Sara Renar - Nježne riječi LP (Croatia Records 2026)

Liner notes

"Dear listeners,

Before you are Gentle Words - my fifth studio album- a bilingual, genre-blending record that explores tenderness as a form of resistance.

Inspired by the format of theatre program booklets (a space I’ve often found myself working in lately), I wanted to share a few thoughts about how this album came to life and the context in which it was created. At its heart, Gentle Words is an album about language - language as destiny, as refuge, as burden, and as rebellion. It reflects on what it means to create in what is often considered a “smaller” language, from the context of Southeast Europe, and from the perspective of a woman songwriter navigating a global music industry built on growth, visibility, and market logic.

The opening track and title single, “Gentle Words” (Nježne riječi), introduces the central idea:that tenderness - indeed gentleness - can be radical in harsh times. The second single, the bilingual “Pustinja / The Desert,” explores liminal states and cultural in-betweenness, while the final single, “Smile & Wave,” written and performed in English, offers a satirical take on assimilation, artistic insecurity, and the unpaid labour often expected of contemporary artists.

Musically, this may be my most eclectic work so far. It might be easier to market - and to neatly define - a stylistically consistent album, but these gentle words resisted being boxed in. In the end, they made room for electronic music, nods to 90s and 00s pop, desert blues, funk, cinematic atmospheres, and a range of other sonic textures. Perhaps it’s no coincidence that many global artists are embracing bold genre crossings and working across languages. Perhaps this is a final cry of resistance before the digital cultural space fully “flattens” art.

I co-produced the album with Jan Kinčl, recording partly at my home and partly at Jan’s CYCLE studio. I wrote the lyrics and music for all the songs, except for “Pustinja / The Desert,” whose music was composed by my husband, Dimitrije Simović (who kindly let me rescue it from the depths of our hard drive). Dimitrije also co-arranged every track - and without him, these songs simply wouldn’t groove the same way. I’d also like to highlight the wonderful brass section - Igor Pavlica, Marko Lucijan Hraščanec, and Hrvoje Štefanić - who brought a brighter tonal colour to the album, as well as Luka Toshev, a Macedonian guitarist and long-time collaborator of Dina Jashari, who played a brilliant funky guitar line on the title track.

I’m equally proud of the three music videos that accompany the singles, through which our small but steady film team truly came together: Dario Matić as director of photography, Dora Perharić as producer, Vesna Jurić as assistant producer, Dominik Belančić in charge of colour grading, and myself as director and editor. I must also mention the beautiful cover photographs by Marina Uzelac, which - together with the design by Sven Sorić - perfectly capture the album’s visual tone and message. And finally, Gabrijela Mamić created the costumes for the “furry creatures” - our embodied gentle words that have followed us since the first single.

Perhaps not every song here is meant for constant replay. Maybe you’ll return to certain tracks, or they’ll catch you unexpectedly. Or perhaps you’ll listen to the album from beginning to end more than once. I’m certainly not the most objective judge - but I do know that I stand behind every song, and that we poured immense care, love, and dedication into each one.

Welcome to the world of Gentle Words." - Sara Renar

Credits

Recorded, produced and mixed at Cycle Studio Zagreb.