Zvuki Mu
Encyclopedia
Zvuki Mu a Russian
alternative rock
/indie
/post-punk
band founded in Moscow in the early 1980s. Lead singer and songwriter Pyotr Mamonov
is one of the most revered and eccentric figures of the Russian art scene, whose absurdist lyrics are as playful and disturbing as his vocal style and explosive on-stage presence. The band's sound combined starkly simple yet textured melodies with synthesizer sounds, quite unlike anything else heard in Russian rock
at the time. One of Zvuki Mu's albums was produced by Brian Eno
. He invited the band to London, to record their first studio album. During this visit they did a gig at the ICA. They had little money, and slept on the floor of poet and writer, Anth Ginn. They spent all their money in the Brixton Exchange Mart, on second hand musical instruments. According to legend, Brian Eno met them at his flat to plan the recording session. He had to go out for a couple of hours and told them to make themselves at home. When he got back they were unconscious on his kitchen floor, surrounded by several hundred pounds worth of empties from his expensive booze collection. Apparently he was not happy. Mamonov had an acrimonious split with the band in the 90s to pursue a solo career and they replaced him. They still tour, but without the success they had with the original line up.
The band's name is best translated as "The Sounds of Mu" (where "mu" has been said to stand for music
, Moscow
streets, Japanese/Korean negative
or a cow's 'moo').
Some of the band's recordings were later used in Mamonov's theatre performances, with only the vocal parts being sung live.
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
/indie
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
/post-punk
Post-punk
Post-punk is a rock music movement with its roots in the late 1970s, following on the heels of the initial punk rock explosion of the mid-1970s. The genre retains its roots in the punk movement but is more introverted, complex and experimental...
band founded in Moscow in the early 1980s. Lead singer and songwriter Pyotr Mamonov
Pyotr Mamonov
Pyotr Nikolayevich Mamonov is a Russian rock musician, songwriter and actor, former frontman of the Moscow band Zvuki Mu.Mamonov was one of the few rock musicians from former USSR who managed to achieve recognition abroad, through his collaboration with Brian Eno in the late 1980s...
is one of the most revered and eccentric figures of the Russian art scene, whose absurdist lyrics are as playful and disturbing as his vocal style and explosive on-stage presence. The band's sound combined starkly simple yet textured melodies with synthesizer sounds, quite unlike anything else heard in Russian rock
Russian rock
Russian rock refers to rock music made in Russia or in the Russian language. Rock and roll became known in the Soviet Union in the 1960s and quickly broke free from its western roots. According to many music critics, its "golden age" years were the 1980s , when the Soviet underground rock bands...
at the time. One of Zvuki Mu's albums was produced by Brian Eno
Brian Eno
Brian Peter George St. John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno , commonly known as Brian Eno or simply as Eno , is an English musician, composer, record producer, singer and visual artist, known as one of the principal innovators of ambient music.Eno studied at Colchester Institute art school in Essex,...
. He invited the band to London, to record their first studio album. During this visit they did a gig at the ICA. They had little money, and slept on the floor of poet and writer, Anth Ginn. They spent all their money in the Brixton Exchange Mart, on second hand musical instruments. According to legend, Brian Eno met them at his flat to plan the recording session. He had to go out for a couple of hours and told them to make themselves at home. When he got back they were unconscious on his kitchen floor, surrounded by several hundred pounds worth of empties from his expensive booze collection. Apparently he was not happy. Mamonov had an acrimonious split with the band in the 90s to pursue a solo career and they replaced him. They still tour, but without the success they had with the original line up.
The band's name is best translated as "The Sounds of Mu" (where "mu" has been said to stand for music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
, Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
streets, Japanese/Korean negative
Mu (negative)
or Wu , is a word which has been translated variously as "not", "nothing", "without", "nothingness", "non existent", "non being", or evocatively simply as "no thing"...
or a cow's 'moo').
Some of the band's recordings were later used in Mamonov's theatre performances, with only the vocal parts being sung live.