Serious IV by Detieti

smart url ⟹ https://band.link/a789 ⟸

Dear listener! It took a long time to make the fourth album and in the three years after the release of "Frogressive Punk" we have changed a lot. The crazy booth ran away, giving vast to create atmospheric images. However, the blank space on the cover is still filled with the ghosts of these jolliers. On the new album, there has been a shift towards more thoughtful musical material, close in form to classic prog albums. Detieti are still inspired by sci-fi movies from the 80s, they come up with funny cartoon characters. All this helps to compose new music. It would be lazy and boring for us to make a true concept album, we think of our album as a soundtrack for a non-existent film. We add only a short glossary, which together with the booklet will help you as much as possible to immerse yourself in the music of "Serious IV".

THE GLOSSARY
THE AGENT - investigates the activities of an alien civilization on Earth. He doubts the reality of what is happening and the purity of his own mind.
DIZORIENTERIA - a special existential state, accompanied by a disorder of the digestive system. The feeling of being lost in space and time is characteristic.
MILKY SQUID are a race of intelligent beings from Sirius D planet. Explorers of inhabited worlds conducting experiments on Earth. They looks like someone's genetic joke.
THE DONKEY - captured by Milky Squid to conduct experiments with consciousness. Probably he didn’t grasp anything.
REFLECTIVE ARCHITECT is the supreme Squid in the state of Buddha, as it seems to him. Only three words appear in his mind: "Zaebis, ohuenno, voubsche".
Z.O.V. (ZAEBIS OHUENNO VOUBSCHE) is the mantra of all squid.


Leonid Kravchenko (What's That Noise?, headbanger.ru, jazzist.club) wrote an article about “Serious IV” especially for Bandcamp.

“Moscow based band “Detieti” has once named one of their albums “Frogressive Punk” and that absurdist title has delivered a perfect definition of their music. Prog-rock, fusion, funk, disco, hardore, metal and various references to cultural artefacts of the VHS era have assembled to dada-esque collage, obviously carrying Mike Patton’s projects influence, nevertheless their very own musicality could be heard from the very beginning. It was an avant-prog with an overwhelming degree of absurdity and punk attitude, where different genres elements have been masterfully blended in a merry feast, so to say, a controlled chaos. However all said above is not as relatable to the band in its current period as it used to be. Line-up changes, pandemic and lockdown altogether diverted their evolution somewhere else and the new reality has changed the way their music sounds

Quite telling, Detieti’s new record is called “Serious IV”. To begin with, this is the band's fourth LP and secondly, by their standards, it sounds unusually serious. Punk frenzy, 90’s advertisement mockery, genre juggling - all of that has remained on previous records. This time the collective stays on an avant-prog-fusion side with lengthy music pieces. Structurally “Serious IV” can remind us of some classic prog records, divided into two equal parts, each fitting on a 12 inch record side. Each has two tracks: relatively short and an epic one. The beginning seems familiar: frolicking funk with humorous voice samples sets us up for a fun times of fooling around, but then the record hits us with complex rhythm structures, heavy guitars, sharing lead parts with synths, dub elements, jazzy solos and composition development by prog rulebook. Music sounds catchy though, it is filled with hooks no less, than on previous records.

Side B turns out to be quite dark. It hits off with a “Reflective architect” whose laid-back synthesizer sound, driven by dub rhythm section, pacifies the listener while mechanic voice repeats “we will make you happy”, however this first impression is deceiving: the sample has been taken from soviet sci-fi movie “Teens in the Universe”, where robots are making humans “happy” by stripping them of empathy - which inevitably leads to catastrophe. Furthermore, the next piece, thirteen minute long “Z.O.V”, is getting much darker: guitars deliver metal riffs, keys add “Goth” vibe, while robotic voices lose all friendliness. Still it ends with an optimistic coda - album, just like the movie, has a happy ending.

Nevertheless, such homages to sci-fi inspired classic prog don’t make “Serious IV” a retro record. Indeed, fans of classic art rock would find this album more accessible than the band's previous efforts, but Detieti kept their own style, while developing it further. What’s most important, even without a familiar lunacy, music doesn’t lose its charm, while getting even more interesting composition-wise. This record demonstrates, that the band’s strongest point is not it’s frenziness, but a talent to create smart, complicated and yet catchy music.”


