#Leningrad (band)

[russianreader]

Leningrad 4

If you have been to Chronicles Bar [in downtown St. Petersburg], you have definitely seen the photos discussed in this film. In today’s session of “Screening the Real,” we are watching Leningrad 4, a documentary about Sergei Podgorkov and other champions of Leningrad’s unofficial photography scene during perestroika. Yuri Mikhailin spoke to the filmmaker, Dmitry Fetisov, about dramatic structure,…

[clivechip]

Song Lyric Sunday: Finland's Finest

This week’s theme for Song Lyric Sunday gave me pause for thought. It is to play a song by a band that wore uniforms. Did this mean military style uniforms or, as Americans call their sports kits ‘uniforms,’ was this an homage to some sporting event taking place there today? No idea what it might be, though, as they just don’t hype it up enough. Jim’s post – I Don’t Need No Stinking Uniform –…

[madammidnightsblog]

Warning: None, pure fluff. Fem! reader, pale & chubby reader (sorry for the poc and masc! readers)

It was Christmas leave for most soldiers and Nikolai was one of them that was able to return home. The beautiful snowy woods that surrounded his hidden home in Plyos, Russia was comfortable and overall soothing as he slept in his big bed. Thick blankets and many soft pillows covered the bed and cage him in as he laid on the right side of the bed facing the door and the deep snores of his filled the quiet cabin. The large windows behind him shows the beautiful woods of his backyard that was covered in snow as it fell, the thick white blanket softly glowing in the morning light and lighting the dark bedroom slightly.

The bulky Russian laid on his side with one arm under a pillow where he had a Glock hidden under and the other hand resting on the blanket. His bare torso exposed to the chilly air of the bedroom but didn’t mind as it made it more comfortable for him. But the smaller body behind him didn’t agree with that statement as she moved closer to him, her small arms wrapped around his waist and buried herself closer to him as she wore one of his long sleeves' shirts to bed. A tiny whine left her as the cold nipped her ears and cheeks while her long brown hair was sprawled out on the pillows under her head, and she tightened her hold onto him while she slept behind him.

Feeling the movement behind him, it made the Russian stir awake with a deep yawn. His eyes slowly opening and adjusting to the light that flooded the room from behind him as his right hand sluggishly moved down to hold the small woman's cold hands. A smile appeared on his lips as he felt her instinctively scooted closer to him in her sleep, knowing she wasn't built for the cold unlike him and seek for his warmth. Nikolai ran warm all year long and during the winter, he was a living and constant furnace for the woman behind him. Turning his head, he blinked slowly as the sunlight blinded him slightly before he was able to look at the beautiful wife of his behind him and seeing how her pale cheeks were pinkish from the cold which made him chuckle as he knew she would be complaining once she wakes.

"зайчонок.." He softly called out, his voice deep and raspy from sleep which made his sweet wife whine. She was obviously not ready to wake up, but he needed to start the fire to warm the house. He didn't want his little rabbit to freeze. "Wake up."

"No." She whined and nuzzled her face into his back, breathing in his scent and just clinging to him as not only was she's cold, but she missed him dearly. He was gone for nearly a year, and she missed cuddling her husband so ever since he came home last Saturday, she's been clinging to him. And he couldn't be upset about it.

Another chuckle left him, and he gently shifted to lay on his back, smiling while he pulled her to lay her head on his chest and allowing her to cuddle more. If she wanted to cuddle, then he could spare another hour of being in bed because he also missed her. She was the reason he even moved to Plyos in the first place as he is born and raised in Leningrad Oblast, he just visited Plyos about four years ago for a concert from his favorite Russian rock band. He had no intentions to move there or even fall in love, he was someone that thought he was married to his job. That was until he walked into this cute little family-owned bakery and met the beautiful woman behind him.

