Tarakany! (previously Chetyre Tarakana "The 4 Cockroaches") was a Russian punk rock band based in Moscow. Formed in 1991, the band has released 14 studio albums, 5 live albums, and several splits and compilations. The band has repeatedly toured Russia and other CIS countries, as well as Europe, Japan, Israel, Georgia, and Kazakhstan.
Tarakany! is one of the few Russian rock bands to create original music in both Russian and English.
History
Early Years (as Chetyre Tarakana, 1991–1997)
The band was formed in Moscow in 1991. The band's original line-up was:
Yuri Lenin — vocals, guitars Dmitry Vorobyov — guitars Dmitry Spirin — bass Denis Rubanov — drums, percussion
All founders were 15–16 years old, and three of them were classmates. In 1991, the band released their first demo, Crazy Boys (which was only distributed through underground channels and has still never been officially released), hence becoming a part of the Moscow Rock Laboratory. Together with such punk acts as PoGo, Va-Bank, Naïve, Distemper and others, the band helped formed the Moscow underground scene during those years.
In 1992, they released their debut album, Duty Free Songs, featuring tracks in both English and Russian performed by their new vocalist, Denis Petukhov. At that time, the band's style and sound was influenced by the Sex Pistols, Ramones, and The Clash. Their lyrics were mainly about street punk romance, alcohol, drugs, sex, and hanging out.
The album was released by the band members independently, and distributed exclusively on cassettes.
...the sound is thich—at times even somewhat metallic ("Time Has Passed"), and sometimes mainstream ("Home Sweet Home"); the piano sounds are very pleasing. 5 of 11 tracks are in English... Some stuff sounds monotone ("Chetyre Tarakana"), while others are melodic ("Krysa"). FUZZ No. 6 (45), June 1997
In 1993, the band suspended their activities for 1.5 years due to Dmitry ‘Sid' Spirin's imprisonment for drug possession. Two years later, they recorded the new album, Best Before, entirely in English. Dmitry Spirin replaced Denis Petukhov as Tarakany!'s singer. The album's sound and songwriting were influenced by bands like Ramones, Buzzcocks, and Generation X. The lyrics were devoted to personal values, opposition to the majority, and being lonely and far away from home. The album's track, "Farewell Majority", was aired several times on special programmes at Radio Maximum, a popular Moscow rock radio station. The music video "Don't Come" found its way on some music TV programmes. Also, this was the first time when the band's records were reviewed by major American punk-zines. Moreover, the band gave a big interview to Maximum Rocknroll.
FeeLee Records
Between 1995 and 1997, Chetyre Tarakana were frequenters in Moscow and St. Petersburg clubs and attracted the attention of FeeLee record company. In 1997, the band released their first album on FeeLee records titled Ukral? Vypil?! V Tyurmu!!! where they somewhat changed their stylistics, mixing a classic Ramones-inspired sound with early Green Day/Lookout! Records.
... the album is specially for those die-hard skeptics who still think rock'n'roll and punk died long ago. Traditional drive, power, fun, tastes, and smells. All the tracks are brilliant. ОМ, February 1998
Immediately after releasing the album, the band changed their name to Tarakany! and it has remained unchanged to this day. Two songs from the album ("Durnaya Bashka" and "Nepogoda" received serious airplay on Radio Maximum, thereby increasing their army of fans, expanding their geography of performances, and pushing the band into several major rock and punk festivals where they shared the stage with bands such as Toy Dolls, Stranglers, the Exploited, and Rage Against the Machine. In late 1998, Tarakany! released the album, Posadki Net, featuring 16 songs in Russian, and a Depeche Mode cover of "Personal Jesus" which ultimately ended up finding its way to the first Russian tribute to Depeche Mode. Three of the songs the band decided to produce music videos for, "Personal Jesus", "Punk-Rock Pesnya" and "Poezd V Storonu Arbatskoy" ended up being selected for broadcast by then fledgling, MTV Russia. The network had only been in existence for a month when the album was released. "Punk-Rock Pesnya" and "Poezd V Storonu Arbatskoy" reached the top chart positions at Russian rock station Nashe Radio.
Their positive punk rock is truly no worse than Green Day, NOFX, and other California bands. Using old tube amps and a one-channel approach (essentially), Ramones-fed Tarakany! have gained a real punk sound adding measured doses of reggae and ska like Rancid does overseas. The front man Sid shows a huge voice gorgeously shaded with old school American pop-singers. ОМ, Andrey Bukharin
In 1999, Tarakany! released their first live album, Eto Zhizn: Ofitsialny Bootleg. In Winter 2000, the band embarked on their first European tour where they supported the Monsters for several shows. Followed by the next album few months later, Popcorm (My Nauchili Mir Sosat') became one of the first pop-punk albums in Russia. Their songs "365 Dney" and "Mnogo Telok I Piva" climbed to the TOP-10 of the Russian rock radio charts, and the video for "365 Dney" was in full rotation on MTV Russia.
…Album by album, the band is increasingly switching from the Moscow to the Californian punk school like Green Day or Rancid ... It is rather more exciting to listen to their style juggling and embellishing their happy-punk background with ska, reggae and country... I would not be surprised if Sid will practice Tuvan throat singing in five years or so. Anyway, his tremendous Sinatrian vocals are damn well-adjusted. Afisha, March 2000
On March 18, 2000, the band took part in the punk/alternative/rap festival Beat Bitva in Moscow's Dynamo Stadium. During the festival, hundreds of Nazi skinheads attacked the festival and anyone in the way. Two of the band's members were injured as a result of the fight with the Nazis.
