The year nineteen eighty-nine was a turning point: the Warsaw Pact countries, one by one, began to abandon the socialist path of development, falling into the twisted arms of NATO. The destruction of the Berlin Wall became a symbol of the unification of the two Germanies into one state, and P. Todorovsky’s film “Interdevochka” was released on the screens of the USSR, whose title accurately characterized the role of Mikhail Gorbachev in international relations. In Japan, Akihito is proclaimed the new emperor, in the USA George Bush Sr. becomes president, in Leningrad Stanislav Bogorad gathers the first Russian psychobilly band The Meantraitors.
Starting to perform as often as the realities of the time allowed, The Meantraitors quickly acquired their own community of loyal fans, called “5-th column”, “Fifth Column”, the original rhythm section was replaced by drummer Vladislav Lyashchuk and double bassist Dmitry Ilyin, who formed the “golden” line-up of the early period. Three songs were released in the fifth issue of the cult compilation “Psycho Attack Over Europe”, and the recording of the debut LP “From Psychobilly Land” coincided with the beginning of the August 1991 coup.
The album became the first and last vinyl with psychobilly music released in the Soviet Union, selling 40,000 copies. Along with the collapse of the empire, the “iron сurtain” collapsed, and already in 1992 the band went to “freak out” in Germany, where they shared the stage with the famous British “Demented Are Go!” a couple of times, however, they did not stay over the hill for long.
In 1993, Moroz Records released their second album, Titanic Music, which, like the first, contained 20 chants of one and a half to two minutes each. The speed of the songs, which went off the scale on the previous record, becomes simply a hurricane, the vocals sound like the voice of a St. Petersburg scumbag from a London alley. In addition to guitar hooks in the spirit of The Meteors and Batmobile, the music is influenced by unbridled street punk. On the back of the envelope, one of the two photos captured The Meantraitors folding a swastika with their hands, which in Yeltsin’s Russia could neither surprise nor anger anyone. The circulation this time was already 70,000 and sold out again. However, in the middle of the summer of the same year, Lyashchuk and Ilyin left the band, experiencing a creative and existential crisis related to the lack of funds for illegal drugs.
Since there were no other double bassists capable of maintaining such a scalded tempo in the foreseeable vastness of the galaxy, Stas decided to add a bass guitar to the sound palette, especially since The Meteors had a precedent in front of his eyes, and it was much more comfortable to carry a four-stringed paddle with him on tour. Recorded in the West and released by Rumble Records, the third album “Welcome To Palermo” was born in search of a new approach at a crucial stage of development, and therefore it was not very successful, but the conclusions were drawn correctly: subsequently, the guitar lost the effect of the crying Magdalene, acquiring the ferocity of the Druzhba chainsaw, the rhythm section became much more aggressive with a double pedal for the bass drum, the intonation of the pack leader appeared in the voice.
In the same year, 1994, there was a petit scandale, associated with the notorious swastika on the backdrop of Titanic Music. Paul Finek, who has always stated that psychobilly exists outside politics, refused to perform with the Nazis. It took some effort and nerves to convince the foreign public that the Russians who defeated Nazism were just teasing.
From the end of 1995 to the beginning of next year, the fourth album is being prepared and recorded at their own expense. In Russia, it is released by Bomba-Peter, in Europe, Rockhouse Records buys the rights to the publication. “Angry Heart” was a landmark for Stas Bogorad and, perhaps, the best to date in the discography of The Meantraitors. Let’s sniff it from all angles, Moon Dawgs!
Don’t You Die is preceded by a verse saying that if there is no rock and roll in Heaven, “we are ours, we will build a new Hell,” after which everything turns into a high-speed frenetic instrumental with a single title refrain.
Angry Heart is a sinister, unhurried action movie that gave the album its name. With a clear taste of proletarian Oi!-punk and sullen howls in the choruses.
Your Broken Jaw is a typical Bogorad psychobilly song that has gained mass and become bearish. It doesn’t look like it’s going to be a broken jaw.
Too Clever To Be Good is a great soundtrack for racing in post-apocalyptic wastelands. He has a weighty groove and a healthy (for a mutant) sense of humor.
Trans-Siberian Express is the next instrumental, maliciously voicing an express train heading for the icy underworld.
Killin’ An Arab – his view on the composition of The Cure, slightly clouded by radioactive fallout.
Erotic Nightmares is an unstoppable psycho-Polka about the perversions of a dormant mind.
Main Street Of The Past mockingly parodies teenage ballads of the 1950s. Stas delightfully foolishly squeaks, wheezes and gives a cock, denying himself nothing.
Cool Fans Of Damned Fuckin’ West not only makes the lower limbs twitch convulsively, but also demonstrates increased skill and updated guitar playing technique.
Four Johnnies has an expressive melodism that breaks through the wild rhythm.
Man With The Scar is an amazing psycho-surf epic and one of the main things of the album. It’s amazing that she still hasn’t been dragged through the movies like “Misirlou” used to be.
Straight On is an intense dance routine. A real hit in the best traditions of psychobilly.
I’ll Meet You In The Fog breathes the stench of cheap horror movies and dark alleys behind dirty nightclubs where you can stumble over anything.
Lamborghini’s Noise depicts the noise of a car engine through a trio of musicians. Words are superfluous.
Clown sounds like an insult. Excellent teeth-crushing room.
King Sorrow is a powerful sketch suitable for powerful racing hearses.
Liar, Liar – period. Fat as an oil slick in the Gulf of Mexico.
In conclusion, I would like to note that such albums are a common phenomenon not only in the psychobilly environment, but also in the entire world subculture. Envy those who will hear this film for the first time. Advise everyone to attend The Meantraitors concerts in their hometown and other cities. Meet me in the fog!
Join us:
https://vk.com/meantraitors_89
https://t.me/meantraitors
https://meantraitors.bandcamp.com
