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Geese and Swans

by Vezhlivy Otkaz

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1.
March 02:49
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2.
Road Song 05:25
lyrics
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Day gray Plus Crash windows With lips only slightly ajar Want what once was Time that’s too far Sneak, knock Laugh Wish granted Quiet ’s the kick of the boot New roads await New day’s afoot
3.
Murka 04:50
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Windward you stand Eastbound you stand Stand with a bang in the dusty road Wind blowing south Wind that subsides Wind that forgot What you mother’s been called Old goat with horns and hoofs Steppe far and wide Bitterns, wild grass Warrior, get your gat ready and cocked Ear to the ground Eye for an eye Right here and now Hang on to the rocks you throw Breathes down my neck Old goat with horns she is Yea, old goat with horns and hoofs Feast of all feasts Each to his own Blew through the stew the hangover the head Sing, Sonya, sing Sing your own song Sing while your man Is snoring next door Sing of the years upon years Sing of the many times Sing with teeth clenched Sing of your wretched ways bitch and how you lived Who you lived with How long you lived You long outlived your time Hey, old goat with horns and hoofs Yea, old goat with horns and hoofs
4.
Translation 07:57
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Render words Follow tracks Tell a joke Drink water drop by drop Cat is black Whale is blue No snow yet November’s round the block On the rocks This and that Lead and chalk This glassful’s halfway dry Chintz and silk Sweat and ice Current clicks The spaces between lines Winter – autumn Asking time’s up Pour another Get up eight sharp Cigarettes Empty box Handgun sat Inside the drawer, mute Knife the heart Wadded shot Hit the spot Be cool – it’s nickels, dimes Pacing one-two March on staunchly Always first to Start debauch’ry Teardrop boulder Sage with honey Flowers after Off you…
5.
Sufferings 03:35
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6.
Flow River 04:44
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River flow on Flow on, God’s grace upon you My country’s been Won without warring A water run Hair of the dog this morning Before the thunder rolls Has someone else Been crushed by strangers’ sadness I’m whistling on While suff’ring losses Swinging my hook Down on all fours, swimming Before the thunder rolls I thought I was Conversing with the era Out in the sticks Caged bird gone feral The way it’s gone All’s quiet as a feather Until the thunder rolls A giant wreck Not yet brimstone and fire Chuckle that chokes Ha-hara-kiri Ash smokes to dust My soul in hallowed lyre Before the thunder rolls
7.
Buryat Sea Song 06:16
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Rise ye waves oh Rise ye tides lower, higher Oh so – far and fast Land we covet Land that’s loved oh so dearly Oh so – nets are cast Lights at last Oh the oceans Oh the oceans Oh the oceans Oh the oceans Will you pack your cases, take your time but please hurry Journey’s long Must your mothers always shed their tears, always worry What’s done is done There – seagulls whiter than bleach and There’s where they’re flying astern There – there’s your face on the shirts, Sweet creature May our scarlet sails keep getting filled with the tail wind Like a charm Waves will carry us, carry us, fast and freewheeling Over yon There – seagulls whiter than bleach and There’s where they’re flying astern There – there’s your face on the shirts, Sweet creature Oh the oceans There – seagulls whiter than bleach and There’s where they’re flying astern There – there’s your face on the shirts, Sweet creature There – seagulls whiter than bleach and There’s where they’re flying astern There – there’s your face on the shirts, Sweet creature Oh the oceans Oh the oceans Oh the oceans
8.
Blues 05:55
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9.
Time 04:15
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Time went Past the meadows, woods, fields far-flung Snuck away and went on the run Singing from over yon Echo Do repeat someone else’s words Down the wind you aimlessly soar Can’t come back here no more This here summer’s song is done for sure Time went Past the stations, towers and homes Reason’s quietly come undone Bags weigh down the backbone Once was So it was but went past its prime As it is, there isn’t a trace Can’t come back to this place This here summer’s song is sung away This here summer’s song is sung away
10.
LZ 04:04
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11.
Etude 03:44
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about

For three years out of more than seven that have passed between this album by Vezhlivy Otkaz and their previous piece, Geranium, the public at the concerts was watching the band closely trying to find out if the cult band had enough material for a new CD. However, in spite of such careful preparation and a drawn-out waiting period, the Geese and Swans album came like a bolt out of the blue.

The vocal compositions by Vezhlivy Otkaz that we know are oftentimes art songs rather than just songs (Kunstlied in German, romance in Russian) in both meanings of this word—as vocal compositions where the lyrics and music seem to follow each other rather than being imposed using the verse/refrain formula, and in the common sense—as cruel romance.

As such, Vezhlivy Otkaz is virtually reconstructing the 1910-1920s of Russian history, namely, a combination of Russian musical avant-garde (futurism/constructivism) with the grassroots culture that never really happened.

(Dmitry Ukhov, April / July 2010)

With its track record of artfully warping space and juggling accents and meters, the Geese and Swans has the degree of rhythmical asymmetry that is near–off scale. Still, Roman Suslov argues that love is the centerpiece of all songs in the new cycle. That may be so, but this looks like the love you feel the strongest when home is far and your loved one is not by your side.

Although it may seem that the tracks in the Geese and Swans have their roots in ethnic material, this is merely a vision, an artistic mystification painstakingly crafted by Roman Suslov. The music is indeed ethnic, it’s there—but not the ethnic groups it originated with. And these never existed. This is the kind of geography you get.

(Amir Djunusov, October 2009)

credits

released April 9, 2010

Roman Suslov guitar, vocal
Dmitry Shumilov acoustic bass, double-bass, back-vocal
Mikhail Mitin drums, percussion
Andrey Solovyov trumpet, back-vocal
Pavel Karmanov grand-piano, flute
Sergey Ryzhenko violin, back-vocal

Music by Roman Suslov
Lyrics by Roman Suslov and Arkady Semenov (Flow River and Time)

Recorded in Parametrika Studio (Moscow) in Dec 2009 – Feb 2010

Recording by Andrey Pasternak and Denis Yurovskiy
Mixed by Sergey Bolshakov and Roman Suslov

Mastering by Scott Hull (Scott Hull Mastering, NYC)

Album artworks by Igor Gurovich

Lyrics translations by Ilya Shlepakov

Produced by Roman Suslov and Slava Nedeoglo

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Vezhlivy Otkaz Moscow, Russia

Vezhlivy Otkaz was formed in 1985 with a then-popular reggae/ska blend. Since then, they have gone through numerous stylistic changes,
flirting with everything from free jazz to Russian folk. Their sound, however, has always been unique and immediately recognizable.
Suslov’s rhythmic guitar work and unusual high-pitched vocals gives VO’s music a precisely constructed,
crystal-clear sound. ... more

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