Description

2023 re-issue. Double album on black vinyls with gatefold cover and printed innersleeves. Limited 200 copies

Music of Theodor Bastard band, who were at the origin of the World Music genre in Russia, is imbued with shamanism and magic. Theodor Bastard seamlessly combine traditional instruments and electronics with a plethora of different ethnic and exotic instruments. And all this mystical richness is crowned with a beautiful voice of the vocalist Yana Veva – boundless, filled with the lightest aether. The cult British band Fun-Da-Mental, Zulu Choir The Mighty Zulu Nation, Indian sarod performer Rampur Rani, unique Afro-French singer Julien Jacob, and other great musicians took part in recording of the 2012 album Oikoumene. It was interesting to give up all the electronics and the tricks, and work with live material. Whole year of hard work, and what a great experience! And the cooperation with so many, really talented, musicians from all over the world still feeds me with special energy. In the beginning, of course, there were many doubts, but now I can say that everything has turned out well. And this is the best of what we have done for all time, that’s for sure! – says the frontman of the band Fedor Svolotch. While recording the album Theodor Bastard used an impressive collection of various instruments which were brought from distant journeys. In some songs you can hear such instruments as daf, doira, dumbek, udo, kalimba, reko-reko, caxixi, ashiko, talking drum and variety of djambe and kongas. Yana Veva, songwriter and vocalist, played the Chinese flute bawu. Rampur Rani performed on sarod – Indian national instrument. Dmitry Gorenko played the didgeridoo. Vladimir Belov — cello. And Zmitser von Holzman — Pan flute, ocarina, and other wind instruments. Fedor Svolotch recorded percussion, guitar, bass and own made instruments made of everyday objects like door springs, coconuts and empty bottles. The basis for this album was laid when Yana Veva composed songs inspired with traditions and beliefs of the tribes living in far corners of the world. She says: These people live the wild life keeping ancient traditions. No matter what kind of nationalities we are talking. For some people they belong to myths and fairy tales, but for someone they are so real as urban jungles. And there are our roots. The roots of mankind. These islands of the Promised Land among the riot of nature. Where we came from. And if a person does not return to these surrounded by wild nature. If a man does not hear these voices from the forest, he fails to the insurmountable grief. With the new songs we broke with our eternal melancholy gloom. The closeness to nature makes a man happy. This is our album. There are almost no dark songs. Theodor Bastard reflect the genuine art of musical expression in all its parameters, seeking sounds outside of comfort zones and dictated parameters and this runs right to the heart of Fun-Da-Mental and its own presentation.

Track list:
1. Takaya Mija
2. Farias
3. Gerda
4. Benga
5. Sagrabat (Diumgo)
6. Oikoumene
7. Tapachula
8. Intifadah
9. Clean Kron
10. Sol De Morte
11. Anubis
12. Benga (Fun-Da-Mental Version)