Italian & English https://rootsmusic.it review by Simone Rossetti:
https://www.rootsmusic.it/detieti-serious-iv/


Dutch https://carrysnewundergroundmusic.blogspot.com review by Carry Munter:
"Detieti uit Moskou, Rusland, werd in 2004 opgericht door Mikhail "Han" Ivanov - basgitaar en Roman Karandaev- drums en zang, die al snel versterking kregen van Ivan "Vanish" Khvorostukhin - sologitaar.
De band nam hun eerste demo in 2010 met hun nieuwe drummer Viktor Tikhonov (Kshettra) op, dat in de debuut EP "Children" resulteerde, die via Zlurad verscheen, maar Roman bleef ook nog steeds bij de band betrokken en speelde mee als zanger tijdens concerten en opnames.
In 2011 kwam keyboards speler Petr "Peyote-R" Bolotov bij de band, waarna dit kwartet de albums "Ne eP" (Addicted Label en Zlurad, 2013) en "In General Terms" (Addicted Label en Zlurad, 2015) uitbracht.
Nadat Ivan "Vanish" Khvorostukhin in 2016 uit de band ging en vervangen werd door Alexander Kosarenko, verscheen op 25 oktober 2016 het digitale split album met Materinskaya Plata "Live Split" en op 19 mei 2018 het album "Frogressive Punk", dat in de zomer en najaar van 2017 opgenomen werd en via Addicted Label en Zlurad uitgebracht werd.
Op 12 maart 2021 bracht Detieti het album "IV" uit, waarop 4 nummers staan, via Addicted Label en dit verscheen als CD, als cassette in roze, oranje en blauw en als digitale download.

Het album start met "Disorienteria", waarin Detieti een fantastisch rock in opposition nummer in een gemiddeld tempo speelt, dat een aanstekelijk ritme heeft en melodische en lichte invloeden van avant garde bevat, waar diverse tempowisselingen in zitten.
Daarna volgt "Milky Squid", dat met ruimtelijke geluiden begint, om al snel over te gaan in een uitstekend stuk RIO, dat swingt en tempowisselingen bevat.
In "Reflective Architect" zet Detieri me een prachtig vrij rustig dansbaar nummer voor, dat dance invloeden bevat.
Als laatste volgt "Z.O.V." voor en hierin laat de band me genieten van een schitterend rock in opposition nummer, dat tempowisselingen heeft en iets na de helft van het nummer in een hoger tempo gespeeld wordt, waardoor de muziek gaat swingen, om tegen het einde in een rustig tempo over te gaan en dienovereenkomstig zo te eindigen.

"Serious IV" van Detieti is een puike plaat, die uitstekende rock in opposition bevat, waar ik vanaf de begin tonen van genoten heb en ik raad iedere liefhebber van deze muzieksoort dan ook aan eens te gaan luisteren naar deze prima Russische band."
https://carrysnewundergroundmusic.blogspot.com/2021/12/review-detieti-serious-iv-addicted.html




German (Austria) https://soundmagnet.eu review by Ingo Schmitz 9/10:
"Einen Hang zu Science Fiction Themen hatten Detieti schon immer. Gerade auch in Verbindung mit deutlichen Bezügen zu den 1980ern, wie sie in dieser Kombination spätestens mit TV Serien wie Stranger Things wieder populär geworden sind.

Auf ihrem vierten Longplayer Serious IV geben die Protagonisten aus dem russischen Moskau einen deutlichen progressiveren, ja sogar krautigeren Anstrich. Das Album kommt auf CD, digital und ganz stilgerecht auch auf Musikkassette daher.
Cineastische Science Fiction Story

In vier zeitweise recht ausgedehnten Tracks begeben sich Detieti in ein Science Fiction Szenario mit fiktiven Comic Charakteren. Mit dem HIER zu hörenden Disorientia beginnt der Trip und anders als vermutet werden kann, verliert sich der über zwölf Minuten lange Song nicht in Zeit und Raum, sondern zeigt sich mit seinem schlabbernden und omnipräsenten Bass Sounds und progressiven Songstrukturen als durchaus erdverbundenes Tondokument.

Das Konzept und die Story über eine außerirdische, tintenfischähnliche Rasse ist schon recht schräg und eben diese Absurdität spiegelt auch die Instrumentierung des Geschehens mit allerlei Effekten und merkwürdigen Instrumenten wie Spielzeugpianos oder quietschenden, blubbernden Samples wieder. Hier trifft Progressive Rock auf Fusion, Funk, Disco oder auch Hardcore. Einzelne Einflüsse sind schwer auszumachen.
Origineller Avantgarde Progressive Rock, der in viele Schubladen greift

Detieti haben ihre Zutaten aus vielerlei Schubladen gegriffen und verquiken das Ganze zur einer recht eigenständigen Melange. Im Vergleich zum Vorgänger Frogressive Punk ist Serious IV differenzierter und feiner, allerdings auch weniger funkig. Gesang gibt es hier ebenfalls nicht, dafür ein paar effektvoll eingestreute Sprachsamples. Kernige Gitarrenriffs, die sich in komplexe Songstrukturen betten sind hier ebenso mit von der Partie wie knackige Rhythmen und schlüssige Tempowechsel. Sowie natürlich skurrile Keyboard- und Sequenzereffekte.