Nikolai was starstruck when he saw the cute and small woman the moment he saw her, seeing her chubby cheeks all red from the heat of the bread oven and her adorable plush body dressed in a beautiful forest green cottage dress. The way her soft fat was held under the fabric with the long white apron had his heart fluttering, her long brown hair pulled back in a messy bun was enough to make him crave to run his fingers through it, and that sweet smile she gave him as she greeted him had him weak to the knees. Nikolai wasn't a man that fell easily and that day, he fell harder than he ever had. And he made every excuse he could to return there for every little thing, for the four days he was there, he returned to speak to her and see her smile before he left. Her number saved in his phone as he got back on the train that took him home.

"Alright but only for a little while, родная." He whispered softly, smiling down at her as she buried her face into his chest, the soft hair there tickled her nose which made her nuzzle more. His eyes filled with love as he watched her sleep, and he gently raked his fingers through her hair, painting this moment in the back of his head so he'll remember it when he leaves.

[majorhortonisonleaveinlondon]

An updated (December 20, 2024 9:02pm pst) list of WW2 movies and TV shows in chronological order

thought out WW2 -(Imitation Game 2014) -(The Book Thief 2013) -(The Zookeeper’s Wife 2017) -(The Pianist 2002)

1937

October 26, 1937 Defence of Sihang Warehouse (The Eight Hundred 2020)

December 13, 1937 Nanjing Massacre - (John Rabe 2009) - (The Flowers of War 2011)

1938

Fall of 1938 (Munich – The Edge of War 2022)

1939

Summer 1939 (Six Minutes to Midnight 2020)

September 3, 1939 King George VI first wartime speech (King’s Speech 2010)

September 17, 1939, Soviet Union Invitation of Poland (The Way Back 2010)

November 30, 1939 Soviet Union invades Finland (The Winter War 1989)

1940

April 9, 1940 Operation Weserübung -(April 9th [movie] 2015) -(King’s Choice 2016) -(Narvik 2022) -(War Sailors 2023)

April 27, 1940 (Into the White 2011)

June 4, 1940 -Churchill gives “We Shall Fight on the Beaches” speech (Darkest Hour 2017) -Dunkirk Evaluation (Dunkirk 2017)

July 10-October 31, 1940 Battle of Britain (Battle of Britain 1969)

1941

May 1941 (Call to Spy 2019)

June 22, 1941 Operation Barbarossa -(Fortress of War [The Brest Fortres 2010) -(Defiance 2008)

September 8, 1941, Siege of Leningrad begins. -(Battle of Leningrad [Saving Leningrad] 2019) -(Leningrad 2009)

October 1941 Battle of Moscow (The Last Frontier [The Final Stand] 2020)

October 1941 Battle of Sevastopol (Battle for Sevastopol 2015)

December 7, 1941, the Empire of Japan attacks Pearl Harbor (Tora! Tora! Tora! 1970)

December 8, 1941 Japan invades Shanghai International Settlement (Empire of the Sun 1987)

1942

January 20, 1942, Wannsee Conference (Conspiracy 2001)

February 1942 Battle of the Atlantic (Greyhound 2020)

February 1942 (The Railway Man 2013)

February 19, 1942, Bombing of Darwin (Australia 2008)

Spring 1942 (U-571 2000)

April 18, 1942 The Doolittle Raid (In Harm’s Way 2018)

June 4, 1942 Battle of Midway (Midway 2019)

1942 Summer Occupation of Jersey Island (Another Mother’s Son 2017 Prime)

July, 10 1942 Easy Company Trains in Camp Tocca (Band of Brothers 01x10 Currahee 2001)

July 21, 1942, Kokoda Track Campaign (Kokoda: 39th Battalion 2006)

August 7, 1942, 1st Marine Division land on Guadalcanal (The Pacific Ep. 1 Guadalcanal/Leckie 2010)

August 19, 1942, Dieppe Raid (Dieppe 1993)

August 23, 1942 Battle of Stalingrad begins (Stalingrad 1993)

September 1942 Formation of Troop 30 (Age of Heroes 2011)

September 18, 1942, 7th Marines Land on Guadalcanal (The Pacific Ep. 2 Basilone 2010)

Autumn of 1942 Battle of the Atlantic (Das Boot 1981)

