How Rock Changed Russia

During the period of the Cold War, the Western world had its younger generations become exposed to its first elements of rock, punk, and metal. From The Stooges to Green Day, and from The Doors to the Red Hot Chili Peppers, the American youth shaped and evolved what we now know as ‘rock music’. But this wasn’t the case everywhere. Britain and Western Europe followed similar patterns, yet the Soviet Union was seemingly reluctant in producing any world-renowned rockstars or bands.

The story of rock music in Russia and the USSR is one which is perhaps more political and complicated. Although the Beatles initially made a grand impact in the 60s, in essence, rock and roll was banned. The state had censored any creative forms which ‘corrupted’ the culture. Importing western music was essentially contraband, and the youth had to go to great measures to even get a glimpse of the new Elvis track. During this time, vinyl was generally the most popular way of hearing music, and vinyl was also a highly expensive and rare material to get a hold of. This prompted the invention of a shady but albeit creative new way of listening to prohibited music, an alternative now referred to as ‘bone records’.

Bootleggers and teenagers would collect the vinyl found on printouts of hospital x-rays and use them to make copies upon copies of illegal music. The sound quality was arguably awful, but it was still something. Notably, only one side of each piece of vinyl could be used and were cut with wax disc cutters. These bone records were also considerably cheaper than authentic records that were smuggled in, and so they achieved great popularity amongst the youth.

However, the prohibition of any rock music still very much remained at large. It was associated with the promotion of counterculture, and it challenged the authority of the state. In the 80s, the government had finally realised that perhaps certain artists shouldn’t be penalised, and it implemented a selective approach to allowing some domestic ‘rock’ musicians to perform.  At the same time, some Western musicians were finally granted permission to perform. Cliff Richard first toured in the Soviet Union in 1976, and at the end of the 80s, Queen, David Bowie, and more artists such as Ozzy Osbourne were given the opportunity to play in Russia. This of course was a greatly significant moment, and it marked a point of development for music inside the state.

Whilst the government became more permissive for outsiders to tour, it was still cracking down on local artists. Most bands in the country were ones one could find playing in public on the streets, and they were often arrested and associated with hooliganism and the corruption of nationwide values. However, some of these bands went on to become massive domestically. Even today, if you had asked anyone not from Russia whether they had heard of Kino or Aquarium, they would probably be confused. But in Russia, these 2 bands were and still are celebrated by masses.

Kino is perhaps the largest Russian rock phenomenon. The band was founded by Viktor Tsoi, a Leningrad local of Korean origin. After his underground band appeared in the 1987 film ‘Assa’, Kino rose to great fame. The aspect of this new-found stardom that is most outstanding is the fact that it was Tsoi’s lyrics that hypnotised the nation. He combined his philosophy of sly existentialism and pacifism with catchy riffs and took shots at the government’s cold approach to politics between the lines of his words. The group’s most famous songs regard the brutality and harsh reality of war and were later associated with the horrors of the Chechen and Soviet-Afghan wars. Unfortunately, Tsoi passed away in a car crash in 1990, but his legacy fiercely lives on in Russia to this day. Although near the end of his life he was a national sensation, he still largely lived an ordinary life and was close to poverty.

The collapse of the Soviet Union was followed by some of the biggest names in music being able to freely perform on Russian land. In 1991, one of the most infamous and largest concerts of all time was held in Moscow – a staggering 1.6 million people came out to watch Metallica, and this went down in history as a colossal and record attendance for any event.

In modern times, rock has slowly faded away and the music in Russia follows the same trends as everywhere else, with a surge of hip-hop and pop music. However, with Russia once again being at war and a large portion of the younger generation rebelling against it, it’s almost impossible for contemporary indie bands and artists to protest against the regime through music, and although censorship is still an issue, the revival of opposition through rock music is being born today.

Written by Ivan Makarin.