All of these bands are from St. Petersburg. Despite their stylistic differences, they deal with silence in a related manner. A rejection of shallow shoptalk leads to the validation of quieter places, far from the city center.
Four bands from Moscow, Riga, and Minsk all work hard to avoid the limitations of language and other formal constraints. What lies beyond the security of tradition, however, is far from clear...
Vstrecha Ryby are a young collective from the industrial city of Chelyabinsk. In moving to Moscow, they take inspiration from the well-respected elder statesmen of Russian rock, Auktsyon. Between them all lies a shared worldview.
One of the primary differences between Western and Slavic rock traditions is the enduring relevance of folklore. Somewhat surprisingly, the conservation of that heritage is often used for very subversive purposes.
A new CD has appeared from St. Petersburg's "Aquarium," arguably Russia's most important rock group of the last few decades. Given the length of that career, there is a certain logic to these songs of faith and fidelity.
The Wild Mint Festival, hosted outside Moscow, is arguably the nation's most important folk music event. One of the headliners this year was Anna Pingina, whose view of "traditional" performance is rather unique...
The wonderful Nino Katamadze has published a new CD in her ongoing series of conceptually linked albums. The lasting importance of improvisation in that work has interesting historical precedents
The new album by Volgograd folk-rock outfit Nachalo Veka was released online today. It does an admirable job of giving modern relevance to some traditional folk themes - and burying them in Nietzschean musings!
Deti Picasso are an ensemble with roots both in Moscow and Yerevan. Their new album is based upon H.C. Andersen's "Snow Queen" and investigates the big power of little children
A long-lost 1987 recording by St Petersburg legends Akvarium has just been published, revealing a unique chapter in Russia's music history
