Rising from the still-warm molten slag of the former Iron Curtain is Molchat Doma with “S Krish Nashih Domov” – simply put, one of the best new albums from this brutal 2017.
Hailing from Minsk, the capital and most populous city Belarus, Molchat Doma is a three piece group featuring the sullen vocals of Egor Shkutko, the endlessly nostalgic synth and guitar of Roman Komogortsev, and the melancholic, inspiring bass work from Pavel Kozlovskiy. Molchat Doma roughly translates to “Houses are Silent,” and “S Krish Nashih Domov” to “From the Roofs of our Houses.”
“S Krish Nashih Domov” or “From the Roofs of our Houses” is a lo-fi, Eastern European take on an expert blend of post-punk, new wave and synthpop – with just a dash of 80’s style darkwave for good measure.
This Molchat Doma sound is a virtuoso mix of dreary Alphaville synthwork, schizophrenic New Order drums with darker, even more reverberating New Order vocals and the most nostalgic strings of The Cure – peppered with a robust personality of all three and steeped in unknown eastern vibes that could only originate from soviet-era synth influences.
This is no exaggeration – almost every track on this album feels iconic in a familiar, but also foreign way. Although it is sung entirely in Slavic, the sad, nostalgic themes still resonate deeply – the sonic accomplishment surpassing language itself.
My top tracks: “doma molchat,” “tishina,” “krishi,” “lyudi nadoyeli,” “technologiya,” “pryatki,” and “ya ne kommunist.” A special thanks to my friend Sklenka, for introducing me to this fantastic new (old) sound.
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