“Bricks” staged a frenzy in Moscow in three acts

“In every touring city there are five hundred people who will definitely come to us,” said the members of the “Bricks” in an interview with “ZD” at the end of the last century. Since then, they can gather more people, although they never became a stadium group. On the other hand, they retained the informal charm of a DIY team, atypical for groups with an enviable biography, that is, a gang whose members do not aspire to be big bosses and do a good job with all their affairs without unnecessary servants.

From the outside, the “Bricks” always looked like a stable team to the point of obscenity. A variety of musicians managed to have a hand in the group, but since the beginning of the century, key accomplices – Vasily Vasilyev (vocals, guitar), Daniil Smirnov (bass, vocals) and Vadim Latyshev (he replaced drummer Evgeny Nazarov, who died from drugs in 2000) – remain on their places.

With music, everything is also clear, and for a long time. Rap-core, adopted back in the mid-nineties, is still something like a general line for the “Bricks”. An impressive experience, of course, allows them to freestyle. The most relevant album, Senile Insanity (2021), has reggae, blues, and much more, but the energetic rapping, combined with crushing choruses, continues to be what the Kirpichs were once loved for and do not let go of their arms until so far.

In Senile Insanity, only a considerable number of guests give out a group with history, ranging from Nike Borzov and Vladimir Begunov to Ilya Chert. However, fifteen tracks do not feel any of the routine expected in such cases. A sound that impresses with a complete disregard for musical fashion, muscular lines instead of meaningless hooks and cheerful sneers.

The concerts of the “Bricks” have also long become events where passions are running high, and after all these years, both on stage and in the hall, it is still not cold.

How it looked

No extra claims. Three people on stage, guitar, bass, drums, sampler, screen showing only the band’s logo. But this concert turned out to be bigger from the inside than from the outside.

It is difficult to make predictions about the “Bricks”. They turn either into evil rockers, or into street poets, and you can only understand what mood the group has at the particular concert where you got to, only in the course of the action. This time the mood was very generous. We can say that Vasya and Kº threw a concert in three acts. There was also guitar rumble with a focus on new tracks like “25 Years of Clean Heit”, “Learn to Swim”, and a generous dose of hip-hop, and of course big informal hits.

The audience quickly swayed, although the people were mostly serious. Mostly adults, in outfits neatly assembled according to the informal fashion patterns of twenty years ago, “excuse me, are you standing in line?”, “can I see the menu?”, almost no obscenity. However, pretty soon everyone was loudly chanting “tell the real story to the lads” and showed the intention to jump as high as possible.

This whole fighting idyll lasted quite a long time (three dozen songs, although not of art-rock timing, became a very exciting immersion in albums and hits of different times), but the audience had no reason to get bored. And all because the members of the trio know how to make a good impression.

pros

The frontman and main author of the group has always been in order with self-esteem, but in the format of a live concert “Bricks” is zero pathos. There is nothing happening on the stage that could once again emphasize the historical significance of this group. No one takes out guitars for them, they do not make meaningful speeches, they do not make dramatic pauses, remaining guys in jeans, T-shirts and baseball caps.

At the same time, the artists do not allow any familiarity (they are still from St. Petersburg), although they present themselves as a kind of art movement in which poetry and music are performed, it seems, skillfully and diligently, but not very seriously. And with this ease, “Bricks” during one concert turn either into Beastie Boys, then into Red Hot Chili Peppers, then into Blink 182, remaining very recognizable in any situation, by themselves. Not a concert, but one big adventure.

Minuses

There is some catch in the situation when adult and rather successful men sing about dashing youth adventures, romantic lack of money and hangover languor. But there are songs that you can’t throw out of the show, so you have to somehow get out. In general, it turns out. Despite the inevitable plus or minus fifty manners for uncles, Vasily, Daniil and Vadim remain those typical Xers (as they call themselves) who don’t put a finger in their mouth. They bite and don’t choke.

Party Phrase

“Trash and waste – that’s how I have fun!” – the program slogan of more than twenty years ago still calls the people to concert feats.

Direct speech

In an interview with ZD, the leader of the group Vasily “Vasya Vasin” Vasiliev discussed the current state of the art, covers for themselves and irony with sarcasm.

About the new album and tour

Senile Insanity was released almost two years ago, it is considered successful, in 2022 we played about eighty concerts. The story continues, now summer and September are getting crowded, and it turns out so funny that all summer we still have one concert a week, all on Saturdays, and mostly open-air festivals. This is happiness. I do not keep statistics, but, according to the general feeling, there are a few more concerts. Some joke that it’s thanks to runaway artists. This is, of course, humor.

About crown concert numbers

“Sometimes, performing them on stage, I think what name to give to a boat with a motor that I am going to buy next year. We like to play unusual concerts, set ourselves tasks. Let’s say in this concert hall we only play heavy metal hardcore. And in this big bar, we only play acoustic. And at this festival we will strictly read. I like to lead the audience behind me, and not to swim in the mainstream of the conjuncture. I really like my latest albums, they are in some ways much stronger than the first ones. But the reality is that a forty-year-old man who came to our concert is guaranteed to kindly shout out: “Vasek, play “Bayka”!” — and it’s a thrill.

About the albums of “Bricks”, which have become classics of the genre

“Bricks Are Heavy”, “Death at a Rave” or “OO Capitalism” are beautiful objectively; people say that they have not lost relevance. But I rarely listen to these albums, usually only when I need to remember something. I listen to the old quickly and without pleasure. For a long time I caught myself thinking that we are a cover band playing covers for ourselves. Now it sounds, to put it mildly, differently. But I don’t want to change anything in those records. I am far from Ilya Repin, who, according to legend, was denied access to any of the museums where his paintings hang. I am aware that any album released to the world is a monument to the era, everything was done exactly in that time, place and in these circumstances, and this should not be corrected. Art without context does not work.

On the difference between solo albums and group releases

Everything is very simple here: “Bricks” is definitely a collective work, and solo albums are the work and authorship of one person, your humble servant. If I record an album under the name “Vasya V.” (at the moment there are nine of them, including the release of this year’s Saber Dance. – “MK”), then I do everything myself. For example, for my second album “Demonstration of Achievements”, I did not let anyone in at all, in the form of an experiment. The idea, writing music, writing poetry, recording, mixing, mastering, cover photo, release – everything was on me, no one had a hand in it. To varying degrees, I can do all this, and technology allows. With the latest album, “Saber Dance”, smarter, it samples the famous German DJ Christoph Schreiner and features back-MC, the brilliant MC Dagon. Highly recommend, the album itself is very ideological.

About the constancy of the composition and affairs outside the group

We are held together by respect for each other, diplomacy, delicacy, courtesy. Willingness to help if needed. This is me in a broad sense. In addition to the “Bricks” there are also many things to do. Daniil Nikolaevich teaches at the Department of Sound Engineering of St. Petersburg State Unitary Enterprise, he is an associate professor, candidate of technical sciences, a lot of workload, very tired. Vadim is an honored teacher of drumming, he has twenty students. Well, I sometimes give lectures on songwriting, paint canvas-oil paintings and at the moment I am finishing a book.

On irony and sarcasm in texts

What kind of irony, I don’t know anything, there is no irony. We are simple people, let’s look into Dahl’s dictionary, see what “irony” is: “Irony is speech, the meaning or meaning of which is opposite to the literal meaning of words; mocking praise, approval expressing censure; mockery; praise, which is worse than scolding.” I don’t see anything like this in my literary works, looking from the outside. And sarcasm is generally disgusting to me as a phenomenon. So is cynicism.