Sunday, 09 March, 2008 - 22:30

Volga

VOLGA

Angela Manukjan - vocals
Roman Lebedev - electronics, [guitar]
Alexei Borisov - electronics, guitar, back-vocal
Uri Balashov - zvukosuk, tibetian cup

http://volgamusic.ru/
http://www.myspace.com/volgamusic

Throughout Russia's turbulent history the Volga has always flowed, its 2000 navigable miles an artery of commerce and culture, of peoples and their passions.

The group Volga creates a music with a similar sense of eternal flow and temporal omnipresence, gracefully melding timeless and ancient folk motifs with the fleeting immediacy of Ambient Experiment.

This effect is created by framing the vocals of Anjela Manukjan, who adopts Russian folk styles, with electroacoustic washes that stretch out behind the music like vast fertile flood plains.

This extremely hard-working Moscow-based group started in 1997 and has so far released six albums, of which 2004's 'Three Fields' CD (Sketis Music) gained widespread attention and critical acclaim in many countries outside Russia.
In turn, last year, a 'Selected Works' CD was released by Germany's Lollipop Shop, plus a CD of remixes on Sketis Music by a diverse range of artists including COH, Idioritmik, Pink Twins and DJ Kolombo. Besides this, the group often tours Russia and abroad and participates in many different international festivals each year, whilst one of the core members, Alexei Borisov, remains a prolific solo force in contemporary electronic sound-art.

Together, Volga successfully weave a wide range of influences. Driven by the highly impressive, strong and often haunting voice of Angela Manukjan, Volga's sound carefully picks away at electronica's more interesting contours; electroacoustic elements; mantric dance rhythms and a variety of traditional, Shamanistic or folk styles from both their native country and far, far beyond. Most of Angela's lyrics are derived from 19th Century Russian folklore/text as well, lending the native vocals an even more unique slant.
The group's seventh (yet fifth studio) album, 'Pomol' represents their most powerful, inventive and fully-realised work yet. Accessible and buoyant on one hand, dark and sonically confrontational on the other, it possesses a command only too rarely found in what can be loosely deemed pop music.

Discography:
Volga (CD, Exotica Records 1999)
Bottoms up! (CD, Exotica Records 2003)
Concert (CD, Sketis Music 2003)
Three Fields (CD, Volga/Sketis Music 2004)
"Selected Works" (CD, Volga/Lollipop Shop 2005)
"5" Remixed (CD, Volga / Sketis music 2005)
Pomol (CD, Lumberton Trading 2006)