Molchat Doma

On November 14, the Belarusian post-punk sensation and authors of the hit "Sudno (Boris Ryzhy)," the band Molchat Doma, will be performing at Compensa concert hall as part of their world tour. Molchat Doma have announced details of their fourth studio album, ‘Belaya Polosa’, to be released on the 6^th of September 2024 via Sacred Bones, and have shared the album’s first single.

Molchat Doma, founded in 2017 in Minsk, Belarus, now residing in Los Angeles, stands at the intersection of post-punk, new-wave and synth-pop. Dark yet danceable, and with a heavy dose of goth ethos, their music is reminiscent of the masters that predate them, but make no mistake: Molchat Doma creates a sound and meaning that is immediately recognizable as all their own.

The band is comprised of Egor Shkutko, who sings in his deep monotone, Roman Komogortsev on guitar, synths, and drum machine, and Pavel Kozlov on bass and synths.

Molchat Doma is inspired by music legends such as "The Cure," "Siouxsie and the Banshees," "Depeche Mode," and "Human League," and their music is often compared to genre giants like "Joy Division," "Bauhaus," and others.

The band achieved massive popularity and international recognition in 2020 when their song "Sudno (Boris Ryzhy)" became a TikTok hit and was featured in more than 100,000 different TikTok videos. Thanks to phenomenal success on social media, the song quickly reached the second spot on Spotify's Global Viral 50 chart and the top position on the US Viral 50 chart, while the album "Monument" climbed to a high position of 21 on the Billboard Top 200.

In 2022 and 2023, the band spent their time on a world tour, playing sold-out concerts in the US, Europe, and Australia, and making stops at festivals such as Coachella, Cruel World, and Primavera. Part of the concert proceeds Molchat Doma have donated to support Ukraine, and they are among the musicians who publicly condemned Russian aggression. At the end of 2024, the band will embark on another year-long tour, which will include a stop in Lithuania.

The music of “Molchat Doma” has always radiated a brutalist aesthetic, and this also characterizes the material of the upcoming album. It is cold, gray, and industrial, yet it is permeated with the warmth of the heart. After the group's breakthrough in 2020, the trio experienced a wide range of events, from forced relocation from their homeland to sold-out concerts around the world. Over the four years, so many changes have occurred in the lives of the musicians that their music has inevitably transformed into new dimensions. "The entire album is a prism through which we tried to reflect what has happened to us," say the members of “Molchat Doma” about the new album.

The first single from the album, “Son,” emits a feeling of anxiety, disappointment, hopelessness, and fear. It is like venturing into the unknown, realizing that you will not be able to return to your old life. The single's video was directed by Bryan M. Ferguson and filmed in a mystical location in the Scottish Highlands in the style of David Lynch. Ferguson comments: "It’s about a dream that feels like reality, and that dream bleeding into real life. I wanted to make something emotionally charged but atmospheric to match the song.”

"Molchat Doma’s music is so mystically self-possessed that it’s hard not to wish you were part of the magic, too." – Pitchfork. On November 14, we will experience this magic at Compensa  concert hall.