This blog has been quiet for a long time due to lack of time, but we are going to make it up to you. Today I saw a new video of the female Russian punk band Pussy Riot. Wow, what a difference with the anarchist-low-budget clips of the beginning. No more colored balaclavas, no more shouting, no more crappy guitars and bad camerawork. Their newest video ‘Chaika’ is well produced, directed by Andrey Fenochka and Pussy Riot’s Nadya Tolokonnikova. The music is super mellow, hip hop-like, made by the American musician and producer Dave Sitek. The cause for the clip is the documentary of the Russian political activist Alexei Navalny. He unraveled the ties between Russia’s prosecutor general, Yuri Chaika, and the country’s mafia (source: The Rolling Stone)
Continue reading Pussy Riot: more professionalTag Archives: Russia
Elton John not welcome in Russia
The last time Sir Elton performed in Russia was in December 2010, see poster here on the right. His forthcoming concert in December this year could become a problem. Since the anti-gay law the people seems to be getting more intolerant towards homosexuals. A committee of parents in the Ural region sent an open letter to Putin to complain about the concert: ‘The singer intends to come out in support of local sodomites and break the current Russian law, directed at protecting children.’ (Daily Mail) According to the Guardian the superstar will perform in Russia despite such complaints. Earlier this month he told the Guardian that he feels an obligation to perform in Russia. “As a gay man, I can’t leave those people on their own without going over there and supporting them.” (The Guardian)
In an interview with NPR’s Terry Gross, Elton John stated last Monday that he wants to support the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) community and that he will try to solve this in a diplomatic way.
Russian oil industry new target Pussy Riot
Two members of the Russian feminist punk band Pussy Riot are serving a two years sentence, but it doesn’t stop the band to keep on criticizing Putin. On the contrary, they just released a new video “Like a red prison” with the Russian Oil Industry as a new target. In the video they dance on an oil pipe and throw oil at a picture of Igor Sechin, chairman of state oil giant Rosneft. Putin is compared to an Iranian ayatollah and the Roman Catholic church to the United Arab Emirates.
Continue reading Russian oil industry new target Pussy RiotPussy Riot never stops!
Dimitry Medvedev, the Russian prime minister, is certainly not a fan of Pussy Riot but he wants the punk band to be freed, saying further time in prison would be “unproductive.” He believes that suspended sentences would have been sufficient for the women and added that the “hysteria” that had accompanied the coverage of their case – which has made headlines around the world – had left him sickened (BBC News).
Continue reading Pussy Riot never stops!Solidarity with Pussy Riot
Three members of the Russian female punk group Pussy Riot – see also an earlier post on News and Noise – are on trial on hooliganism charges. For transparency, the court will broadcast the hearing on the 30th of July live on the internet (Times Live). At a closed hearing a motion is approved by state prosecutors to keep the girls in pretrial detention until Jan. 12, 2013. This is more than nine months after they were arrested (The Moscow Times). Experts, artists and musicians are openly showing their support for the band members.
Continue reading Solidarity with Pussy Riot