October 18, 1942, Operation Grouse (Heavy Water War Ep. 2 2015)

November 8, 1942, Operation Torch (The Big Red One 1980)

November 10-17 1942 Vasily Zaytsev kills 225 German Soldiers during the Battle of Stalingrad (Enemy at the Gates 2001)

December 1942 The 1st Marine Division on Guadalcanal is relieved (The Pacific Ep. 3 Melbourne 2010)

December 15, 1942, Battle of Mount Austen (Thin Red Line 1998)

1943

March 13-14 1943, liquidation of the Kraków Ghetto -(Schindler’s List 1993)

April 17, 1943 Operation Mincemeat (Operation Mincemeat 2021)

April 19, 1943, beginning of the Warsaw Uprising (Uprising 2001)

May 4, 1943, Final Mission of The Memphis Bell (Memphis Bell 1990)

May 15, 1943, Salamo Arouch and his family arrive in Auschwitz Concentration Camp (Triumph of the Spirit 1989)

May 27, 1943 Louis Zamperini plane crashes on a search and rescue mission (Unbroken 2014)

May 30, 1943 first All-American Girls Professional Baseball League game played (A League of Their Own 1992)

June 25, 1943, 100th Bomb Group flew its first 8th Air Force combat mission (Master of the Air: Part One 2024)

July 1943 -(The Tuskegee Airmen 1995) -(The Liberator Ep. 1 2020) -(Heavy Water War Ep. 5 2015)

July 16, 1943, The 100th Bomb Group bombed U-Boats in Tronbhdim (Masters of the Air: Part Two 2024)

August 17, 1943 the 4th Bomb Wing of the 100th Bomb Group bombed Regenberg (Masters of the Air: Part Three 2024)

September 16, 1943, William Quinn and Charles Bailey leave Belgium (Masters of the Air: Part Four 2024)

September 18, 1943 John ‘Bucky’ Egan returns from leave to join the mission to bomb Munster (Master of the Air: Part Five 2024

October 14, 1943, John ‘Bucky’ Egan interrogated at Dulag Lut, Frankfurt Germany (Masters of the Air: Part Six 2024)

December 26, 1943, 1st Marine Division lands on Cape Gloucester (The Pacific Ep. 4 Gloucester/Pavuvu/Banika 2010)

1944

January 22, 1944, Battle of Anzio -(The Liberator Ep. 2 2020) -(Red Tails 2012) -(Anzio 1968)

February 20, 1944, Hydro Ferry bombing (Heavy Water War Ep. 6 2015)

March 7, 1944, Stalag Luft III Sagan, Germany, Germans find the concealed radio Bucky was using to learn news of the War (Master of the Air: Part Seven 2024)

March 24/25, 1944 Allied Mass Escape of Stalag Luft III (The Great Escape 1963)

June 1944 (Cross of Iron 1977)

June 6, 1944, 00:48 & 01:40 First airborne troops begin to land on Normandy (Band of Brothers 02x10 Day of Days 2001)

June 6, 1944, 06:30 D-Day landings -(Storming Juno 2010)

-(Saving Private Ryan 1998)

June 10, 1944, Easy Company Takes Carentan (Band of Brothers 03x10 Carentan 2001)

June 15-July 9, 1944 Battle of Saipan

-(Windtalkers 2002)

-(Oba: The Last Samurai 2011)

July, 1944 The Monuments Men land in Normandy (The Monuments Men 2014)

July 20, 1944 Operation Valkyrie (Valkyrie 2008)

August 12, 1944, The 332nd Fighter Group attack Radar stations in Southern France (Masters of the Air: Part Eight 2024)

September 15, 1944, U.S. Marines landed on Peleliu at 08:32 (the Pacific Ep. 5 2010)

September 16, 1944, U.S Marines take Peleliu Airfield (the Pacific Ep. 5 2010)

September 17, 1944, Operation Market Garden

-(Band of Brothers 04x10 Replacements 2001)

-(A Bridge Too Far 1977)

