Amatory (commonly stylized as [AMATORY], to fit their logo) is a Russian alternative metal band from Saint Petersburg, formed in 1998 by Denis [DENVER] Zhivotovsky and Daniil [STEWART] Svetlov.
In 1998, they were joined by Evgenyy PJ Potekhin. However, the band's official birthday isn't until April 1, 2001, when Sergey [GANG] Osechkin became the final member of the group's original quartet.
They are considered one of the pioneers of Russian alternative metal but their musical approach changed over the years.
Despite limited mainstream media exposure, [AMATORY] has gained a substantial fanbase through their live performances in Russia, Eastern and Northern Europe, and Central Asia. At the moment they have released 7 full-length studio albums, 2 instrumental albums and 7 (including 4 instrumental) EPs.
History
1998–2001: Early years
[AMATORY] founders Denis [DENVER] Zhivotovsky (Russian: Денис Животовский) and Daniil [STEWART] Svetlov (Russian: Даниил Светлов) met at the age of 13 in the spring of 1998.
Initial rehearsals were held that same spring in Svetlov's apartment, where they played snippets of their favorite songs by Nirvana, Sex Pistols, The Exploited, and a self-penned song by Zhivotovsky.
Rehearsals were moved to Zhivotovsky's apartment because it had an empty bedroom, where Svetlov could bring his drum set. The building itself was so called khrushchyovka (Russian: хрущевка) also known as krushcheby (Russian: хрущеба, Khrushchev-slum) – cheap, easy-to-build apartment blocks that were massively built all over the former Soviet Union from the late 1950s to the early 1980s. They are well known for their poor thermal and sound insulation. With this in mind, the aspiring musicians covered the walls, the door, and floor of their makeshift bedroom rehearsal space with carpets, but it didn't work, the neighbours complained about the noise, and regularly banged on the door and called the police.
The trio began performing live by covering Nirvana songs in a nearby school. In 1999, Potekhin and Zhivotovsky became obsessed with Korn, but at the same time Svetlov became "addicted" to black metal and grindcore. He began to distance himself from his bandmates, due to their differing musical tastes. So, the rest of the band began to write grindcore style music, but to incorporate their own interests, began introducing, little by little, elements of alternative metal.
In the summer of 1999, they found a rehearsal space in a youth club called Rubin, but, to use it, they had to come up with a group name. So, PJ chose the name of the band: [AMATORY]. He supposedly chose this from an English–Russian dictionary, picking it specifically because it sounded similar to other metal bands Crematory, Obituary and Cemetary.
Gradually they realized that they needed a second guitarist, after a short search they found Sergey [GANG] Osechkin (Russian: Сергей Осечкин). The first rehearsal as a four member band took place on April 1, 2001, which became the band's official birthday. The group played several concerts as a complete, four member band. However, in June, Potekhin was drafted into the army, and so the group lost their leader. Zhivotovsky took over as lead vocalist and lyric writer, while Osechkin became their music composer. These new roles in place, the group recorded the demo "I Don't Live to See It" (Russian: Не доживаю).
2001–2004: Fate's Eternally Hiding (Вечно Прячется Судьба)
A concert in support of "The Bread" was scheduled on November 26, 2002, in a new club "Orlandina." All the bandmates were there on time, except for Liolik who had mysteriously disappeared. They later found out that, on his way to the club, Liolik was stopped by a police patrol who wanted to verify his documents, and was unexpectedly drafted into military service for the next two years, and so, [AMATORY] lost their second bandmate to the Russian armed forces.
In 2003, though limited in resources, the band began recording their debut studio album. In April they released a single entitled "Fragments" (Russian: Осколки) which is regarded as one of their signature songs.
The album, Fate's Eternally Hiding (Russian: Вечно Прячется Судьба), with Zhivotovsky and Ovchinnikov on vocals, was released on November 14, 2003. It was named after one of the songs that was inspired by Irvine Welsh's novella Fate's Eternally Hiding from his trilogy Ecstasy: Three Tales of Chemical Romance. In an interview to "In Search of Titans" (Russian: В поисках Титанов) Ovchinnikov remembers writing and correcting the lyrics together with Zhivotovsky during classes in school, and recording the vocals in a closet (because they could not afford a recording studio).
Shortly before the album's release Alexander [ALEX] Pavlov (Russian: Александр Павлов) became the second guitarist of the band.
2004—2006: Inevitability (Неизбежность)
On March 14, 2004, [AMATORY] released a maxi-single called "Two Lives" (Russian: Две Жизни). Shortly beforehand, Ovchinnikov left the band and his place was taken by the guitarist of Stigmata: Igor [IGOR] Kapranov (Russian: Игорь Капранов). It was in making the artwork for this single, that they first put the band's name and their own pseudonyms in square brackets, stylized to fit their logo. They continue to use this stylization to this day.
Following the release of the single, they immediately began to work on new material, this time in collaboration with Danish producer Jacob Hansen (Amaranthe, Volbeat, Epica). Through working with Jacob, [AMATORY] began to play "in a western manner." Despite the fact that [IGOR] joined the band as the vocalist, he had never sung before. Consequently, almost all the growling parts of the upcoming album were recorded by [DENVER].
Their second studio album, Inevitability (Russian: Неизбежность), with [DENVER] and [IGOR], on vocals was released on October 14.
