Music editor of Time Out magazine met t.A.T.u. and talked about their new LP “Happy Smiles”, about “dancing panties” and re-evaluation of values in music.
"Time Out" Magazine Russia, # 34, 1-7 Sepember 2008
Before releasing their new LP "Veseliye Ulybki" / "Happy Smiles" Lena Katina and Yulia Volkova of t.A.T.u. discussed the current state of show-business with Georgy Birger.
Your album will be released in such a situation when you're almost absent on the radio and TV, but you‘re active on the Web: tatu.ru, YouTube, MySpace. Have you decided to move away from mass audience and work only for your target one?
Lena: I won't say only for target one. We do have a loyal audience, but our fans are not limited to it. And of course we're active on the Internet in a situation when major TV channels refuse to air our videos.
Well, I saw "220" video on MTV.
Lena: Yes, they declined it at first, they said it was "not their type of video" and "boring", and then they miraculously began to play it. Now "220" video is on every music channel except MUZ-TV.
Don't you think, that lately "not their type of" stuff is exactly the things we're watching on TV? And as for the things people are really interested in, they search them online.
Lena: You can find every possible thing in the Internet. People do things they like, they upload them and nobody can stop them. And TV channels - they are structures with their own policy, their own inner rules... and sometimes they're completely weird. Double standards, so to say. Well, that's what we get.
It happens quite often now that after becoming popular bands focus only on their fans and start working just for them; because of this their second-third-forth albums get boring - it's just a repetition, nothing new. But after all people never know what they need because they just can't imagine how something new can sound until they hear it and realize it's cool. Who was on your mind?
Lena: Now it's not that "people never know what they need", but "people want the things forced on them". When we recorded "Happy Smiles" we considered audience' choices a little, but we listened to ourselves mostly - what we want to do, what we want to say and how we want to say it. You must admit that we have our own style that nobody else has; it's our own, t.A.T.u.-ish sound, we'll never trade it. If all of a sudden it becomes trendy to produce very pop sound or hard rock sound - we won't make an album in these styles, we won't follow the audience. We have our own music, our own theory on that matter, we do what we like and what rocks us, not what is hip right now.
Getting back to the TV. You know, there's Pyotr Nalich, for example, he's got hundreds of thousands views on YouTube as well. And there is a singer Alina Orlova - links to her songs are all over blogosphere. You won't find them on TV. How could one navigate in such media situation? How could one understand what's hot?
Yulia: Listen, is it actually important for an artist to be on TV? We, for example, exist regardless of it! Furthermore, you just said that it all moves into the Web now, all young people are there (well, at least every second) and success there is much more important than being in some "Russian 10", I think. We give interviews, we appear on some events, we play shows - why should we need a TV?
Well, maybe because it will be filled with real trash without you.
Yulia: I agree - you turn on some music channel after midnight - and you see only whores! Or I don't know how to say...
It's called "singing panties".
Yulia: Well, it's actually clear who they are. And there are so many of them! Some "Berries", "Kalinki"... they can't sing, just open their mouth, they don't even have a sparkle in their eyes! Just some dumb girl finds a male with cash and tells him: "I want to sing!" Many talentless people came to TV, what a shame. There're talented people around, but unfortunately nobody needs them. They can do nothing without money and acquaintances.
And 10 years ago you turn on a music channel and you see "Mumiy-Troll", "Zemfira"...
Yulia: And now you've got "Kalinki"!
Lena: Back then there were people who cared about the music...
Yulia: And channels also cared about it. And now you give money - they'll air you, you give nothing - they won't. It doesn't matter how talented you are, just close the door and get lost. There's no show-business in Russia. Everything's purchased and "fake".
And how did this happen?
Lena: Substitution of values happened. Instead of filtering good music from bad music, people perceive an amount of money.
Yulia: And nobody will change it, everybody's ok with it. It's hard to discuss this topic for me. I think show-business and Russia - it's such a difficult subject... I can only call it shit and say there're some real waste there.
What are the chances of t.A.T.u.'s new album then - what do you think?
Yulia: You know, we never guess or plan such things. We just do what's interesting for us, and it's definitely not to sing one song together with those "berries-malinkis".
Lena: We want our songs to make sense. Not just "I love you, and tomorrow I love another one".
Yulia: That's why we don't want to plan anything, we just know one thing: We'll try to make it to Europe and America. We're creating contemporary music, and our popularity on the Web proves it, and our songs get into world video charts too. You can't see us in Moscow, but it doesn't matter. The only sad thing is that our Russian fans suffer.
Lena: They say: "Girls, you don't work for Russia..."
Yulia: But we do work, we just aren't "their type of". People we have to deal with tell us: "The lyrics are too complicated, it's not our type of thing, we need something more simplified, kalinki-berries, "I love you - I don't love you", dancing panties on the background of white wall". That's all, they need nothing more.
