It is now a year since the war of aggression against Ukraine began. In view of this, one might ask how Russian musicians are reacting to the situation in their own country – both artistically and personally. Take Piper Spray and Lena Tsibizova, for example. A year ago the duo was still living in Moscow. Now they are living »nowhere«. Last known whereabouts: New York. Displacement is inscribed as an experience on their first LP. Cinematic and expressive, »Leaving Memories« does not tell the usual story of emigration. Rather, the album weaves a depopulated soundscape out of ambient, drone and art-pop influences. Distorted voices and shadowy sounds haunt the album. Full-time photographer Lena Tsibizova has been documenting desolate landscapes and the ruins left behind by modernity for years. While this »ethnographic« work has previously taken her to Indonesia and Siberia, she now evokes the alienation of the self with her work. Yet as a part of this, »Leaving Memories« is not necessarily innovative. The album’s timbre, tonality and motifs are strongly reminiscent of the soundtrack to the indie game hit »Hyper Light Drifter«. But »Leaving Memories« was written at a time when an entire generation was sacrificed to the phantasm of a great Russian empire. Their depiction of the downfall of civilisation is of highly explosive political character. Piper Spray and Lena Tsibizova deserve to be heard.
Leaving Memory
