ÃÂombe" Banjac (vocals), Boà ¡ko "ÃÂvaja" PlaÃÂkov (bass guitar), Predrag "ÃÂole" ÃÂoka (drums)â all three being former members of the band 'OÃÂeà ¡-NeÃÂeà ¡ (Want It or Not)â Slobodan "VeÃÂa" VeÃÂkalov (guitar) and Tomislav "ÃÂvaja" Milei (rhythm guitar). Initially, the band performed cover versions of songs by The Rolling Stones, Riblja ÃÂorba and Azra, and slowly prepared their own material. The band had rehearsals at the Zlatibor construction firm barracs, where, in late 1979, they had their debut live appearance. The band earned their first fee playing at a party organized by the Novi Sad Union of the Deaf People.
During 1980 the band rehearsed intensely and performed occasionally, mostly at elementary school dances. In the same year, the band was joined by contortionist Petar "Pera Gumeni" KrsiÃÂ, whose primary role in the band was of a showman. In 1981, on the invitation by Radio Novi Sad producer Jovan Adamov, the band recorded four demo songs. The following year, the band performed at the Subotica Youth Festival. The band had another lineup change, the new members becoming Zoran BojÃÂevski (bass guitar) and Vojislav "Voja Uà ¡ar" Vilià(solo guitar), and then went on a hiatus, as a part of the members had to serve their mandatory stint in the Yugoslav People's Army.
The band continued their activity in 1985, in the lineup featuring Banjac, VeÃÂkalov, ÃÂoka and ViliÃÂ, this time with Banjac on vocals and rhythm guitar and VeÃÂkalov switching to bass guitar. At a studio in Bukovac the band recorded material consisting of ten songs, intending to release them, which did not happen due to the low quality of the recordings. In the same year, the band performed as an opening act on the Bajaga i Instruktori Yugoslav tour. Due to the positive reaction by the audience and Bajaga i Instruktori themselves, the band also performed on the Bajaga i Instruktori 1986 tour, during which, due to a quarrel, the band disbanded.
In June 1987, Banjac, as guitarist and vocalist, reformed Amajlija with bass guitarist Zoran "Gera" Geriàand drummer Zoran "Petrija" PetriÃÂ. The band performed on numerous youth work actions and as an opening act on the Vojvodina tours of the bands Film, Kerber and Griva. However, Banjac decided to disband the band and record the material for Amajlija's debut album alone, with the help of guitarist Zoran "Anka" AnÃÂiÃÂ, who also produced the album, and sound engineer Milan ÃÂiriÃÂ, a former ÃÂista Proza member. The album Samo ti (Only You) was released in 1989 through Diskoton and brought the minor hits "Poà ¾uri druà ¾e" ("Hurry Up, Comrade") and "Dobar drug" ("Good Friend"). In order to promote the album, Banjac formed the new Amajlija lineup, consisting of himself, Zoran AniÃÂià(guitar), Slobodan VeÃÂkalov (bass guitar), Dejan StarÃÂevià(keyboard), Julije Dondo (drums) and the band's old collaborate Petar KrstiÃÂ.
The band's following album, Zaà ¡to si tako blesava i luda (Why Are You so Weird and Crazy), also produced by AniÃÂiÃÂ, was released in 1990 through PGP-RTB. Since AniÃÂiàdecided to devote himself completely to a career as a producer, VeÃÂkalov switched to playing guitar, and the new bassist became the former Arena member Zoran "Zobma" MarjanoviÃÂ. While previous Amajlija album was more hard rock-oriented, Zaà ¡to si tako blesava i luda presented the band with a more pop rock sound, with the songs "To je bio dan" ("That Was the Day"), "ÃÂeznem da te zeznem" ("I Wanna Screw You Up"), and "Veruj u ljubav" ("Believe in Love") becoming the album's biggest hits. The songs were composed by Banjac, and the lyrics were written by Banjac and Predrag Srbljanin, Banjac's former high school teacher. After the album release, the new band members became Miroslav "KiÃÂa" Maletià(solo guitar), and former Love Hunters member Milan "MiÃÂko" Ljubenkovià(drums).
