Mizar

Mizar is a Macedonian rock band from Skopje, a cult name in North Macedonia and across the former Yugoslavia. Its music runs from post-punk and dark wave to gothic rock and dark folk, and the band took its name, given by drummer Panta Džambazoski, from the star Mizar, a guiding star for travellers in the desert.

Mizar was formed in 1981 as an instrumental trio: Gorazd Čapovski on guitar, Valentin Zabjakin on bass and Džambazoski on drums. Ilija Stojanovski soon took over the bass, Risto Vrtev, later of Arhangel, joined as singer, and in 1982 the band recorded a demo for Radio Skopje. Military service split it in 1983.

In 1985 Mizar returned with the singer Goran Tanevski and keyboard player Slobodan Stojkov. In 1986 they played the Druga Godba festival in Ljubljana, had a video for "Stoj" and toured Yugoslavia as the support act for Laibach and Disciplina Kičme; Goran Trajkoski also passed through the line-up on bass. In 1987 the band won an award for its unique sound at the rock festival in Subotica.

The debut album, Mizar, came out in 1988, recorded by Tanevski, Čapovski, Boris Georgiev, Sašo Krstevski and Katerina Veljanovska. It is described as the first popular music album in the Macedonian language in the former Yugoslavia and is listed among the ten best rock albums released there. Its best-known song is "Devojka od bronza", and "Zlatno sonce" reworks the folk song "Zajdi, zajdi". The second album, Svjat Dreams, with "Dom" and the traditional "1762", followed on 7 September 1991, and the band split later that year.

In 2003 Mizar reunited with Goran Trajkoski as singer, released the single "Juda", played the Exit festival in Novi Sad, and in 2004 issued Kobna ubavina - Terrible Beauty (Is Born), with "Počesna strelba". Tanevski came back in 2006 for Pogled kon cvetnata gradina (2007); after he left in 2010, the Byzantine choir Harmosini sang on Deteto i beloto more.

With Jana Burčeska as singer, the band supported Simple Minds in Skopje in 2014 and released the singles "Nebo" and "Kajmos". The documentary Mizar: The Star of Hope was released in 2015, and the album Večna praznina followed on 12 December 2022. Gorazd Čapovski is the only member who has been there from the start.