October 2, 1944 Battle of Scheldt (Forgotten Battle 2021)

October 12, 1944, Battle of Peleliu, Assault on Bloody Nose Ridge (the Pacific Ep. 7 Peleliu Hills 2010)

October 13, 1944, Rovaniemi public buildings were destroyed (Sisu 2022)

October 14, 1944, Erwin Rommel is arrested (Rommel 2012 Prime)

October 22/23, 1944, 2100 – 0200 Operation Pegasus (Band of Brothers 05x10 Crossroads 2001)

November 1944 middle of the Battle of Hürtgen Forest (When Trumpets Fade 1998)

December 16, 1944, Battle of the Bulge (Band of Brothers 06x10 Bastogne 2001)

December 1944 (Hart’s War 2002)

1945

January 2, 1945 (The Liberator Ep 3 2020)

January 10, 1945 (Attack Force Z)

January 13, 1945, Battle of Foy (Band of Brothers 07x10 The Breaking Point 2001)

January 30, 1945 The Raid at Cabanatuan (The Great Raid 2002)

February 14, 1945, David Webb rejoins the 506th in Haguenau (Band of Brothers 08x10 The Last Patrol 2001)

February 19, 1945, Battle of Iwo Jima starts. - (Letters from Iwo Jima 2006) - (The Pacific Ep. 8 Iwo Jima 2010) - (Flags of our Fathers 2006)

February 15, 1945, 6888 Battalion was inspected and marched in review before Major General John C. H. Lee (Six Triple Eight 2024)

March 21, 1945, Operation Carthage (The Bombardment 2021)

April, 1945 (Fury 2014)

April 5, 1945, 506th Finds abandoned Concentration Camp (Band of Brothers 09x10 Why We Fight 2001)

April 17, 1945 Lee Miller arrives at Concentration Camp Buchenwald (Lee 2023)

April 26, 1945, near the end of the war in Europe (A Woman in Berlin 2008)

April 29, 1945, 45th Infantry Division liberated Dachau Concentration camp (The Liberator Ep. 4 2020)

May 2, 1945, Fall of Berlin -(Downfall 2004) -(Jojo Rabbit 2019)

May 1945 Battle of Okinawa -(Hacksaw Ridge 2016) -(The Pacific Ep. 9 Okinawa 2010)

May 7, 1945, Germany Surrenders V-E Day - (Master of the Air: Part Nine 2024) - (Band of Brothers 10x10 Points 2001)

July 30, 1945, USS Indianapolis sank. (USS Indianapolis 2016)

August 15, 1945, The Empire of Japan surrenders end of the War. -(Oppenheimer 2023) -(The Pacific Part Ten: Home 2010)

September 11, 1945 US Military search and Arrest Japanese Leaders for war crimes (Emperor 2012)

1946 April 29, 1946 Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal (Tokyo Trial 2016)

[ekalita-blr]

Her former boss is back! He was already leaking, and now he's completely nuts.🌞🔥🌚 Q: Can you play your favorite song on the harp or lyre, or just sing along? A: Easy!

Alteration of the lyrics of the song "HLS" by the Leningrad music band

They say that elves are in fashion. Young people believe in gods. I would say to you speaking openly: Pantheon of the Gods - crap!

After all, if the brain gets messed with. What's screwed up, is not screwed up. If the mind gets messed with. What's screwed up, is not screwed.

Used to be a regular guy And now he is the God of Fire, But he didn't hand me a lemon. His temper - is still the same f*king sh*t!

[zvyozdochka]

Soviet rock band "Kino" performing at the Palace of Culture during the 2nd Leningrad Rock Club festival, 1984.

[romanov-family-photos]

The 1997 Anastasia movie, while most likely being most people’s introduction to the Romanov Family and their history, was incredibly inaccurate.

Here are some of those inaccuracies

In the first opening moments, of the film we see the Dowager Empress Marie Feodorovna boarding the carriage to go to the ball. The footman greets her as Your Highness. In fact, the Dowager Empress addressed as Your Imperial Highness (there was a huge difference as Princess and Princesses were only entitled Your Highness.)

