Where do I begin to tell the story of how great a gig can be..?
Well, let’s begin in Jurmala. I arrived in the early afternoon, glad to have made it there from Riga by bus with the kind help of indulgent Latvians patiently listening to my very broken Russian, eagerly pointing directions I couldn’t match with my Soviet (?) map. I hastily walked my way up to the concert hall, Dzintaru Koncertzale, which, I had seen on the Internet, was just newly renovated. It was freezing cold, and little did I know that the place had no walls.
I knew already when I decided to come, that it was virtually impossible to get a ticket – and even more so as a foreigner. Fortunately, there was a man working with arranging the concert, who promised to hold a ticket in my name – I called him up on the phone when I reached the site and he said that it should be ready to pick up at the box office. It wasn’t. So, I went strolling even further along the iela or prospekt and suddenly faced – the ocean! The bay of Riga, anyway. And it was quite spectacular! I had been so full of Mumiy Troll that I didn’t realise this bonus was waiting for me. An old man played the accordion very badly and I put some coins (lats, santims, who knows) in his hat. There were only a few people there and I walked down to the waterside. For the first time in days, I totally forgot about Mumiy Troll. The sand was the finest I’ve ever seen and the sky thunderstorm-blue, rippled by sheer, light grey clouds. I could almost sense the presence of holiday makers from old days – Soviet officers’ families, satin parasols, fat men in striped bathing suites, plastic bathing rings… almost hear the sound of laughing children, women cheerfully chatting in this soft sensual language..
Then the dream escaped me. Mumiy Troll. Ticket. Food – gosh, I’m hungry! And my hair! My hair dryer from the sixties (no kidding) wasn’t built for the electricity points at the hostel. So now began my wandering about this picturesque little wooden town. No hairdresser available, but lots of cafes and restaurants. So I entertained myself rather well waiting to get in contact with the Russian webmaster of Mumiy Troll’s who had been delayed by some photographers. I and Ann had never met before and – my god – I was probably going to meet the band too! Heart accelerating fast and it didn’t help trying to lead a conversation with an old man persisting to talk only in Finnish. After a while we found out we both enjoy the Finnish author Arto Paasilinna who’s works we discussed in detail using only body language, laughing hilariously.
Impatiently I went back to the box office again and there was my ticket. 8 lats, pajalousta! I thought I was on some sort of guest list but who cares. I happily paid and felt a bit calmer. Still – could it be?! – 3 hours left! After a coffee here, a salad there, freezing my butt off, all the nervousness went away along with my positive expectations. I was bored, a state I am sure by reading all this you might be familiar with. Then: Let There Be Sound check! I wandered around the fences like a dog out in the rain, smilingly singing along in ‘Medveditsa’, rejoicing on Pungas personal attack on the drums. Hearing Ilia’s voice now and then. But half an hour before the gates were to open, there was only the sound of light rain, music from the many bars and the whispering scrape of teenagers’ sneakers against the pavement, signalling to me that it’s high time to line up for the big event. Just inside the gates, we could see two Medveditsas toddling and fooling around. Bored to death and shaking from the cold, I jealously watched as one VIP person after another was let through. I had to double check: I told the box-office cashier (who knew me well by now), the gorillas at the gate, but no one knew of any guest- or VIP-list. At least not with my ochen ploch rossiskij slova.
Finally inside, I spent the remaining time harassing the kind hostesses about the same thing. They really tried but I couldn’t even get a note through to the band or anyone backstage. When the last Tom Jones song was about to finish in the speakers, one girl in the MT staff finally found me and dragged me backstage: «Hurry! Here’s your VIP-card. They’re going on any second now!» So through a few doors and corridors, suddenly facing – Ilia – smartly dressed in a white jacket and hair just like he had in 1998. He was on his way out from the assembly room and I blocked the way for him, just staring. «Ilia!, I uttered, Do you recognise me?» I gave him a hug, still unaware I was blocking his way. «I have to visit the toilet», he said, and I replied «Good luck!». Typical. That’s my famous timing. Well, I stepped over the threshold and faced Zdwig instead and victimised him to the same treatment (the stare). He was gorgeous as always, wearing some kind of military-like clothes and a cap. Do they get make up?, I thought to myself. He calmly looked back a while and than said that he was very sorry, but «I have to go onstage now». So I generously let him pass. I looked around the room in confusion and noticed a large buffet and well dressed people around it in a rather small room with a monitor under the roof showing the stage. If other trolls passed by me, I was too confused to notice. Whooooo! Have to run back! Where can I sit? Well, concerning seats and photographing, I rapidly learned about the advantages of a VIP-card.
The thin white see-through meshy fabric that functioned as curtain didn’t fall as Mumiy Troll entered the stage. It stayed up through the entire first act which was – appropriate enough – Gde Takoy Ya?. Back light cast striking shadows of Ilia and Yuri on the drapes. Most of the audience was sitting – and on top of that – freezing. The roof was packed with heaters but they were placed so high up, they didn’t do much good. I looked around. Not many, not even the audience standing in the back and at the sides seemed very enthusiastic. But the performance was of course brilliant. Curtain up!
This tour is known to have huge and spectacular high-tech visual effects based upon the movie Pokhitityeliy Knig. The band actually appear physically in the movie — acting themselves, more or less, and since the album is the soundtrack, it’s natural to make something extra of it. This gig was 'different’ , that is, paradoxically, more normal — nice and simple coloured light and some projections of patterns and faces of the band (at least Zdwigs). Good enough for me =)
Now came what I expected to be a challenge – a short track from the new album Pokhitityeli Knig: Flamenko Krasotski. And it ROCKED big time! Mumiy Troll delivered with an almost furious power and intensity and still managed to keep it light and playful. They totally shook 2000 people around, totally surprising us with the obvious fact that this was possible to perform live. Ilia sang the few lines the song has and if anyone has doubts concerning the capacity his voice; bury them!.
