Mumiy Troll - "Merger and Acquisition"(Real Records, 2005)

One of Russia's most popular rock bands, Mumiy Troll (pronounced Moo-me Troll) has built a solid worldwide reputation with its solidly crafted hooks and intelligent, human, independent lyrics. Vocalist Ilia Lagoutenko's attitudes regarding the importance of free and honest expression forced the band underground for nearly a decade. Yet now the band, which formed in 1986 and saw a career revival in the mid-1990s, has gone from being "the most socially dangerous band in the world" according to early critics to being popular on a Beatlemania level.

Their meteoric rise may surprise those who have never heard of the band here in the States. It's hard to believe that a band capable of producing such a solid album is able to tour 20,000-seat stadiums in Russia without creating a blip in the English-speaking world. But the band has held on to its independent status, which means their music is difficult to distribute on a global level.

Too bad, because "Merger and Acquisition" is one of the most original albums of 2005. With a sound ranging from Daft Punk to Depeche Mode, with acoustic rock, electronica and elements of glam coming together in the vein of David Bowie and Suede, Mumiy Troll is perhaps the most innovative band I've discovered in the post mp3.com landscape.

This isn't going to be the easiest album to get into, mostly due to the language barrier. I discovered the band's website published on a Russian server and had been listening to the album through streaming audio there for almost a day before I found an English-language equivalent posted by their Russian record label. Even then only the album title was translated.

So I'm giving immense praise to an album recorded completely in Russian, which means I have to enjoy the music for what it is on that element. I cannot know what Lagoutenko sings about without the benefit of a translator. But I don’t think the same experience could be had with a badly dubbed American version. Something tells me that part of what sets Mumiy Troll apart is that they haven't tried to achieve global success through the Americanization of their sound.

If you enjoy music by the likes of Daft Punk, you'll enjoy the album's fourth track, entitled "Страху нет," which features a pumping rhythm, a funky electronic bassline and a guitar hook that will have you attempting to sing along to the chorus, even when you can't tell what's being said. "Такбываетнеслучайно" starts out as an almost calypso-styled track, then morphs into an uptempo electro-bass dance track with a heavy guitar edge.

The album is full of auditory highs and lows. For all the uptempo tracks that have a pop edge, there are songs like "Непокой," which starts out with nothing but a rhodes piano reverberating through both headphones, but which morphs into a rocker with a provocative, erotic edge (the background, which splices in the sounds of a woman in the throes of orgasmic ecstasy, renders this one a track not to play for young listeners).

In the end, what sets "Merger and Acquisition" apart is the band's ability to experiment in many genres of music, in their own native language, and still have something that appeals enough to make a listener want to ignore the language barrier. I cannot say whether they're really "the Dostoyevskys of Modern Pop," as one Russian critic declared. But I can say they've produced an album I've been listening to repeatedly for the past week, and it's found its way onto my current list of musical addictions.

The band's album can be heard in its entirety and downloaded legally from the official Mumiy Troll website (http://www.mumiytroll.com/en). Their past albums and a live concert video are also downloadable. Take the opportunity to spread the word, perhaps the band might see fit to obtain a distribution deal outside of their native Russia!

Photo Credits
http://www.mumiytroll.com/en
http://www.e-kozlov.com