The Romanov Tercentennial was in fact 1913, not 1916.

In 1916, as the movie claims, Anastasia is 8. In fact, Anastasia was born in 1901, making her actually 15 at the time of the ball.

When we see Anastasia greet her grandmother at the ball, Marie Feodorovna wears a wedding ring on her left hand. In Russian Orthodoxy, the wedding band is worn on the right hand.

When the ‘evil’ Rasputin party-crashes the ball, Nicholas tells him he is a traitor. In the time Rasputin spent with the family, there was never any evidence that he betrayed them. He offered them his support, albeit for questionable reasons, but was only sent away for a short time by the Tsar under pressure from his ministers.

The raid of the Winter Palace occurred well into 1917, not 1916 as portrayed in the film. By this time, Nicholas had already abdicated (March of 1917) and they were imprisoned first at the Alexander Palace, then in the Governor’s mansion in Tobolsk, before being moved to the Ipatiev House in 1918, where they were ultimately murdered. The murder of the imperial family did not happen until two years after the ball in the film.

When Anastasia runs back to her room to retrieve her music box, we see the room to be rather “royal-looking” with a single large bed in the corner. Anastasia shared a room with her older sister Marie for all of their childhood, and their beds were in fact camp-beds; hard and not as luxurious as other royalty’s of the time.

Ten Years Later, 1926, Anya leaves the orphanage for a job at the fish market. When Anastasia reaches the fork in the road, the sign says Saint Petersburg. During the Great War, St. Petersburg was renamed Petrograd, a less German-sounding name. After communist leader Vladimir Lenin died in 1924, it became Leningrad, when it did not become Saint Petersburg again until 1991. Throughout the film this inaccuracy is repeated, most significantly in the song Rumor in Saint Petersburg. One would think even the peasants would be accustomed to a new name of their city after 10-15 years.

When Anastasia reaches the train station, the station guard wears the red cap with the Soviet crest. This crest wasn’t used in fact until the 1930s. It was only 1926.

A number of times, the peasants and Dmitri call her The Princess. In Russia, this would have been a great offense to her title, as Anastasia had always been, a Grand Duchess. The title Princess ranks significantly under Grand Duchess

Anya, is in fact a Russian nickname for Anna, not Anastasia. Anya was the name of her mother’s lady-in-waiting and close friend Anna Vyrubova. Anastasia’s nickname was Nastya, Nastia or shvibzik “imp”.

In 1926, the Catherine Palace was being used as a museum and its park area was open to the public, not quite as run down as in the film. 

It wasn’t also the Imperial Family’s home, as suggested; they preferred the comfort and privacy of the Alexander Palace at Tsarskoe Selo, a little while outside the city.

When Olga, Tatiana and Marie come down to dance with their sister during the song, they all look to be around the same height. In truth, Anastasia was much shorter than her sisters. Tatiana was the tallest in the family, standing at around 5’9

The same mistake was made with Nicholas. When he and Alexandra come out of the portrait, he looks to be much taller than Alix; he, like his daughter, was actually rather short, only about 5’6, and stood around the same height as his wife.

When Bartok watches Vlad, Anastasia and Dmitri leave the ball room, he says All the Romanovs are dead. This simply wasn’t true.  In 1919, around 30 Romanovs managed to escape via various methods, including the Dowager Empress Marie Feodorovna.

On the boat to France, Rasputin attempts to force Anya to jump off the side of the ship. She dreams she sees her father, sisters and brother playing in water. Nicholas calls her “Sunshine”, which was actually the nickname of her little brother, Alexei.

In this same dream, Alexei jumps from the top of the cliff down into the water. It was well-known that Alexei had a severe type 2 case of hemophilia, and there was no way Nicholas nor any of the sisters would have allowed him to make such a dangerous leap.

When the gang are journeying to Paris, they hope to meet the Dowager Empress. In 1926, Marie was actually living in Denmark, after the death of her beloved sister, Queen Alexandra of England the year before.

