Nol'

Nil [rus.]

Despite their young age Nol’ have tasted enough twists of capricious popularity. But what are the reasons for such a rapid recognition?

The first one, as it seems to me, is their extraordinary nature. Before Nol’, there were no bands who had chosen the accordion as the leading instrument in their music. The second is the diversity and originality of their musical themes. Their repertoire consists of different genres – from rock-n-roll to hard and heavy. Of course some of them are more successful, some less, but all are freshly arranged and singled out with their juicy sound. To a great extent this comes from the use of accordion which brings a tasty aroma of folk in the musical meal of the band. And the third one is the text. Unlike the over-intellectual lyrics of Akvarium and the heroic and revolutionary declamations of Alisa and Televizor, the texts of Nol’ express the real life of an ordinary person and bring a good dose of irony and sharp sarcasm. These range from realistic to rude portraits of everyday life, a mocking of spiritual poverty, a caricature of the blind hurray-patriotism and political satire. All of them show the bad sides of our life with such a scale and absurdity that you have the impression of finding yourself in a pavilion of deformed mirrors. A first giggle is inevitably followed by an understanding that these are not the protagonists of Nol’s songs - mentally disabled, useless clerks and, other losers, and even not antagonists - the bastards like the New Russians and some ‘children of rich parents’ are responsible for your own inferiority, but the society as a whole, which gives birth to all of them. This stops being funny. And when in the silence of this Museum of Social Disabilities you hear a scream full of anger and pain, you flinch. ‘I am just born – but I am already a human’ revolts an ordinary person.

Text by Stanislav Smirnov, Sel’skaya Molodyozh (Moscow), no.12, 1989

Translation by Rotten Beat, 2009


 

A.B. Fyodor [the leader of the band], if its not difficult for you, without all this mockery, what is your attitude to perestroika and to the state of contemporary Petersburg culture? What makes you happy and what does not in our life? What would you want more – meat, beer or rock?

F.Ch. The fact that we finally can work and do what we want freely makes me happy. At least now nobody is preventing us from doing what we want. And they simply cannot now.

A.B. Does it help to your music?

F.Ch. On the other hand, there are certain negative moments of this transition, because for example in 1985, 1986, 1987 there were a lot of things in the music of Leningrad groups, and our group is not an exception. A lot was based on some kind of fear and shock. I can’t say that this is definitely bad. In other words, it is somehow how it should be. But now the time is completely different. It is difficult to shock, because sometimes, I don’t know, but sitting in front of the TV I think that I have gone mad.

Interview: Andrey Baranovskiy 1990 (published as a bonus track to the second edition of the Severnoe Bugi)

Translated by Rotten Beat, 2009