In this week’s installment of Music Friday, I’d like to a spotlight an instrumental rock band from Chicago, Illinois, called Russian Circles. Yeah, last week I featured an instrumental rock band, too, so I guess it’s a phase I’m going through!
Russian Circles has been making music since 2006, and they’ve released seven studio albums so far that have garnered critical acclaim. People like to call them a post-rock/post-metal band, so they’re along the lines of bands like Mogwai and Explosions in the Sky. Except Russian Circles is probably way heavier than those two bands. The band has a cool, harrowing vibe to them and they really crank out loud, punishing riffs. It’s another one of my favorite bands to listen to while working or spacing out.
Russian Circles’ most recent album was Blood Year from 2019, featuring just 39 minutes and seven tracks. They’re a talented group, and it’s also cool to note that two of the founding members were childhood friends. The band name comes from a youth ice hockey drill, so it has very little to do with the country Russia. Honestly, I was hoping the band name origin was something more ominous, but hey, not everything has to be so dark.
Check them out!
Check out this (slightly awkward) live video of the band performing their song “Sinaia”:
(Photo by Sam Moqadam on Unsplash)
These guys have created some fantastic music. I’ve probably listened to “Station” and “Guidance” more frequently than their other albums that I didn’t enjoy as much. On this style of music, have you heard We Lost the Sea’s music? Their albums “Departure Songs” and “Triumph & Disaster” are tremendous. The kind of music that devastates you and inspires you at the same time.
Yes! Very cool that you dig them. I haven’t heard of We Lost the Sea, but I’ll definitely check them out. I agree about the devastation and inspiration. I’ve been really getting into pure instrumental rock bands lately. And Russian Circles is one of the best I’ve discovered recently.