No Name

Founded in 1996 by bassist Vilo Gutray and brothers Igor, Roman, and Ivan Timko, No Name began their run as a four-piece songwriting outfit from a set of students in the Kosice Conservatory. After a small-scale start with festival performances, the group entered and won a contest of original Slovak pop music, catapulting No Name as representatives of the nation at the regional Bratislavka Lyra festival and gaining recognition in the process. Despite their sudden success, or due to it perhaps, No Name became a frequent target of critics due to their seemingly easy ride to the top, built on pop and cover songs. In response to this criticism, the band went into hiding and redeveloped its sound (also adding keyboardist Zoli Sallai), returning in 2000 with Pockam Zi Na Zazrak and winning the praise of critics as well as all major categories (Best Song, Best Album, Best Band, Best Production) in the Slovakian equivalent of the Grammys. The band soon branched into the nearby Czech Republic to great acclaim, adding brother Dusan Timko on second guitar and beginning a massive touring push. The album Cim To Je gave a nod to their newfound Czech success, recorded in Prague and with most release events in the Czech Republic as well. In 2007, the group released V Rovnovahe, returning to the charts in both countries.