"To be listened to abroad, you don't have to sing in English."
What's going on with the Yekaterinburg band "Peremotka," which has become popular around the world?
They watch black-and-white films, wonder how to win us over, and swear to love the first woman they meet forever. The Yekaterinburg band Peremotka, which sings lyrical songs, is proof that music written at home on a laptop can take off and become popular abroad. And you don't even have to go to a studio, much less leave your home region and sign contracts with Moscow labels. You don't even have to write lyrics in English. All of Peremotka's songs are recorded in Russian, yet the band tours internationally (as much as is possible for Russian artists these days), their videos garner millions of views, and their performances sell out venues across Russia. It's My City and Govorit NeMoskva spoke with the musicians.
"We don't want to be a toastmaster group"
"Peremotka" appeared in Yekaterinburg in 2015. It all started on Pionerka, in one of Yekaterinburg's residential areas: "We were so miserable there that we wrote good songs," the musicians recall with a laugh.
They all came to Yekaterinburg from small towns in the Urals: Gena Volgarev from Kungur in Perm, Oleg Lopaev from Lesnoy in the Sverdlovsk region, and Nikita Mukhlynin from Troitsk in Kurgan. They were all first-year students: the future bassist was studying industrial design, and the future guitarist and vocalist were studying management. Oleg and Gena had known each other since school and became friends in eleventh grade through a shared love of cinema and music, hosting home movie screenings and playing guitar.
"Rewind" the group have been named, because the musicians loved Michel Gondry's film of the same name (Be Kind Rewind). Its main characters are similar to the guys themselves: lacking any skills, they took it upon themselves to remake a huge collection of cult films. The musicians of Peremotka were similar: they couldn't sing, they couldn't really play an instrument, and for recording, they had an old, weak laptop and a cheap guitar from a Perm furniture factory. Drum parts were cut from retro songs, and the electric guitar was recorded remotely by a friend of the band. That's how their first album, succinctly titled "Collection of Songs," came to be.
The first concerts were given at apartment concerts. Back then, they mostly played covers; performing your own songs at such gigs was harder—no one knew them, and when people heard well-known songs, they immediately started singing along.
— After moving to Yekaterinburg, I managed to notice three separate musical waves. First, (from 2011 to 2016 – editor’s note) There was a wave in which "Sansara", "Kurara", "AloeVera", "Obe Dve" played, - recalls the bassist of "Peremotka" Gena.
"I remember that period vividly: I'd constantly see those people on big stages; they were true idols to me," guitarist Nikita continues. "And we were just starting out, playing our first small gigs, and we looked up to those bands, wanting to reach their level. And before we knew it, we'd probably already surpassed many."
Gena believes "Rewind" arrived with the next wave, three or four years later, in 2017-2019. They became recognizable around the same time as the band "Sova," which also saw the rise of singer Monetochka. The musicians place the third wave after 2020, when another generation of musicians emerged, "more diverse and experimental." Among them, for example, are the band "Attention Brusnika!"
"We have a very active music scene in the Urals. And when you're surrounded by so many different musicians, it's motivating. You want to stand out somehow," explains Peremotka's bassist.
The guys didn't know what "Peremotka" was supposed to be like or how it should sound from the very beginning. They admit they still don't always understand it—everyone has different tastes and visions, which constantly evolve with age, and the music becomes the sum of them.
For example, Oleg equals David Bowie, Jim Morrison, Johnny Cash, Iggy Pop, while Gena singles out Radiohead—especially Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood, who are constantly innovating. Oleg is a cinephile, claiming to have watched over five thousand films and TV series in his life, collects action figures, and cinema is his religion. Gena, meanwhile, says he'd enjoy a Truffaut film just as much as The Avengers.
“It’s as if you want to cover so much, but in the end you get something average,” explains Gena.
What remains unchanged is that Peremotki's music is created not for entertainment, but for thoughtful listening and warm nostalgia for the past.
"We probably don't want to be just a toastmaster group that entertains people. The atmosphere is created by creativity, songs, and music, not jokes and gags," says Nikita.
"Our music is more for inner listening, contemplation; for me personally, it's an ideal form of reflection. I don't want to make a show out of it. Our music looks more to people's pasts," Gena adds.
Musicians aren't drawn to topical and socially charged stories. They say that writing about sensitive topics with talent requires a certain poetic lens and a special language. They, on the other hand, are more "metaphorical and romantic."
