Gypsy punk knows no boundaries
Published 23 July, 2008, 08:42
Gogol Bordello are hard to pigeonhole musically and culturally and appear to have no strings attached. But that’s exactly what audiences around the world love about them, including pop diva Madonna. Fond of their weird and audacious gypsy punk, she’s been a fan for a long time.
Gogol Bordello are a mix of everything – nationalities, genres and epochs. Based in New York, they tour so much they hardly know where home is any more.
Their recent show in Moscow was a triumph and they are now eagerly awaited in St. Petersburg. After that it’s on to Tokyo, Chicago, London and dozens of other cities.
Ukranian frontman Eugene Hutz, accordionist Yury Lemeshev, and violinist Sergey Ryabtsev created the band about ten years ago. They thought the name of the classic Russian writer Nikolay Gogol, who brilliantly used folkloric elements in his works, would be just perfect for them.
Today’s lineup includes guitarist Oren Kaplan from Israel, drummer Eliot Ferguson from Florida and bass player Thomas Gobena – an Ethiopian. And Gogol Bordello wouldn't be complete without its charming backing-vocalists – Thai-American Pam Racine and Chinese Scottish Elizabeth Sun.
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