Tvoya Letnjaja followed with a stronger emphasis on the disco quality and more up-beat than I believe is heard on the album. Everything sounds great and the audience seems warmer. Me, I’m just smiling myself right through it! Kto na gorizonteeeeeeee, sings Ilia and bangs his tambourine with a frenzy I only saw on the famous taped concert from DK Gorbunova 1998. «Spasiba! Paldies!», Ilia calls out. «Jaaaaaaa!!!», answers the crowd.
Next act was a song from the classic album IKRA; Tak Nado. The band is more relaxed and Yuri and Zdwig strolls around the stage as they play. Vozhe moy, these guys are nice to look at! People are beginning to sing along. I feel that a female back vocal would have been great on the la-la-laaa’s, though.
When I think to myself that it’s so cold that I really need something to warm me up, and need it fast, comes the ballad Moya Pevitsa. Wonderfully played and – wow – a visual effect: on the wall behind the band is projected blue light and falling white flower petals. But now I crave for something warm so I hastily move back to the assembly room hunting for some whiskey. Only blends?! But Yuri likes single malts, doesn’t he? Anyway, straight for the nearest bottle, a paper mug and an empty chair. Aahhh!!!
Finally back in my seat in front of the stage, I must have missed at least two songs, but I felt much warmer. Now came Dobroe Outro, Planeta! Which was delivered a bit sloppy to my ears. Then a completely instrumental song when finally Yuri – one of the absolute finest rock guitarists of our time – got some space. It was Zeleniy Rocks and the only thing to do was to lean back and suck it in! What is that man made of? And when will he release an album with just jamming around on it?
Ilia onstage again and has the whole audience jumping in notime with a real oldie: Allo Pops! I notice how Ilia himself does it slightly on routine but also that his voice is in a remarkably good shape – he even finds that trademark falsetto spot on! The only thing I’d have like to changed was to put an echo to his «pops» so he wouldn’t have had to repeat it himself. It was a bit silly but the song itself is one of my favourites – and clearly the rest of the visitors agreed! The applauds were enormous and Ilia found a nice opportunity to plant his «Spasibo Bolsjoje, Bolsjoje, Bolsjooojeeeeeee!!!!!» Then he goes on for quite a while saying stuff in Russian that I couldn’t make out at all.
Yuri softly starts on Boksery Vals’ all by himself. Very JAZZ and very, very GOOD! Too bad that Kaspar Tobis wasn’t there, but his accordion was replaced by keys, brilliantly handled by the new Mumiy Troll member Ivan Formakovskij. Yes, it’s true! MT now have five official members! This song is another of Yuris’ compositions, although Ilia still writes all the lyrics. Yuri is proving again his wide range and sensitivity, as well as his ability to take on any role onstage. This band is not by accident frequently described as dynamic.
Yes, Boksery Vals’ was another slow song and I had to get myself some more trudnaja voda or similar backstage. I was a bit surprised that the friends of MT stayed in that small room instead of watching the gig. I guess they’d seen a few by now. After talking and drinking away several songs in good company, I heard how the band started Utekay – which up to now has been on the total bottom on my private MT top-100 — the urge came over me and I ran back to my seat with a chicken drum stick in my hand. The whole place was in ecstasy! And the band played their La-la-la-laaaj faster and faster into a boiling climax and then further on into chaos. Giving us no time to catch breath, Mumiy Troll now like a chornaya dyra by pure gravitation eats us all up with Medveditsa and there is no escape, I tell you! This time there are no teenage screaming fans who gets to be lifted up on the stage to sing the two female parts. No, here are two prima-donna’s; Linda Leen och Yana Kay, who play the parts perfectly taking turns singing the controversial lyrics. I can’t remember hearing Ilia singing the «jibberish», but Zdwig walked in front and made a very nice show-off! The song sort of lost steam at the end and there was a short pause. The audience was screaming louder than ever – especially the people jumping in the back of this hall with capacity around 2000 people, completely filled up.
A synthesiser sounding like a child’s toy or an early computer game started working on Vladivostok 2000 with the finesse of an excavator. Some people started to sing along, but where’s the band?! I even saw people preparing to leave because they thought the show was over. What an anti-climax! What is this?! Well, after a while, Yura and Zdwig entered the floor again and prepared ground with a heavy intro – is it Ranetka? Nope, sounds good, but it was totally new to me. Ilia strolls up to the microphone, not singing yet. The audience is silent, astonished, taking in every note. Then he sings, and now my handicap not understanding Russian becomes all too evident. The song feels sort of tragic, searching, insecure. I have no idea what he sings. Ya budu.. something.. Yes, this has all the trade marks of a modern MT-song. The strongest impression is the anxiety and Pungas heartbeat-like drumming. The song fades out. I learned afterwards that this is the song MT made for the movie Night Watch where Ilia plays a part as a vampire. To me, the song was a bit too vague – lacking maybe some of the natural identity every single MT-song always has. Another interesting thing with it is that there was a dissonance that I believe was deliberately put there to illustrate an agony of some kind. Can’t wait to see the lyrics! Or to hear it again, for that matter!
So, that was that. Oh no, it wasn’t! Ivan starts very nicely on the keyboard «Karamel». Ilia a la Brel! And when he sings «Ya ljublju tebya», he opens his arms to the spectators. He doesn’t only have close to a genius’ talent, a magnetic look and all the skills of an experienced artist. He has a big heart. He mediates love. Yuri is playing on that turquoise toy instrument that you blow and with keys on it. Ilia introduces the band and then he says «Thank you and good-bye». My evening with the band had only just started, but that’s another story ;)