One big geography lesson
In 2018, three years after their founding, Peremotka performed in Moscow for the first time. The musicians say it was then that they first realized they had an audience—after all, the audience wasn't just friends or family, but strangers who had bought tickets. The performance at the Sixteen Tons club marked the beginning of their active touring schedule.
"At that time, we didn't really play in Yekaterinburg—we'd only open for friends or maybe just open for someone. And then there we were, in Moscow, a cult club! At one point, I even stopped playing my part and just stood there, absorbing the moment," Nikita recalls.
On subsequent tours, this realization became more solid—the guys realized they could attract audiences in any city. This isn't so surprising in capital cities, but the musicians admit that even in small towns, people come to see them, and it's a pleasure.
"In Cheboksary, we once heard: 'Oh my God, they're really alive!'" Oleg recalls.
Tours are one big geography lesson, the students say. They say it's sometimes hard to wrap your head around how interesting and diverse Russia is, and how different neighboring regions can be.
"There are places with a very interesting texture and strong local flavor—for example, Buryatia or Kalmykia. You want to visit them even without a tour," says Gena.
"In the short time you spend in a city, you get to learn a little about how people live there. You get to know their daily life, the local fast food. If you're lucky, you even get to try the local beer or see the sights," Oleg adds.
Almost every city has its own landmarks that musicians use to remember them. Siberia, for example, is called the "beer citadel" because Omsk, Tomsk, and Novosibirsk have the best beer. And Abakan has delicious lemonade. Among the city's landmarks, the most impressive are the natural ones. Irkutsk has Lake Baikal, Kamchatka and Vladivostok have the ocean, and Kaliningrad has the Baltic Sea.
Audience engagement also varies in each city where Peremotka performs. Vocalist Oleg compares it to a "roller coaster"—sometimes the crowd is very active, and sometimes the opposite. But the musicians couldn't identify any regional patterns.
"Our main enemies at concerts are tables," Oleg comments. "They take up space, distract people, and simply ruin the mood. They shouldn't be there."
Guitarist Nikita explains: if the front rows are enjoying themselves, dancing, and having fun, then the rest of the crowd will likely join in. But if there are tables, that's simply impossible.
"The most important impression at concerts is the happy eyes of the people. Especially when you come to a small town far from central Russia. Then it often becomes a citywide event. The venue owner gives a tour of the club, people come up and thank you... In those moments, all the fatigue from touring disappears. And you think, what a great thing we're doing!" Nikita rejoices.
"Everyone is tired of the Anglo-centric music industry."
Music, a passion from their student years, gradually evolved into the guys' main activity: for the past few years, Gena, Nikita, and Oleg have devoted all their energy and time to it. They develop the band, rehearse, and organize concerts. 2023 was a particularly rich year for live performances for the musicians—they played extensively in various Russian cities, and on their autumn tour, they set a new record by performing in 50 cities. They also performed abroad—in Kyrgyzstan, Georgia, Armenia, and Kazakhstan, where many of Peremotka's Russian fans have now settled. But they aren't the only ones who attend the live shows.
"It's quite an interesting mix. For example, in Georgia there were a lot of relocated musicians, as well as Americans, Chinese, and guys from various European countries. It was cool that they all decided to come to our concert. In Armenia and Kazakhstan, it was mostly locals," Oleg shares.
When asked why "Peremotka" has become popular beyond those who understand Russian, the musicians themselves answer simply: foreign listeners are tired of the Anglo-centric music industry.
"That's why we're seeing a lot of Spanish- and German-language musical heroes emerging right now," Gena explains. "Our music has also turned out to be quite international. We're listened to a lot on Spotify—according to listening statistics, China and the US are practically on par with Russia. Europe and Latin America are gradually catching up. Overall, we'd like to become an international band, like Motorama, and tour all over the world."
The guys hadn't even considered writing songs in English. They believe that interest in local cultures is growing globally, so it's not necessary to abandon your native language to be popular abroad.
Peremotka's fame outside of Russia began with the song "Hello." It unexpectedly gained popularity on YouTube in the West. The band members speculate that algorithms began suggesting it to fans of the Belarusian post-punk band Molchat Doma. TikTok also played a role in the band's popularity: videos featuring the songs "How to Conquer You," "First Counter," "Old Cinema," and other tracks went viral on social media, prompting users to discover the band on streaming sites. "Many heard a snippet, were hooked, and went on to listen to the whole thing," the band said in an interview.