When Anastasia meets Sophie, she is asked how she likes her tea. Anastasia tells her she doesn’t like tea. But there have been many anecdotes of the real Anastasia drinking tea in the mornings and afternoons with her sisters and parents. (This of course may have changed as she aged).

When Dimitri refers to Anya and the Dowager Empress as ‘your grace’ this title is also incorrect. “Your Grace” was commonly used only amongst non-royal dukes and duchesses, and archbishops of the United kingdom.

When Vladimir announces ‘we have found the heir to the Russian throne’, this is completely innacurate. Even as the closest surviving member to the last Tsar, Anastasia would, sadly, have no right to the throne. There were around 30 dynastic members of the family surviving in 1926, and many available males. In Imperial Russia, the line of succession was strictly male-primogeniture; the eldest son would inherit the throne. In 1926, by law, this male would be the Grand Duke Cyril Vladimirovich.

The Dowager Empress could not have possibly had the means to offer a 10 million ruble reward for the return of her granddaughter. The Romanov fortune had all but disappeared and she largely relied on the charity of the English and Danish Royal Family.

The biggest inaccuracy, however, was that Anastasia survived. She, along with the rest of her family, were murdered by the Bolsheviks in 1918

[sentientcave]

Contains: Original Characters, (Inaccurate) Depictions of life in Soviet Russia, Teenage Nikolai, Underage Smoking, Unrequited Feelings, The Runaways, No Plot Just Vibes

~3k words

Russia, 1987

Nikolai watched the prop plane touch down on the empty field past the barn from his spot up in the hayloft, holding a Kalashnikov machine rifle that he’d never had to shoot at an actual person before. He was pretty sure that today wouldn’t be the day that he had to, but his uncle had asked him to provide overwatch, so he was laying half on top of the rifle, peering down the iron sights at the plane as it bumped across the field and came to a stop not far off. The sun bounced off the glass windshield, obscuring the pilot.

It wasn’t like his uncle to do business at home, but he’d been called back out to the country because Auntie Natalia was having a baby. It was Natalia who knew this particular contact, and trusted her enough to have her come out here. Uncle Sasha was less sure. He didn’t trust easily— It was a liability to, in this line of business— so here was Nikolai, laying in itchy old straw and wishing that he had asked to stay in Leningrad with his friends. But he was rarely allowed to involve himself in Sasha’s business, beyond as an occasional errand boy, and he wanted to prove himself useful.

Sasha walked out to meet the pilot, his face set in the usual hard-line expression he reserved for business, a cigarette hanging from his mouth, his gun holsters visible when the wind blew his coat open. He relaxed when he realized that the pilot was alone, and really just a woman, the hard expression shifting into a smile.

Nikolai watched the woman take off her sunglasses and hook them onto the collar of her white shirt, her smile a smudge of red and white from so far above. She looked distinctly American, wearing light-washed blue jeans tucked into combat boots, and an oversized leather jacket that obscured her form somewhat, or would have if it wasn’t left open. She glanced up and waved for him to come down, laughing at something Sasha said, spotting Nikolai despite the darkness in the barn behind him, and his dark hair and brown jacket that he had thought half-decent camouflage.

Hoping to get down before she was done laughing, Nikolai scrambled to obey, slinging the rifle across his back and out of the way while he slid down the ladder to the floor of the barn.

No luck. Sasha was leaned in toward her when Nikolai approached, lighting a cigarette for the woman. She was beautiful up close, not that much older than Nikolai, really, maybe in her mid-twenties, but entirely grown out of the leggy awkwardness of girlhood, all compact curves accentuated by the high-waisted jeans and the tight t-shirt. Her dark brown hair was pulled back into a sleek low bun, with the few escaped wisps tucked firmly behind her ears.

“You must be Nikolai,” she said, holding a hand out, shooting that stunning white smile at him. It was far more devastating than a bullet could ever be, ripping through flesh and bone and lodging somewhere in his heart. “I’m Helena. Natalia’s told me a lot about you. She said you want to be a pilot too?”