Amajlija's third album, VruÃÂe + hladno (Hot + Cold), was recorded in London in 1991 by Banjac, VeÃÂkalov and AniÃÂiÃÂ only. With the album the band returned to hard rock sound. British disc jockey Andy Kershaw appeared on the album as a guest, playing acoustic guitar. The album's biggest hits were the title track and the acoustic ballad "Ume biti gadno" ("It Can Get Nasty"), which the band had considered not to release at all. Due to the intense live performances after the album release, including the 1992 and 1993 Gitarijada festival in ZajeÃÂar, VruÃÂe + hladno became the band's greatest commercial success.
The band's fourth studio album, ÃÂista zabava, ÃÂist rock 'n' roll (Pure Entertainment, Pure Rock 'n' Roll) was released through PGP-RTB successor PGP-RTS. The album, was produced by Bajaga i Instruktori member Saà ¡a Lokner, who also played keyboards on the album recording. It featured electronic music elements, resulting in negative album critics. However, the tracks "Dala si mi" ("You Gave Me") and the cover of ÃÂorÃÂe Balaà ¡eviàsong "Prva ljubav" ("First Love"), due to their frequent radio broadcasts, became hits and the band got the opportunity to perform at the Music Festival Budva. After the album release, on 13 May 1994, the band held a large open air concert at Novi Sad's Danube Park handball playground.
In 1995, the band recorded the album Nikad vià ¡e kao pre (Never Again Like Before), produced by Nenad "Japanac" StefanoviÃÂ, who also wrote the music arrangements. Nikad vià ¡e kao pre was Amajlija's first album on which all the instruments were played by members of the band. The album was recorded in Novi Sad Dum Dum studio and released in 1996. After the album release, the band had numerous live appearances, mainly at the Novi Sad club Zeppelin, and the Ujvideki Sinhaz theatre. The band also performed at the 1995 and 1996 Novi Sad Koncert godine (Concert of the Year) festivals. In 1998, VeÃÂkalov left the band, being replaced by Miroslav MaletiÃÂ, but, soon after, the band went on hiatus and started performing occasionally only, mostly in clubs. In 1999, the band performed at the à  trand festival with Banjac's son Petar on drums for the first time. He would continue to occasionally perform with the band in the following years, until 2006, when he would become a full-time member of the group.
The band continued their activity in the mid-2000s, with Bogoljub Banjac's cousin Danijel Banjac on second guitar and Petar Banjac on drums. On 5 July 2008, the band performed as an opening act for Status Quo at the Rock Bastion Festival in Novi Sad. They released their fifth studio album, Prosula si sake na kimono (You Spilled Sake on Your Kimono), in 2009 through Komuna record label. The album featured a cover of the song "Tulsa Time", entitled "à ½ene" ("Women"), the re-recorded version of the song "Dobar drug", and the bonus track "Kià ¡ne kapljice" ("Rain Drops"), recorded with the tamburitza orchestra Zorule. On 26 May 2009, Amajlija performed, alongside The Answer, as the opening act for AC/DC on the concert held at Partizan Stadium in Belgrade.
In 2013, both ÃÂoka and VeÃÂkalov returned to the band. Simultaneously with Amajlija, VeÃÂkalov performed with the band Rakila, recording the 2015 album Pokreni se (Move Yourself) with the group. In 2017, Amajlija released the single "MamuTi" (the title being a word play, as in Serbian "Mamuti" means "Mammoths", and "Mamu ti" means "[Fuck] your mother") on their official YouTube channel. In 2019, the band released the single "Veruj" ("Believe Me").
Amajlija's forming member Slobodan "VeÃÂa" VeÃÂkalov died on 5 July 2020.