Peremotka now consistently attracts around 300 monthly listeners on Spotify, dozens of times more than many other Yekaterinburg bands. Their most popular song on streaming is "How to Conquer You," which currently has over 20 million plays. The video for the same song on YouTube has been viewed over 1,6 million times in two years. Peremotka has over 671 monthly listeners on Yandex.Music.
Comments on Peremotka's music videos aren't just from Russian speakers—every other review is in English, and listeners say that, even though they don't understand a word, they feel warmth and love through the music. Some say Peremotka's music makes them feel like they're in the movie.
Comments on the band's social media pages help us understand the band's geographic reach. They say things like, "When are you playing in France? I'm waiting for you!", "When's the Istanbul concert?", "New York or Boston?", "Are you touring Mongolia?"
In early April, the musicians performed with live drums for the first time at concerts in Moscow and St. Petersburg. Previously, the guys played to a pre-recorded beat, like many young bands. But they decided that a four-piece would provide more live energy and invited drummer Evgeny Derevyannykh (who also plays in another Ural band, Sansara).
"We were deafened," Oleg laughs. "Actually, with the drums, everything sounded richer, more spacious. It became very, very good."
The four guys will most likely continue to play only in large cities; in smaller cities, Peremotka can be heard in its classic lineup.
The band has a Central Asian tour coming up, with stops in Astana, Almaty, Shymkent, and Tashkent, as well as a performance at the Action Festival in China. In April, Peremotka was scheduled to perform in Latin American countries—Mexico, Peru, and Chile—but at the last minute, for some unknown reason, the band was not allowed on the plane. They haven't given up hope of playing there someday.
"Of course, sometimes you want to take a break. But why ruin something good? Our music is like a living organism, and we don't want to give it up. A couple of weeks off is usually enough to recharge," Gena says about his concert schedule.
"We would hardly feel better anywhere than in Yekaterinburg."
Peremotki's songs usually develop from sketches the musicians sketch out during rehearsals. They write lyrics to the melodies they like. Sometimes songs are born quickly—for example, "Staroe Kino" was recorded in just a week. Other tracks can wait years for their moment. And some never reach listeners—according to Gena, there are enough unreleased songs for several albums.
"Some songs you know right away—they're guaranteed to be listened to. With others, it's more difficult; it's not entirely clear what the reaction will be. We didn't play "How to Conquer You" at concerts, and we didn't even want to include it on the album—it seemed mediocre. And then it suddenly took off. And sometimes the opposite happens: you think a song will be a hit, but in the end, no one cares about it. For example, that's what happened with the track "Bertsy".
"It's interesting that some tracks may have low rankings on streaming platforms, but they're still highly requested at concerts. For example, the song "To the Sea"—it's rarely played on streaming platforms, but at live performances, people really go wild and sing along. Because the lyrics are incredibly relatable," Nikita muses.
"Peremotka" creates songs not only independently but also in collaboration with fellow Ural bands. For example, in recent years, the musicians have released several tracks with the bands "Sova" and "Vnimanie Brusnika!"
"Collaborations are a complicated thing, more of a political issue than a creative one, a sharing of audiences. When you're working on a song alone, you can do whatever you want with it. But if you're writing a collaboration with another artist, it comes with a lot of responsibility. Even if the song doesn't work out or isn't liked, you still have to release it," says Gena.
Many of the Ural artists mentioned above sooner or later left Yekaterinburg and the country. Some did so because of the current political situation, like Sansara or AloeVera, whose concerts were simply banned. Others did so for the sake of promotion, like Katya Pavlova from the band Obedve. The musicians from Peremotka say they don't want to leave their hometown.
"I'd really rather not do that—I like Yekaterinburg and Russia. I think we could exist and play anywhere, but I doubt we'd feel better anywhere than here," Gena admits.
For now, the band plans to take a “conceptual approach” to the next album: to experiment more, to become bolder in their sound.
"Our sound feels like it hasn't changed at all for a couple of years now—and we're itching to break through that wall and try something different. We'll see if it works out. For now, it would be great to release an EP (mini-album) by the end of spring. And in the fall, we hope to record a ten-track album. It's already floating around somewhere, the main thing now is to catch it little by little and put it in our pockets."
It's My City correspondent Alexandra Belyaeva, speaking exclusively for the publication "NotMoscow Speaking"
Photo by Evgenia Kobeeva, It's My City
