The greatest Russian avant rock band is back with a new release, and it is every bit as good as their best work from the distant and not so distant past. Random observations from the first couple of listens:
- increased piano presence moves this closer to prime examples of European RIO (think Univers Zero);
- this is the most energetic thing they've done in years, as it is almost all ferocious instrumental fireworks with just a couple of slower songs to soften the pace;
- oddly, they've become more melodic and tuneful too, without losing the breathtaking complexity of the earlier works; maybe Suslov isn't actually kidding when he calls this "love songs";
- a couple of tracks with Arkadiy Semenov's lyrics strangely enough make less sense this time around, than Suslov's own largely meaningless, primarily phonetical mumblings; when the actual poetry appears, its overwhelming density somewhat breaks the flow of the music;
- the album is recorded live, with just a few overdubs, which is the only way to handle this kind of music; as such, it catches the frenetic intensity of their stage show and comes off as a full-fledged five-star effort. Hats off.
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