Artoffact Records AOF395LP (2023)

Black vinyl pressing with a lyric insert and a beautifully designed sleeve.

Черная речка (Chernaya Rechka, translated as Black River), is a Russian indie-rock and post-punk band formed in Kirov in 2013. The band members started playing together in the band Debauch, conceived as a garage punk project in the style of Hives or Eagles of Death Metal. 
However, according to frontman Igor Rysev, the band lacked musical experience, and they had close to zero level of proficiency with their instruments. Instead of garage punk, they got just punk dirty, crooked, and primitive. And that didn’t stop them…

After the ever growing success of PLOHO, Artoffact now presents the next act from Russia! Evolving considerably since their formation in Kirov in 2013, Russian post-punk band Чернаяречка (Chernaya Rechka, translated as Black River), release their divinely composed self-titled album. A sombre look into the toll the current state of Russia is taking on its residents,this album is beautiful, harrowing, and full of despair though playful at times. Mostly, it is a showcase of the euphonious songs that can come out of not much more than commitment to a pure passion for making music, creativity, and a lot of hard work. Together laying a solid foundation for the band's full-length, the album's previously released singles "Жалость (Pity)," "Романс (Romance)," "Лёд (Ice)," and "Звезда (Star)," were just the start.

The album's first single, "Романс (Romance)", sets the tone for the rest of the album si-multaneously haunting, beautiful, and heavy. Reflecting on the track, the band comments that it "is about how difficult it is to get through to the person whom you offended, without wanting to. The song became a key in shaping the new sound of the band and paved the way for further experiments that reveal its great multi-genre potential."

The following "Лёд (Ice)" presents haunting lyrics, speaking at the same time about the current undeniably devastating situation in Russia. Boasting forceful sonics and a more industrial sound, "Звезда (Star)" showcases the band's range. Classifying it as, "aggressive and gloomy" the band says it is "a song about how we ourselves senselessly destroy our future, in which we could be happy if we took everything into our own hands, but when we realize this, our hands are already in the blood."

Last but certainly not least, "Жалость (Pity)," the final preface to the album, is driven forward by catchy bass hooks and playful undertones, drawing in listeners with snappy drum lines and keeping them on the hook with well-knit dreamy instrumentals and vocals. forward by catchy bass hooks and playful undertones, drawing in listeners with snappy drum lines and keeping them on the hook with well-knit dreamy instrumentals and vocals.