Nikolai nodded dumbly, praying that his palm wouldn’t be too sweaty when he gripped her hand for what he hoped was the correct amount of time. “Um. Yes,” he said, finding his voice, pitching it a little lower, straightening his back. He wasn’t a boy, he was a young man. He needed her to see that. “It’s Kolya to friends. Let me take your bag,” he added, eager to make himself useful.

“Are we friends already?” Helena asked teasingly, handing her duffel bag over without protest. Her Russian was perfect, like she was born speaking it just as he was. “Thought I’d have to work harder than that.”

Nikolai tried to stamp down that stab of disappointment. She definitely saw him as a just a boy. Probably for the best anyway. There was a wedding band on her finger, after all. “Well, if you’re friends with my aunt, you are like family. What more to say?”

“If only it were always so simple,” Sasha said, shaking his head, waving for them to follow him back to the house. “It was easier when we were his age, no?”

Helena laughed. “No. I was already a soldier at his age.”

It was hard to imagine this woman as a soldier. Easier to imagine her as a movie star, or a model. “Did you fly a fighter plane?” Nikolai asked.

She nodded. “Never saw much real combat, but I was stationed in Guatemala for a spell, and I fought in the Falklands. Not that it was much of a fight.” She rolled her eyes, taking a long drag from the cigarette. “Thatcher just couldn’t let that go. Bitch.”

Sasha laughed. “It is for Glorious Empire, no? We are just dogs for war.”

“Too true. And some dogs don’t know how to stop.” One more drag from the cigarette, and she dropped it in the tin can on the porch railing. “Is Natalia home from the hospital yet?”

Sasha shook his head. “Not yet. She comes home this afternoon. I will be driving into the city soon— Would you like to join me? Kolya will stay.”

“I’ll stay. I can make myself useful, have dinner made by the time you return.”

“No, no, you are a guest—”

“Please! I am happy to do it. It’s one less thing to worry about, with a baby coming home.” She waved off his protests with both hands. “Kolya can help me navigate the kitchen.” She flicked her arm forward, the movement pulling her sleeve back from her watch. “You might as well go now, Natalia should not be alone too long. We will have time for business later, Aleksander.”

“Please! Just Sasha. Like Kolya said. You are like family.”

“And a moment ago I was a guest,” Helena said, giving Nikolai a conspiratorial look that made his heart hammer.

“Well, Natalia will want to know we made an effort to make you a guest,” Sasha said. “We are simply outclassed.” He opened the door and grabbed his car keys off the hook. “We’ll be back soon. Make yourself at home, Helena.” He tapped her on the arm as he went back out past them again, shoes crunching on the gravel of the drive as he went out to his car.

“Drive safe,” she said, crouching down to untie her boots, following Nikolai’s cue as he kicked off his own. She frowned, looking at the worn out work-boots. “In a bit, we should go back out to the plane. I brought a crate of things. Gifts for the family. I have boots that should fit you.”

Nikolai felt his ears turn red. “I don’t need anything, really.”

“Didn’t say you did,” she said, kicking her boots against the side of the house, out of the way of the door so no one would trip over them. “It’s just easy for me to get these things, and Natalia said there’s often shortages. If you don’t need them, give them to someone who does, hm?” She passed by him into the house and shrugged off her jacket, hanging it up on one of the hooks by the door unceremoniously. Now Nikolai had no problem imagining her as a soldier. Her t-shirt sleeves were rolled up, revealing defined muscles, and she wore a leather harness across her shoulders that supported a pistol holster under each arm. She had a big tattoo of the RAF logo on her bicep too, bisected by a jagged scar.

“RAF?” he asked. “I thought you were American.”

“I live in Canada,” she said. “But I’m from England. That’s where I met your aunt. We went to the same school in London. She taught me my Russian.”

Nikolai thought back to the stories that his aunt told, trying to pick out which one was the most likely to be Helena. “You’re Lena,” he said, connecting the dots quickly. “The one that got her into trouble.”

