Album Details

• Artist: Pussy Riot
• EP:
Kill The Sexist
• Label:
• Year of Release: 2012
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: charlesmartel on 2012-08-21

Now whatever the merits of the music, it is hard not to feel that here is a band who have made such a statement that Pussy Riot are going to change things. Given that all artists, the world over, are going to get asked whether they support the band in their struggle against Russian Government authoritarianism (and given that it would be daft for any to say no), Putin may have bitten off more than he can chew. Stalin dismissively wrote off the influence of the Catholic Church by saying "How many divisions does the Pope have?" only for that same institution to come back and bite his successors very badly 30 years later. Pussy Riot may well have done the same thing by bringing to the attention of the world just how repressive modern Russia is - and all through a blatant publicity stunt.

The song which did it - "Mother of God, Putin - Put", is on this EP. Whether it is truly offensive I cannot tell as I understand no Russian. But it has all the credentials which made the Sex Pistols so offensive to the British establishment in 1977. And just as banning their music did not silence the band, nor will jailing these three women.

To be honest, the music is not really my style. Brash, loud and in your face, it is buzzing suitars belting out a minimum of melody while the lyrics are shouted over the whole. The EP sounds as if it were recorded live, but maybe it is just really shoddy production, although there is some clapping and applause so perhaps it was. The only song which sounds as if someone has taken some care over the recording is the title track, "Kill the Sexist", which is undoubtedly a feminist anthem in the making. If you like bands like Sleater-Kinney, Black Flag and the like, then you might find this appealing.

But sometimes, it is not about the music. Whether Pussy Riot are any good is not the point, is it? Three women have been slung in jail for a ridiculously long time for a political statement about the leader of a country who brooks no criticism. However provocative their act was, surely we should all support their right to free expression in the face of a political system which would try to silence them. Play this loud! Loud enough that Vladimir Putin can hear you!

User Reviews and Comments

on 2012-08-22 CharlesMartel Said:

Ignore this rating. Damn fingers to big for iphone keypad
Rating: 2/10