Mumiy Troll in Hi Dive — Kaffeine Buzz (Denver)

Mumiy Troll, the Don`ts and be Carefuls, Missing Dufrenes – Monday, February 2 – Hi-Dive – Denver

Listening to and enjoying music sung in foreign languages used to be a rarity. Bands would learn English in order to appease the masses, but thankfully that trend has been kicked aside and now more than ever English-as-a-first-and-only-language folks are sucking up bands from Japan, France, and Mexico faster than Bruno in a beer drinking contest.

That said, a cool accent doesn`t always translate to good music. In the case of Mumiy Troll, “Russia`s biggest rock band,■ the four-piece has great indie rock hooks and diversity in mood along with their rolling R`s.

From their first U.S. release, Comrade Ambassador (hitting the street on March 24), “Snowstorm■ bounces with a sunny, guitar line that flows in contrast to feverish drums during the chorus. Their version of “California Dreaming■ is no doubt, bringing a wide smile to Mama Cass` angelic face, and has Siberian fans singing aloud to keep them warm.

Falling somewhere in between The Cure and Duran Duran, the haunting melodies of “In Our World■ begs repeating, and one only wonders if memories of the Cold War were used as a metaphor for “Nuclear Stations,■ which glides with a haunting, late-night echo.

Although the CD booklet and track listing has been translated for the U.S. release, I am again thankful that the songs were not. As our world gets smaller and smaller, maybe music will be the medium used to connect the dots outside our comfort zone. And when we travel to Russia we can brag about seeing Mumiy Troll in a small venue the way we do about seeing other acts (like Klaxons) who sell out 3,000+ seat venues back in their homelands.

Kim Owens