Nashe Radio plays popular music that isn't quite "pop." What's big in Russian-language rock, rap, punk, R&B, and alternative? Nashe Radio's all-Russian and eclectic play list can tell you. Once a month, SRAS provides a snapshot of what's at the top of their charts, with YouTube videos and additional commentary taken from the Russian Popular Music page of our Library.
1. «Дороги»- Мельница
Melnitsa (Мельница, the Russian for windmill) is a Russian folk rock band. It was founded in 1999 by Natalia "Hellawes" O'Shea and Alexey "Chus" Sapkov. The band fuses Russian, Irish, and other North European folk influences with guitar pop/rock. Natalia "Hellawes" O'Shea, the lead singer and primary songwriter, is an academic and a specialist in medieval European languages and cultures by day. Her expertise lends the typically complex fantasy-laden lyrics a degree of authenticity.
2. «Питер рок-н-ролл» - Бригадный подряд, Король и шут, Пилот и Кукрыниксы
This punk-rock band was formed in 1986 in Leningrad, USSR, by three classmates. Its early career was held back by the fact that the USSR officially looked down on punk and rock music. However, the band broke up in the early 1990s, shortly after the fall of the USSR. It eventually came back together with a slightly different compensation. Some think that only songs produced in that first period of band’s existence are truly theirs, nevertheless, they still uphold a reputation as one of the best Russian live bands. Many of their songs also have been covered by other famous Russian rock-bands and artists. Their name "Бригадный подряд", in Russian business lingo, means “Contract Services.”
You can find this particular version of the song "Piter Rock-n-Roll" with participation of four famous bands on the site of Nashe Radio here.
3. «Страшная тайна» - Сплин
Splean was one of the first Russian rock groups to emerge after the fall of the USSR. They are still wildly popular, singing unusual but addictive songs with sad words and unusual melodies. The group's name means depression in Russian and they insist on its transliteration being spelled with –ea rather than –i, which is a nod to the spelling of the Beatles. According to one Russian critic, "Splean opens doors to the consciousness and what door to enter, where to stay, depends on the decision of your heart." We are also fans of their song "Пыльная быль," which was one of their first big hits in the 90's.
4. «Для него»- Чайф
Chaif (Чайф) was formed in 1984 in Sverdlovsk (now Yekaterinburg), Russia. Their name is derived from the word chai, meaning tea, and "kaif", a slang word roughly equivalent to the English slang use of "high." The band first big hits came in 1992 with Don't Hurry (Ne Speshi) and 17 Years Old (17 Let). They are still popular in Russia and recognized as "staples" of the music scene there, occasionally appearing on television shows, giving concerts, and releasing new material. They best known for their wide variety of styles, which generally hold true to folk-rock, but lapse into blues, jazz, and even reggae influences.
5. «Хрустальный мир» - Кукрыниксы
The Russian post-punk band Кукрыниксы (Kukryniksy) was founded in 1997 by Aleksey Gorshenev, the ex-drummer of the horror punk band Korol i Shut (King and Jester) and the brother of Korol i Shut frontman Mikhail Gorshenev (also known as “Gorshok” or “pot”). The band is well-known for their contributions to the soundtrack of the movie The 9th Company (9 Рота). The word “KuKryNiksy” is the name of a Soviet political cartoonist trio from the 1940s-50s (Mikhail Kuprianov, Porfiry Krylov and Nikolay Sokolov). This name was chosen for the band accidentally and temporarily, but has not been changed yet.