All diese Elemente lassen sich mit Avantgarde gut auf einen Punkt bringen. Und dennoch ist Serious IV zugänglich und kann mit memorablen Ideen überzeugen, vor allem in den langen Tracks wie dem 13 minütigen Z.O.V., das ihr euch HIER anhören könnt und das vor Ideen nur so strotzt, ohne dabei an Stringenz und Atmosphäre einzubüßen.

Fazit
Das vierte Album Serious IV der russischen Avantgarde Progressive Rocker Detieti sprudelt nur so vor originellen und verrückten Songideen. Wer auf psychedelische Science Fiction Storys mit einem überdeutlichen Augenzwinkern steht, sollte unbedingt reinhören. 9 / 10"
https://www.soundmagnet.eu/detieti-serious-iv-album-review/




https://theprogressiveaspect.net review by Nick Hudson:
"The word ‘ambivalent’ is often somewhat misused, and used to express indifference. When I first heard Detieti’s latest album, Serious IV, I was not indifferent. I was ambivalent. I had very strong, simultaneous and contradictory feelings whenever I listened to the album. My ambivalence came from my love of what the band once was, and seemed no longer to be. And yet, though I was disappointed, I was also enthralled. Serious IV is a wonderful album, and it’s probably more likely to gain the band a following than any of their previous releases – especially as it is certainly more accessible and, well, serious. But I loved Detieti for being the completely bonkers band they were. A band that never went anywhere expected, and wrong-footed listeners at every turn. While Serious IV is still avant enough to put off some listeners, it’s no longer so odd, strange, weird and crazy. It’s… serious. Well, as serious as an album soundtracking a non-existent film about an extra-terrestrial race of squid-like creatures experimenting on Earth’s donkeys can be, I guess.

But as bizarre as that concept might sound, you need only read the Bandcamp blurb for their previous album, Frogressive Punk, to see just how out-there a concept one would once have expected from the Russian outfit. Alien squids are rather mundane in comparison. And the soundtrack somewhat is, too. But – and this is the rather large caveat – the music of Serious IV is mundane only to those who know Detieti’s previous work. Taken by itself, Serious IV is a really awesome album, that I really love. I just can’t help but miss the far-out kookiness. Thus, ambivalence. I love what I hear and wouldn’t change a thing, and yet when I first heard it, at the same time longed for it to be different, and mourned what had changed. I’m guessing a lot of the changes are down to the loss of Ivan “Vanish” Khvorostukhin. While Frogressive Punk was the first Detieti album to feature new guitarist Alexander Kosarenko, the album was all written with Vanish, and Detieti founder (though he is only a guest musician on their albums, having left the band prior to any release), Roman Karandaev. Serious IV is the first Detieti album to not feature any contribution from Vanish or Roman.

But, if this is where Detieti is taking me, I’m not complaining. I may have been ambivalent, but I’ve truly enjoyed the trip they’ve taken me on here. The band have abducted me, and probed me, and I like it. And any ambivalence has left me. Opening track, Disorienteria may not be as disorienting as previous material, but it’s still not what I’d call normal (what is normal?). It may be less angular and jarring, more quiet and calm, but it’s still a thoroughly engaging mix of sounds and influences. Once upon a time, the band claimed to be a mix of funk, dub, metal, ska, punk and anything else they could throw in the pot, and gave early and eclectic Queen and the many projects of Mike Patton as their major influences. I would say that Zappa must certainly also be an influence, and surely some Can too. Detieti’s Bandcamp page admits that their earlier albums had an “overall atmosphere of a crazy circus” and that now the band “tends to be calmer, writing more thoughtful music.” But, while there is less unpredictability and surprise to their sound, Detieti still provide plenty of variation in the music and rhythms to keep listeners on their toes. That same mix is there, but it’s served in a more gentle fashion, rather than thrown across the room in the hope of starting a fight.

Unlike previous releases, Serious IV is an instrumental album, and as the vocals were often as crazed and crazy as the music, the lack of vocals alone gives this album a very different feel. But the near thirteen minutes of the opening number fly by, and need no vocals. In fact, though I always knew how adept the band were on their instruments, without vocals it is really overt. The interaction between them is wonderful. They can all go in different directions and come back together as one. Each musician knows exactly what the other is doing, and they play over, under, through and against each other to create a beautiful jigsaw-like tapestry. Viktor Tikhonov skitters all over the place on drums and percussion, and Mikhail Ivanov lays down so many fat and funky bass lines, and plays… toy piano! Ivanov and Tikhonov both add synths and samples to the album, and are augmented by Petr Bolotiv as the main synth and noise effect provider. No-longer-so-new member Alexander Kosarenko doesn’t just provide a strong and quirky presence on guitar, but also plays mbira, didgeridoo, percussion, and bass synth. And if this were not enough, three other musicians add their touches to some of the tracks.

