«Mumiy Troll in San Diego» — San Diego News Network (USA, San Diego)

Mumiy Troll in San Diego

When it`s over and they`ve had all their fun, they`ll wish that Halloween had just begun: Halloween lasts a little longer this year, as on Monday (Nov. 2) the Casbah hosts veteran Russian band Mumiy Troll, featuring the ominous-sounding vocals of frontman Ilya Lagutenko. (And what Russian kid wouldn`t want to dress up as a Mumiy Troll?) The band`s online-only English-language debut, the five-song “Paradise Ahead,■ favors an art-disco approach reminiscent of Café Tacuba (Mumiy Troll just played a couple dates in Mexico), complemented on “Me Eskimo (Polar Bear)■ (the group is originally from Siberia) with touches of the B-52`s, or perhaps their Russian equivalent (the Tu-95`s?). Meanwhile, the Troll`s droll “Mothers & Daughters■ hints at Leonard Cohen, with “Nuclear Stations■ quoting David Bowie (■Station to Station,■ logically).