Delfin (Дельфин, eng. Dolphin) is the stage name of Andrei Lysikov (Андрей Вячеславович Лысиков), a popular Russian musician who plays experimental electronic music. He has often been compared with Moby. Lysikov got his start in the scandalous 90s hip-hop trio Bachelor Party (Мальчишник), where he was the main songwriter. As Delfin, Lysikov has received numerous […]
Timati (Тимати) is the stage name of one of Russia’s biggest mainstream hip hop stars, and owner of the popular record label Black Star Inc. Born Timir Il’darovich Iunosov (Тимур Ильдарович Юнусов), Timati is of Tatar and Jewish descent. Timati raps in both Russian and English, and has recently risen to a measure of international […]
T-Killah is the stage name of Aleksandr Ivanovich Tarasov (Александр Иванович Тарасов), a Russian rapper who has gained a substantial following mostly through internet-only releases. The social networking site VKontakte is one of T-Killah’s main platforms, though he has also released two physical albums. Tarasov grew up in Moscow, studied economics, theater, and music, and […]
Noize MC is the stage name of Russian rapper Ivan Aleksandrovich Alekseev (Иван Александрович Алексеев). Aside from his music, Noize MC has become known in recent years as a vocal critic of the Russian authorities and particularly of Russia’s 2014 intervention in Ukraine, which has resulted in many of his shows being cancelled or raided […]
Guf (Гуф) is the stage name of Russian rapper Aleksei Sergeevich Dolmatov (Алексей Сергеевич Долматов) . Guf was a founding member of the seminal hip hop group Centr (Центр), has had an extremely prolific solo career, and founded the labels ZM Nation and Tsao (Цао) Records. Guf entered the rap world in 2000 as part […]
Evgenii Margulis (Евгений Шулимович Маргулис) is a prolific Russian rock musician, singer, songwriter, composer, and one of Russia’s most famous blues composers. He is known as a founding member of one of Russia’s most important classic rock bands, Time Machine (Машина времени), as well as a founder and on-again-off-again participant in Voskresenie (Воскресение), also a […]
Agata Kristi (Агата Кристи) was one of Russia’s most popular rock bands during the 1990s. Their sound tends toward gothic rock and post-punk, and at times even new wave. Agata Kristi’s impressive repertoire includes ten studio albums, five compilations, and eighteen music videos, as well as a long history of tours around Russia and abroad. […]
Mordor is a Russian industrial metal band. The members of Mordor perform under psudeonyms: Orkus (Оркус) on vocals, Wolffang (Вольфган) on guitar, Hombre Pajaro (Омбре Пахаро) on bass, and Sarto (Сарто) on drums. The name is a reference to a location in the Lord of the Rings series of books. According to their website, Mordor’s […]
Iva Nova (Ива Нова; the name translates to “new willow”) is a Russian experimental folk-punk group. They combine elements of punk, blues, tango, and other styles with Russian folk music, creating a sound that has been hailed by rock journalists as radically innovative and interesting. Their band website proclaims that they’re an “alternative ethno-extreme that […]
Bobsleigh (Бабслей—though note that this is not the usual Russian word for “bobsleigh” and is perhaps also a play on the Russian word баба, “woman”) were one of Russia’s first successful folk-punk bands. The band formed in St. Petersburg in 1998 initially as a bit of a joke. The members all loved folk music, but, […]
Alisa (Алиса) is a legendary Russian metal and hard rock band. Starting in St. Petersburg in 1983, Alisa has since released nineteen studio albums to date and spawned an entire subculture of fans known as the Alisa Army (Армия АлисА), notorious for their wild behavior at concerts. Alisa formed out of the ashes of Soviet […]
NAIV (НАИВ) is an internationally known and politically outspoken Russian punk band formed by army friends Maksim Kochetkov and Aleksandr Ivanov. In Russian, their name is an acronym for “New Harlequins and Voltigeurs” (НАИВ: Новые арлекины и вольтижёры). After putting out a DIY demo tape, NAIV’s first studio album, Switch-Blade-Knaife, titled in English and featuring […]
