Letov Egor: biography and discography. A photo

The fact that Letov Yegor died on the 44th year of life will not cause much surprise. His life was the standard for a person who existed in the musical and social underground. The persecution of the communist authorities also did not add to his health. And yet, for his relatively short life, this man managed to leave a lot behind.

Place of birth and real name

With what is primarily connected Letov Yegor? Of course, with Omsk - the city where he was born, grew up and began his creative activity. Already after several decades in musical journalism, a term was formed such as "the Siberian underground" - a set of many composers and performers who played completely unofficial in Soviet norms things.

It was in Omsk that this movement got a boost to development. In 1964, Igor Letov was born here , he will take the name of Yegor later. Like many of his friends, he chose a pseudonym. It was under him that I remember the fans and simply not indifferent people Letov Yegor, whose real name was left in childhood of the Soviet child of the Brezhnev stagnation period.

"Sowing"

In 1982, Letov finishes school and at the same time, together with his comrades, creates his first musical group. It was called "Sowing". This was the name of a magazine known in the context of political emigration, which actively criticized Soviet power. Thus, from the first steps in his work, Letov Yegor designated intolerance and uncompromising attitude to the existing system. Political subjects will remain one of the main themes throughout his career as a musician. Although Egor himself in his interviews rejected this definition. He believed that his songs are not about politics, but only have a lot of vivid images.

The first guitar of Egor was a bass of the brand "Orpheus", which he bought in Petersburg in the same year of 1982. During the existence of the band 11 records were made in the format of albums. Of course, such amateur performance existed in the most artisanal conditions. It was physically impossible to make a quality recording. However, Letov himself adapted himself to such an environment and even with the advent of popularity he did not invest in expensive studios. A low-quality sound, which is also called a garage, will become the signature card of all its projects. The original records of "Sowing" for the most part never survived. However, some songs have been remastered on various compilations already at the more mature age of Yegor.

The beginning of the "Civil Defense" and the persecution of the KGB

"Sowing" became the forerunner of another more mature project, which was destined to become the main business of Letov's life. Two years later, in 1984, Egor and his friend Konstantin Ryabinov assembled a new group. It was called "Civil Defense". Over time, in the fan environment formed their own branded abbreviations: "GrOb" and "GO".

First, the group performed in underground platforms, where informal youth gathered. The collective quickly became popular, and its activities became interested in the KGB, which, among other things, was responsible for ideological issues.

Young people quickly delivered an ultimatum, including threatening the criminal case for articles on an anti-Soviet organization and a terrorist act. Ryabinov was taken to the army, in the closed zone of Baikonur, despite the fact that he had heart problems.

The conflict with the Chekists became an inspiration for such songs as "We are the ice under the feet of the major" and "Totalitarianism". Letova month led by interrogation, where they threatened to pumping drugs, and then for three months they were sent to a psychiatric hospital. Friends and friends of Yegor gave a subscription that they would not conduct any joint activities with him. It seemed that the story of the band was over before it could start.

First albums

Nevertheless, Letov Yegor continued to play right after he was home. The first albums were created under the influence of punk rock, post-punk and noise. These are such records as "Poganaya youth" and "Optimism".

Another significant album of those years is "Red Laughter". It was recorded using acoustic instruments and mainly contained old songs in other arrangements. Its name was a reference to the well-known story of the writer of the Silver Age, Leonid Andreev.

Albums distributed samizdatnym way on low-quality magnetic cassettes. Many things were recorded semi-legal in local DK. In 1988, Letov Yegor created his own record label "GroB-record" and remastered his first opuses.

1987th

This year the band plays at its first major festival, which was held in Novosibirsk. By that time, perestroika was in full swing with its slogans about publicity - it became easier to perform. In the same year, five albums were recorded at once ("Necrophilia", "Mousetrap", "Totalitarianism", "Good!" And an electric version of "Red Laugh"). On some songs there is the influence of psychedelia and experimental searches. These changes were drawn from the work of Western collectives of the 60s.

Then Yegor gets acquainted with Yanka Diaghilev. Their creative tandem remains a cult in the Russian rock underground. Yanka participated in the records of the "Civil Defense" and some other projects of Yegor. Disappeared and tragically died in 1991.

"Everything goes according to plan"

In 1988, the most famous song appeared, which was written by Letov Yegor. The discography of his entire work is little known to a wide audience, but the song "Everything goes according to plan" is familiar to almost any person who has found perestroika. It became its own symbol.

As explained by Letov Yegor, whose biography is presented in the article, the text was created while watching Soviet television. The musician simply shifted the stories of one newscast to music. It was a very symbolic stream of consciousness with familiar images. There are several versions of the song. In one of them, the mat is veiled and replaced with neutral expressions.

Peak of popularity. Russian field of experiments

In the late 80-ies "Civil Defense" was the most prolific in the history of its existence. The last album of that period before stopping in the activity of the collective was called "The Russian field of experiments". He is considered the standard, and Egor himself called the song of the same name the pinnacle of his work.

The recording features a fast and furious pace. The sound is intentionally distorted by overloaded hardware and seems "dirty". The concluding "Russian Field" is a 14-minute composition, in which a large number of images of Russian culture, and especially literature, are used.

Then there are new ideas that Yegor Letov is fond of. Rare photos captured him as the frontman of "Communism" - a conceptual music project created by a large community of the Siberian underground.

Psychedelic music and politics

In the early 90's, Yegor announced the dissolution of the "Defense" and started psychedelic projects, which were somewhat different from the musician's previous stylistics. Two albums of that period - "Jump-Skok" and "One Hundred Years of Solitude" - remained separate phenomena in the discography of Letov. The key songs of the early 90's can be called "Eternal Spring" and "About the Fool".

In the same years in the country a turbulent political life begins , in which Letov Yegor is involved. Photographs of that time captured him with such ambiguous figures as Eduard Limonov and Alexander Dugin. Together with them, the musician supports the party of National Bolsheviks.

The last albums of "Civil Defense"

The first record, released after a significant period of stagnation, was "Solntsevorot", which appeared in 1997. In the musical plan, the influence of the genre of shougez was clearly manifested here. Of the following albums, "Starfall" is particularly noteworthy, which included re-recorded versions of popular Soviet-era songs created by other composers.

The last record of Egor "Why Dreams?" Was released in 2007. Letov Yegor, whose biography is marked by dozens of records, died in a year.

Death and influence

The musician continued to live in Omsk. There also died Letov Yegor. The cause of death was a sudden heart failure. The musician was 43 years old. At the funeral, a civil commemoration took place from people who were not indifferent to the work of GrObe. This sparked doubts as to whether Letov Yegor was still popular. The cause of death was the occasion for numerous rumors, but none of them was confirmed.

After the departure of the musician, a great legacy and archive remained. On its basis, in 2014, the documentary "Healthy and Eternal" was released, the title of which is a reference to one of the most popular songs of the "Civil Defense". The chronicles also include interviews, which were given during his tour by Letov Yegor. The photos and videos of the past years presented in the film are exclusive and give an occasion to take a fresh look at the unique phenomenon in Russian and post-Soviet culture.