Russian Music

So Far As Fast

Thorn1 is the first Silber artist from Russia. It’s about time given the links so much of our music has to frozen winters & how influenced we all are by hundred year-old Russian novels. Reminiscent of Silber artists like Aarktica, Remora, Vlor , & If Thousands; Thorn1 has a flavor all of its own blending drone, shoegaze, electronics, & nature sounds with stories of love & loss, angst & hope. Thorn1 was founded in 2005 in the Altai region of Russia by Evgeny Zheyda as a side project of his post-grunge band Partisani. Zheyda discarded his previous musical experiences & instead explored sound, analyzing the structure of music & its influence on human consciousness. Thorn1 tended both toward melodic songs & the atonal noise that creates surreal soundscapes, but it was clear that at some point they would be combined into one unique beast. In late 2008 after a personal tragedy Zheyda left Partisani to devote himself to Thorn1. The search for solace culminated in So Far As Fast, the first official release of the young artist. The album is filled with funeral hymns, snowstorms, the freezing breath of solitude, & the hope for a shining future. Post angst music from Siberia. Tracks like “Drone,” “Why Am I Here So Distant From My Old Life,” & “Snow Is Abstract” are shimmering guitar pieces that feel like the warm blankets that let you survive winter nights. “Safe Trip” brings a feeling of frustration & controlled rage with guitar strings hit so hard they can be heard over the volume of the amplifier. “And Death Shall Have No Dominion” brings a feeling of closure & hope in something approaching Americana. “Dissosense” combines somber piano & vocals with disco beats. The album closes with a piano rendition of the Aarktica classic “Welcome Home.” The album shifts with ease all over musical & emotional maps portraying the inner workings of grief & the celebration of survival; So Far As Fast acts as a passport into Zheyda’s heart, mind, & soul.