Won James Won
Won James Won is a noise rock/experimental band based in Saint-Petersburg and Moscow, Russia.
Won James Won | |
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Origin | Saint Petersburg / Moscow, Russia |
Genres | Experimental rock |
Years active | 2003 – present |
Labels | R.A.I.G. |
Members | Danila “Muscular” Smirnov Tikhon “Hee-Haw” Kubov Andrey "Astro" Gankin Eugenу Konchakov Eugenу Lastochkin |
Past members | Sergei Kagadeev Ivan “Mandwill” Ljudewig Alexander “Edward” Telpook Vadim "Nos" Latyshev Alexander Bochagov Vasily Nikitin |
They formed in February 2003 and are signed to R.A.I.G. (Russian Association of Independent Genres) label. Members of the band also play in nationally acclaimed professional hardcore bands Kirpichi and I.F.K. Won James Won musical approach combines noisy rock-instrumentations, sampled electronics, wild vocalizations, ambiguous texts and eccentric shows. The group released their debut LP Tol's Toy in 2004 and the second studio album Theorist Attack in 2006. Both albums represent the wild array of styles and sonic methods. In 2005 they released a live auto-bootleg "The Drisneyland Chronicles Vol.I". In Spring 2007 the core band members composed an ambient soundtrack "Dante. Moscow" for a photo installation based on Dante’s “Divine Comedy” (released as a digital file in 2008). In November 2007 the third official album for RAIG entitled "The Hollow Grail" came out. It consisted of live material and marked the return to more abrasive noise imrov direction. Next came "The Flood of Ixtlan" EP, 30-minute amalgamation of different styles, from IDM to micronoise and freak-folk. A year later, a collection of studio outtakes, live cuts and other rarities, "Les 120 Minuetes de Sadomasonodoraemonocuporamenosodom" was also made available for download on RAIG affiliated net-label Accessory Takes. While this record included mostly song-oriented tracks in noise-rock vein, next studio album by Won James Won entitled "Corpus Unhearmeticum" operates in collage, musique concrète and dark ambient aesthetics. Artwork for the strictly limited edition of this CD courtesy of ZonderZond is especially ambitious. In 2011 the band delved deeper into field recordings/plunderphonics territory with self-released "Homeostat EP". Sounds incorporated in this work were sampled in variety of abandoned factories and wild forests in rural Russia. Next EP was called "ГЕНШТАБ ДЕСБОТ" - a grim-sounding foray into dark ambient electronics. The latest full-length studio album by Won James Won, "Воиня Везумия" is decidedly melodical and song-structured but still as off-kilter as anything in the band's discography. Won James Won are members of ZveZdaZ art-movement. The band is considered as one of the most prolific on Russian underground scene. Their albums were distributed by such well-known underground labels as Cold Spring (U.K.), Amanita (France) and Crucial Blast (US).
Past and present side projects
- Kirpichi (Dan Smirnov, Ivan “Mandwill” Ljudewig, Vadim Latyshev) - Site
- Правда (Pravda) (Dan Smirnov, Ivan “Mandwill” Ljudewig, Alexander “Edward” Telpook)
- Goon Gun (Dan Smirnov, Tikhon S. Kubov) - Site
- J-Lobster (ex-Jazzlobster) (Tikhon S. Kubov) - J-Lobster Bandcamp
- WOMBA (Tikhon S. Kubov) - WOMBA Bandcamp
- Н.О.М. (N.O.M.)/ NOM EURO (Sergei Vladimirovich Kagadeev)
- Spermadonarz (Dan Smirnov)
- Steroid 50333 (Dan Smirnov, Ivan Ludewig, Vadim Latyshev)
- I.F.K. (Tikhon S. Kubov)
- MUX (Dan Smirnov, Alexander “Edward” Telpook)
Discography
LPs
- Tol's Toy (RAIG, 2004)
- The Drisneyland Chronicles Vol.I (ZveZdaZ, 2005)
- Theorist Attack (RAIG, 2006)
- The Hollow Grail (RAIG, 2007)
- Corpus Unhearmeticum (RAIG,2010)
- Voinja Vezumija (RAIG,2013)
- Red Wedming (RAIG,2014)
- The Drisneyland Chronicles Vol.II (ZveZdaZ, 2015)
- UTOPLENIADA - Live From Brusov! (ZveZdaZ, 2016)
- Prozrachnik (Baba Vanga, 2017)
- [空] Venus in Abyss (ZveZdaZ, 2018)
EPs
- Dante Moscow (Arbor,2007-RAIG,2008)
- The Flood of Ixtlan (RAIG,2008)
- Homeostat (RAIG,2011)
- ГЕНШТАБ ДЕСБОТ (ZveZdaZ,2012)
- Spit Holes (4 Eyes of UDO) (ZveZdaZ,2015)
- Larvadrom (ZveZdaZ,2016)
Compilations
- Les 120 Minuetes de Sadomasonodoraemonocuporamenosodom (RAIG,2009)
Singles
- Red Ded Army (ZveZdaZ,2014)
External links
- Official site
- Bandcamp page
- RAIG label website page
- Russian fan-page
- "Tol's Toy" review
- "Theorist Attack" review (in Italian)
- "The Hollow Grail" review
- "Dante. Moscow" review
- "Corpus Unhearmeticum" review (in Russian)
- "Homeostat" review (in Italian)
- "ГЕНШТАБ ДЕСБОТ" review (in Italian)
- "Voinja Vezumija" review (in Italian)
- "Red Wedming" review (in Italian)
- "Spit Holes" review (in Italian)
- Interview with Tikhon Kubov, 2009 (in Italian)
- Interview with Tikhon Kubov, 2014 (in Russian)
- "The Drisneyland Chronicles Vol.II" review (in Italian)
- Interview with Tikhon Kubov, 2017
- "Prozrachnik" review