In early 2001, Tarakany! celebrated their 10th anniversary, and FeeLee Records reissued the band's entire back catalogue as well as released Tarakany!'s first ever "Best Of" compilation.
Towards the end of that same year, Tarakany! cooperated with the Japanese band SOBUT on the split-album, Realny Punk?/Punk This Town, and it was released in Russia.
In Spring 2002, they released their sixth studio album, Strakh I Nenavist' featuring the song "Ya Smotryu Na Nikh" which became one of the band's top hits and one of the top three offerings on the rock radio charts during the 16 week chart period. In 2013, the song reached the 55th position in the top 500 Russian rock hits, according to Nashe Radio. To present the album, the band arranged their first nationwide tour from the eastern to the western edge of Russia followed by Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya, Japan with SOBUT, Assfort and Samurai Attack. Furthermore, the new album was released in Japan by Old Blood Records.
The new record showed the band's transformation towards rapid melodic Californian punk rock which lyrics and music discussing themes such as domination, brainwashing, social issues, personal identity, all the while maintain the band's awareness of its own traditional humor.
... Otherwise, a new album could easily be issued by Epitaph…. Tarakany! have made a really great positively commercial punk outfit... In short, all the stuff here will just hit you... Muzykalnaya Gazeta
Finally Russia shows the world its punk! I have been trying for years and years to discover the elusive Russian punk rock. Finally I have found it, and I couldn't be more satisfied. I found this CD in Japan, just months after the band was in the country touring with their label mates, my favorite Japanese punk band ever: SOBUT. … It is mid-paced melodic punk with deep, but melodic vocals The production is so clear it could have been done by Ryan Greene or Mark Trombino. I'd sing along with it if I could, but all I can do is crank it up and enjoy. My senses tell me that the lyrics are intelligent and street-wise, socially aware but not overly political, because the band does not sound particularly angry nor poppy and happy. The beats are fast, and there is lots of variety in rhythm. None of the songs sound the same; they are all loaded with individual flavor, often laced with traces of hardcore guitar riffs and street punk gang vocals. In America, they would definitely be Epitaph or Fat calibre. I hope this band will be accessible in the west before long. www.PunkInternational.com
Also, 2002 resulted in the special best of compilation, Luchshee, Vrag Khoroshego. It was composed of newly arranged old songs, as well as one previously unreleased track. In the beginning of 2003, Tarakany! celebrated their 12th anniversary with a show in DKG (Gorbunov Palace of Culture), a famous Moscow rock landmark, where they performed 45 songs for over 2500 people.
In early 2003, Tarakany! collaborated with the legendary Marky Ramone, the drummer for the Ramones. Their joint band was titled Marky Ramone & The Pinhead Army.
AiB Records
In late 2003, their first studio album release on their new label, AiB Records. Ulitsa Svobody at its album release concert at Moscow's Gorbunova Palace (DKG) drew more than 2500 fans. The concert itself was recorded for CD and can also be found on their 2004 DVD A My Uzhe Rubim!. This album is filled with up-tempo and meaningful tracks about freedom, choice, and equality. The songs were each directed against intolerance, nationalism, and indifference.
… Ulitsa Svobody is just what this album could and simply had to be like—sharp, powerful, snotty, furious, uncompromising, and straight-ahead. This is for those who are able not only to ascertain the shortcomings of the surrounding reality and of theirs, but also to endeavour to change something, to change themselves, which is worth a lot. For those who do not want to remain indifferent, to tolerate their own drawbacks, who are not afraid to be misunderstood… The new release is not only invigorating and providing "mind and heart" music with healthy anger inoculation. This is an ultimate monolith full of ear-pleasing rock tunes. Intense, fuzzy, and huge record. Rockmusic.ru
The band made two videos off of this album, "Granitsy Ghetto" ("The Ghetto Limits") and "Hymn Democraticheskoy Molodyohi Mira" ("The Hymn of Democratic Youth of the World"). The previous, both featured and was directed by well-known theater and film actor Vladimir Epifantsev. While the latter consisted of footage from the band's Japanese tour. Both videos appeared on A-1 Channel, the first federal alternative music TV channel in Russia.
The band's 2004 LP, Rakety Iz Rossii became the ideological successor of Ulitsa Svobody.
The band again entered Russia's charts in the top 3 with its single, "Tishina Eto Smert" ("Silence is Death"). Its video was broadcast on both MTV Russia and A-1. Later that year, ZCM Records released both albums in Europe under the names "Freedom Street" and "Rockets from Russia". Those European versions also contained several English and German language versions, as well as the original Russian songs.
In 2004, Tarakany! began working towards acquainting the public at large with the mostly unknown sound of true punk music, a style of music not widely found. The project, and its recorded audio equivalent, "High School of Punk", was at that time, the largest punk rock music festival in Russian history with a capacity crowd of 6,000 in attendance at Luzhniki Stadium. Tarakany!'s role in this festival was simultaneously as co-organizers, and co-headliners. The festival's Western headliner was Misfits.