In early 2005, the band released their first DVD titled [P]ost [S]criptum, which consisted of home videos they had recorded of their crew and friends during the tour for Inevitability.
In September 2005, [AMATORY] supported Korn in Saint Petersburg and Moscow. At the same time, "Black and White Days" won RAMP 2005 (Russian Alternative Music Prize) for "Best Music Video," and [AMATORY] won the "Best Band" category.
2006—2008: Book Of The Dead (Книга Мертвых)
In the spring of 2006, during the "Rock 5 Tour", Sergey [GANG] Osechkin suddenly felt severe pain in his right side, and he continued to feel unwell throughout the following summer, while the band was working on new material.
However, they managed to finish their third album, Book of the Dead (Russian: Книга Мертвых), and it was released on Friday the 13th, in October 2006. Five days later, right before the band's performance as an opening act for Stone Sour, they were told that [GANG] had been diagnosed with liver cancer. Five months later, on March 15, 2007 Osechkin, at only 23 years old, died. He was buried with his first guitar, a Jackson, which his grandmother had gifted to him, at the Cemetery in Memory of the Victims of January 9 in Saint Petersburg.
The period that followed was, according to the band members, one of the worst in the group's history. They ultimately decided to move on, but it was a difficult decision. According to [STEWART], they began heavily drinking. It was only their session guitarist, Niky Yuriev, who kept them from getting depressed during the first leg of the Live Evil tour.
However, even though 2007 was a year of huge tragedy for the band, it also marked their breakthrough to a mass audience. According to one of the largest Russian newspapers, Rossiyskaya Gazeta, [AMATORY] became a phenomenon and "a dictator of fashion" on the Russian music scene, playing a huge number of sold-out shows throughout the country, despite the lack of media support. The band also began to gain a following outside of Russia and former Soviet countries, receiving fan mail from Latin America, Indonesia, and other countries in Europe.
In the spring of 2007, [AMATORY] went on the second leg of the Live Evil tour with session guitarist Ivan Ludewig (Russian: Иван Людевиг, ex-Kirpichi). On April 26, 2007, the band did a sold-out show at the Yubileyny Sports Palace, which filmed and later released as the concert DVD+CD "Live Evil." By the summer of that year, they began looking for a new guitarist. At the same time [AMATORY] was invited to perform with Linkin Park in Moscow and Saint Petersburg, but they ultimately decided to prioritize their sold-out gig in Moscow, and a benefit concert in memory of Sergey Osechkin, where all funds raised went to his family and the installation of a memorial.
In September, the band went on Saint Seventh Tour, with new session guitarist Dmitry Rubanovsky. During the tour, the internet TV channel Nashe TV filmed a 17-episode series called "[AMATORY] in Your City" (Russian: [AMATORY] в твоем городе), which gave behind-the-scenes looks at their concerts and day-to-day life on tour.
On September 19, 2007, a live music video Butterfly Effect (Russian: Эффект Бабочки) from the upcoming DVD Live Evil was released. Also in 2007, [AMATORY] released their second DVD EVol.01 made of home videos filmed during their tours since May 2005.
2008—2010: VII
In the beginning of 2008, ESP Guitars and the band's guitarist Alexander [ALEX] Pavlov created a signature guitar named ESP LTD [A – 600], which was the first signature guitar ever awarded to a Russian guitarist. On March 20, the DVD+CD Live Evil, mixed and mastered by Jacob Hansen at Hansen Studios in Denmark, was released. Later, on April 5, [AMATORY] received the FUZZ Award in the "Best Alternative Band" category.
In September 2008, their session guitarist Dmitry [JAY] Rubanovsky became the band's new guitarist and principal music writer. In October, Nashe TV started broadcasting a mini-series filmed during the recording sessions for the upcoming album, providing insight into the creation of new songs in collaboration with Danish producer Tue Madsen, known for his work with Meshuggah, Dark Tranquility, and Suicide Silence. While the album was recorded with both Russian and English versions, the English version was ultimately not released.
In November, [AMATORY] released the single Breathe with Me (Russian: Дыши со мной), and signed a contract with the music label FG Nikitin. Breathe with Me was incredibly popular on the Russian radio, and in some neighboring country, staying at the number one position for seven weeks, surpassing even The Prodigy and Depeche Mode. In 2009 it won the RAMP for "Best Song." However, while the song was hugely popular, it also resulted in some erroneous plagiarism charges, as Rubanovsky had written the music, and lyrics (in English), while a member of the band Tearfall, and his next band, Horizon 8, had recorded a second version. In [AMATORY], a third version of the song was created, with lyrics, this time in Russian, written by Zhivotovsky.
On November 7, 2008, [AMATORY] released their fourth studio album titled VII. It became their first album with [JAY], which earned rave reviews from critics, but divided reactions among fans. Following the release, the band went on the Sold Out Tour. This tour marked the first time they took their own equipment on tour, resulting in higher ticket prices. This, combined with the effects of the Great Recession, caused concert attendance to drop significantly.
In April 2009, NTV showed a TV report about the band, underlining that they became iconic without producers and mainstream media support. A little later Daniil Svetlov became "Drummer Of The Year" ("Musician" magazine awards).
On October 27, 2009, the band released the internet single Crimson Dawn (Russian: Багровый Рассвет) mixed by American producer Chris (Zeuss) Harris.
2010—2012: Instinct Of The Doomed (Инстинкт Обреченных)