What we hear on Serious IV is a fuller and more fluid sounding Detieti. The changes of rhythm and style are no longer so sudden and schizophrenic as they were on previous releases. They are still present, but in a far more easily digested manner, while still maintaining an avant edge. Though I would never say Detieti sound like Beardfish (the two bands are not even close), Serious IV reminds me a lot of my favourite Beardfish album, The Sane Day. There is a sense of controlled chaos (where previously, Detieti went for the chaos, and didn’t bother with the control), and the restraint works surprisingly well. There are times where I can hear where the Detieti of old would have taken a left turn, and they choose not to – and it just works. I guess these were the times of my greatest ambivalence, as half of me wanted to hear them go off on that tangent, while the other half was somewhat in awe that they have not. But, as I say, I am ambivalent no longer, and I can’t wait to hear where Detieti takes me next!"
https://theprogressiveaspect.net/blog/2022/02/11/detieti-serious-iv/




https://stonerhive.blogspot.com review by Joop Konraad:
"Progressive funk, krautish punk and total experimental freedom! That’s what Moscow five-piece Detieti is all about. And they get incredibly serious about it on their newest release Serious IV. Already out there since December 2021, released through that freaky Addicted Label, it’s over thirty five minutes of freaky prog abandon and bizarre outbursts for a sci-fi soundtrack that all each of the five members envision going into totally different directions… Serious about wild music? Get some Serious IV!

But WAIT! We just mentioned that awesome Detieti release Serious IV from the Addicted Label; but Addicted has been bringing out some much wild, wonderful and weird stuff; turning us into a definite label junkie! And in that messed up year of 2021 we’ve not gotten around to mentioning so much of that drug that got us hooked… Well; to sort of get clean… Here’s a rundown of a few!"
https://stonerhive.blogspot.com/2022/02/stoner-hives-quick-fire-friday.html




Germany http://vanbauseneick.de/krautnick/ review by Matze van Bauseneick:
"Sind Detieti auf ihrem vierten Album erwachsen geworden? Was früher noch eine chaotische Aneinanderreihung von Musikideen war, deutlich inspiriert von Frank Zappa oder Mr. Bungle, findet jetzt eine geordnetere Ausdrucksform. Das Durchgeknallte bleibt natürlich erhalten, bekommt aber schlüssigere Bahnen. Die nur vier Stücke zwischen fünf und 13 Minuten scheinen dabei nur willkürlich Grenzen zu setzen. Die Band bringt nämlich trotzdem die absurdesten Ideen miteinander in Verbindung, reiht sie wie die in Farbe, Form und Größe unterschiedlichen Kleidungsstücke einer Großfamilie an einer grob den Takt vorgebenden Leine auf und fährt entspannt mit dem Mirko daran entlang.

Und was hier geht! Spacerock, Ambient, Metalriffs, Pop, Funk, Synth, Reggae, was das Herz begehrt – und noch viel mehr. Vor lauter Experiment vergessen die Moskauer aber den Fluss nicht, und das macht den Unterschied zu früher: Die Musik wirkt nicht mehr wie ein abgekippter Möbellaster, birst aber trotzdem vor Einfallsreichtum. Auch ohne Gesang liegt dem Album eine Geschichte zugrunde, irgendwas mit Aliens natürlich.

Interessanterweise besteht die Band aus nur drei Leuten, musikalisch an „Serious IV“ beteiligt waren aber sieben, mit Gitarre, Bass, Schlagzeug sowie Samples, Field Recordings, einem Kinderpiano, Synthies und Sequenzern, Melodica und Mandoline. Das Ergebnis basiert dennoch weitgehend auf Rockmusik, aber nur das, das wäre Detieti sicherlich zu langweilig. Und das ist „Serious IV“ mitnichten!"
http://vanbauseneick.de/krautnick/spezial-addicted-noname-label-aus-moskau-teil-12/

Moscow based avant prog band Detieti (pronounced as “Deti Yeti”) was founded in 2004. Early albums are characterized by eclecticism, “post-mr-bungle” vibe, collage structures and overall atmosphere of a crazy circus. These days band tends to be calmer, writing more thoughtful music. Actual line-up: Mikhail Ivanov - bass, Viktor Tikhonov - drums, Sasha Kosarenko - guitar.

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