Grapthar's Song of the Day: Molchat Doma - 'Toska'

as part of a TikTok trend, with users adding one of their tracks to their videos, I first heard them completely by accident in a Sacred Bones records playlist (which I also somehow stumbled upon, through some other random playlists and artists). They have an incredible throwback sort of sound, with a very post-punk/goth darkness which, paired with the dark Soviet imagery, makes for a really powerful experience. The band was formed in Belarus in 2017, with their current line-up (maybe founding lineup? Wikipedia isn't clear on that) consisting of: Egor Shkutko (vocals), Roman Komogortsev (guitar, synthesizer, drum machine), and Pavel Kozlov (bass guitar, synthesizer) (Source: Wikipedia - Molchat Doma).

the '80s, and have specifically mentioned Kino as a major inspiration. If you've never heard them before, I cannot recommend them highly enough. It's more rock oriented at times, definitely less synthy than these guys, but really incredible, and actually from '80s Soviet Russia. I think they also remind me of some of the 1987 Alyans album that I shared the other day, with the digital drums and synth heavy harmonies and leads. They do use guitar on some tracks, though the bass guitar is a constant, and works really well with the synths and drum machines. The songs are relatively simple, with very little overdubbing, which, with the lo-fi production, really gives a vibe of seeing three guys playing this, perhaps in some dark club in Moscow in 1985. Sometimes I can find very specific throwback styles to be a bit silly, as it's already been done, but I really love these guys' sound, and cannot recommend them highly enough.