Hi, fellows! From the
depths of profound sorrow I’m writing you now just because I need some readers
(I wouldn’t dream of interlocutors) who would make me a company on this dark
autumn (in Russia it’s already winter, actually) evening.
Poverty and unemployment
are surely among our biggest troubles, you all must have heard about it. Actually
I’m facing it every day, and I’d like to look in the eyes of those who claim
that troubles like these can become some sort of sources of inspiration — how
wrong they are!
The latest album by Лосины Маршала Потемкина, «Триумфальное возвращение» (“The Triumphant Return”) is basically about it. I
wasn’t about to return to this project after previous release which turned out
to be pretty devastating, but I think I had to return due to external reasons.
I felt I had to remind that things are still going wrong.
The title cover was
traditionally contributed by my friend Pavel Chainichkov, who also takes part
in a conversation in the opening track «Алкоголик-фолк» (“Alcoholic Folk”).
Starting with this
album, «Лосины…» correct their
direction again. Having begun with “alcoholic folk” with heavy found objects’
sound, this project turned to completely acoustic folk, and then — to somewhat
I call “conceptualist folk” on this record, meaning actually the influence of
poets representing Moscow conceptualism (firstly, Dmitri Prigov, but also
Vsevolod Nekrasov and German Lukomnikov, whom I had a chance to meet
personally).
The second track, «Вторичный крик» (“The Secondary
Scream”) refers to “Primal Scream” theory, as it’s easy to find out. I doubt if
some accidents occurred during the first year of a life can determine the whole
living, as there is always some breaking point, which, I suppose, is the
“secondary scream”.
The third track, «Вечная гармония» (“The Eternal
Harmony”) is another reference to Kirillov, mixed with real-life cautions and
rows:
“One year ago I was told to get a job
And I still can’t get rid of the fear”
The fourth track, «Дискриминация» (“Discrimination”) doesn’t need to be explained, I
believe. Well, maybe you haven’t been discriminated. Lucky for you! Poetically,
it’s some kind of cut-up lyrics read using one-chord harmony and industrial synths.
One of favorites from
this album is an instrumental «Музыка для поножовщины» (“Music for a Knife
Fight”), one of few tracks from this record which got positive acclaim and
pretty big (for me) amount of plays. Certainly, I used a real knife, recording it.
When I tried to promote the record, some editor of a magazine wrote:
“It’s not music at all, it’s not art at all… you wouldn’t prove anything
to me, because I have musical education”.
When I received this
answer I was on cloud 9: I reached my goal! “Music for a Knife Fight” (knife
fights quite often occur in Russian towns, because holding a gun is most likely
illegal, and there’s a heavy risk of suicides, as Dostoevsky thought) contains
some very heavy overloads, although it’s not harsh at all, it’s very sweet
noise-pop with some sweet acoustic guitar, at least that’s what I thought.
The song «Камни» (“The Stones”) is a sad sadness song, like stuff
from previous album. The title refers to Ivan Turgenev, who wrote: “I envy to the stones”. There is also a line about savage
faces which was a nod towards my hero Blaine L. Renininger’s song “Teenage
Theatre”.
“Look closer and you’ll see
Things which seemed to be made of iron
Are actually made of paper”
“I’m fed up with living in constant fear
I’m fed up with living with pain
I’m fed up with living like a dog
Who notices only bad things”
“When no-one knows you,
No-one’s going to forget you”
“Hopes of our childhood have been mixed with dirt”
“So many years have passed,
But I have just noticed how much I’m exhausted
How futile it was to envy the strong ones
How futile it was to envy the stones
Because the stones have crushed me”
Another sad song is «Чувство дистанции» (“Sense of Distance”).
It nods to The Sound’s song “Fatal Flaw”. But the most depressing song here is,
probably, «Похороны безработного провинциала» (“The Funeral of an
Unemployed Province Dweller”). This character, unemployed province dweller,
gave a title to second Лосины…’s album, and
now I found out that he’s gonna die if he’s about to stay unemployed. Actually
I’m still unemployed and in the hour of
need there’s nothing to wait for. This song includes a hard work of
applying effects to acoustic guitar, and I think I can be proud of the result.
It also includes Akutagawa’s quote “I don’t have a conscience, I have only
nerves”.
“I have nothing to be afraid of
I have nothing to lose
There is no difference at all
If I stay or if I go”
“Those who love the life that much
Jump down from the bridge”
“If you’re that far ahead
Maybe your way is wrong”
“When each and every of us was put in hell
You were thinking if you’ll be allowed to return for a cell phone
charger”
The album ends with song
«Времени нет» (“There’s No Time”),
it repeated the Apocalyptic line “there is no time anymore”. I guess I was
wrong then. Well, maybe I’ll need to release another Лосины…’s album then.
Download for free from
BandCamp:
Sincerely yours,
John “Grey Lenses” Grey
