Korben Dallas: New Album Reflects Troubled Slovakia & Political Tensions

Slovak band Korben Dallas’s tenth album, Čomu uveríš, released January 20, 2026, tackles contemporary political and social issues in their homeland, moving beyond personal narratives into broader commentary. The album reflects a growing trend of Slovak musicians addressing current events through their art.

Frontman Juraj Benetin, who previously dreamed of selling out Wembley Arena with his earlier band Appendix and experienced a brief moment believing he was a rock star, says the album captures the atmosphere of present-day Slovakia. “Kleptokracia, teokracia / všetko sa to stále vracia / aj tak z toho nakoniec vždy / presvitá to slovenské,” the band sings in the song “Slovenská.”

The phrase “presvitá to slovenské” – meaning “the Slovak shines through” – isn’t about abandoned ambitions, but rather the current state of affairs in Slovakia. Much of the album, with music written by Benetin, sees Korben Dallas’s typically personal songwriting evolve into a more societal focus.

“Kleptocracy, theocracy / everything keeps coming back / and always / the Slovak shines through,” are lyrics from the album.

Formed in 2010, Korben Dallas is now taking a more direct approach to social critique than in the past. While previously subtly updating older songs, like replacing the word “uncle” with “aunt” in “Spovede” (Confessions) as a reaction to the destructive policies of Culture Minister Martina Šimkovičová, the band is now more overtly political. The change in lyrics was a response to Šimkovičová, who represents the Slovak National Party and promotes traditional Christian and cultural values. The revised lyric reads: “Keď namiesto gúľ / máš spovede / keď do krojov obliekaš obete / svojich predstáv o svete / keď nemá kto povedať / teta vy trepete,” which translates to “When instead of bullets / you have confessions / when you dress up victims in folk costumes / of your ideas about the world / when no one can say / aunt, you’re talking nonsense.”

Korben Dallas, along with fellow Slovak band Billy Barman, previously responded to conservative efforts to promote so-called traditional values with their 2023 single “Netradičná rodina” (Non-Traditional Family). “Na oknách máš igelit / márne skrývaš celý byt / aj tak sa blíži hodina / navštívi ťa netradičná rodina,” they warn in the sharp, horror-punk track, which translates to “You have plastic on the windows / you vainly hide the whole apartment / the hour is approaching / a non-traditional family will visit you.”

“There are too many people in Slovakia today who are trying to define what is normal, what is traditional,” Benetin told Frontman magazine. “And of course, we’ve taken a little jab at that to suggest that everything is a lot more complicated than it seems, and that perhaps the most important thing is a feeling of freedom. That even the invoked traditions are less important than freedom itself.”

Slovak music is increasingly intertwined with political contexts under the current government. Last year, the traditional folk song “Nebojím sa pána” (I Fear No Lord) became a protest anthem, even as Culture Minister Šimkovičová was met with boos at the largest folk festival in Východná.

Singer-songwriter Dorota Nvotová similarly made a powerful statement with her dark and haunting track “Slovenská ľudová tieseň” (Slovak Folk Distress), lamenting “lords who long for gold, dress in folk costumes and crawl into our beds,” and declaring “everyone sings Slovak folk distress / lightning flashes over the Tatras and darkness falls over us.”

The new Korben Dallas album perfectly reflects the Slovak distress, deepened by the fact that the chill now comes not only from the Kremlin but also from the White House. Beyond “Slovenská,” standout tracks include “Daj si pozor, čomu uveríš” (Be Careful What You Believe), “Zradca” (Traitor), and the emotionally resonant “Domov” (Home), the only song on the album penned solely by Benetin.

Benetin wrote “Domov” while traveling far from home, feeling the theme was important. In an interview with Aktuality.sk, he explained that many people around him in Slovakia don’t feel at home and are considering where else to live.

The way the central slogan of “shining through” is interpreted in “Slovenská” is particularly chilling. The song features a children’s choir – Benetin’s son, the two daughters of his brother, and the daughter of the album’s producer, Tomáš Sloboda – offering a stark vision of the future. As they grow up, they may also consider leaving their homeland.

Benetin’s “Domov” doesn’t enter the body through the ears, but through the heart. The singer admits that something magical permeated the song’s creation. He attributes this to the circumstances under which Korben Dallas recorded it – around midnight, after a long day, when the only thing they could do was create something gentle, naked, full of emotion, and vulnerability. “I can’t remember when I last interpreted something in such a way,” he said of the song, accompanied only by acoustic guitar and bass.

Restraint is a hallmark of the album Čomu uveríš. Less is more in every moment. For example, the instrumentation of “Slovenská” is based solely on three mostly monotonous bass lines and simple drums, as if to discourage people from singing along. Yet those swaying basses vibrate the listener so much that they cannot remain indifferent.

Similarly, the song “Zradca” is reduced to a hurried, stealthy bassline. Producer Sloboda incorporated the sound of concrete being poured into the foundation of a future house into the song’s almost frantic conclusion, perhaps symbolizing how society is concreted into two antagonistic positions. And how the word “traitor,” uttered from one side or the other, is becoming commonplace.

Lyricist Fila repeatedly arrives at the slogan “nobody likes a traitor” in a brilliant way. And “it doesn’t matter under what / you march with a flag / whether you burn Marx / or the leader is on strike / or you stay on the ground.” The entire new album by Korben Dallas is a textbook of advanced engaged songwriting.