“Guilty. She needed it though. Talia was like a mouse before I got my hands on her.” She followed him up the stairs. “It was good for me too. Got me used to taking an undressing from—” She stopped, the word not sounding right on her tongue. “Um. A Dressing down. Scolding, yes? From important people. My captains never scared me.”

Nikolai scrubbed a hand over his face, as if that would do something to alleviate the blush he could feel from his ears down to his chest. He dropped her duffle bag on the narrow bed in the guest room and shuffled back out into the hallway. There was almost no space to manuever in the small room, and he didn’t want to have to touch her. He did get a whiff of her shampoo and the slightest hint of sweat, which nearly made his knees buckle beneath him. A touch certainly would have put him on the floor. “You don’t seem like a woman who is scared of anything,” he said.

She grinned at him as she unzipped the bag, pulling out a cassette deck and a canvas bag that rattled slightly with the movement. “Anyone who isn’t scared of anything is either over-confident, stupid or crazy,” she told him. “It’s not a bad thing to be scared.”

“Which one are you?” he asked.

“Crazy of course. Here. I brought you some music.” She shoved the bag at him and headed back downstairs, the tape deck in hand. It was a small one, portable and battery powered. “I don’t know what the popular music scene’s like around here, but I bring you rock and roll. Things I don't think you can find easily here. We can listen while I make dinner.”

Western music. That was thoughtful, which did nothing to quell his burgeoning crush. He had a few tapes, many of them poor quality recordings of recordings. These were new, some of them still wrapped in plastic film, bought especially for him. "You didn't have to do this," he said, setting the bag down on the kitchen table so he could parse through its contents. Rush, Heart, Motörhead, The Runaways, Sex Pistols. Some music he'd heard of, a lot more he hadn't.

"I wanted to. Seems like you've really been through it, kid. This is nothing, really. Just some tapes. If it makes you feel better, I can tell you that I just hate Russian music and wanted to make sure we didn't have to listen to it."

"That does make me feel better."

"Then that's the honest to god truth." She put a hand over the sunglasses and held the other up, like she was making a pledge.

"Liar," he said. It felt good to tease her back. Like they were old friends already.

"I've been called worse things by worse people. Now! Let's see what we have to work with." She started going through the cupboards, noting where all the pots and pans were and rifled through the pantry to see what ingredients they had on hand.

Nikolai picked a tape at random and set it into the player, turning up the volume, grinning as the sound of drums and electric guitar pealed out from the tinny speakers.

“Ooh, The Runaways,” Helena said approvingly. “Good choice. These girls know how to rock.” She pulled out a big pot and filled it with water, her head bobbing along to the beat. “Now come here and help me peel potatoes.”

“Yes ma’am,” Nikolai said, leaving the pile of tapes on the other side of the table. He found paring knives while she washed dirt off the potatoes, bouncing on the balls of her feet, singing along to the music under her breath.

He started peeling, doing his best to focus on the task rather than on the way Helena’s hips swayed back and forth, the slightest bit off beat. And then there was distinctively feminine moaning coming out of the speakers along with the music, and he nearly stabbed himself in the hand. Helena didn’t seem to notice, or at the very least didn’t react, leaving him to briefly wonder if he was imagining it, or if it was really a part of the song.

His ears were burning hot, so he kept his head down and peeled potatoes like his life depended on it, certain that if he looked at Helena he would simply burst into flames. He was glad that he’d not bothered to get his hair cut in a while, so it was long enough to hide behind.

“You alright, Kolya?” she asked, tapping his arm to warn him that she was reaching across him to grab the other knife.

“I’m fine,” he told her, his voice cracking on the words as his heart clunked into second gear. Another humiliation. “I’m not good at this,” he lied. He tried to help out in the kitchen whenever he could, although he was still not much of a cook. “Trying not to cut off my fingers.”

Even if she didn’t believe him, she left it, blessedly, at that.

Once they set the potatoes to cook, they went back outside, keeping an eye on the stove through the kitchen window. Music from the cassette player followed them, thankfully free of moaning of any kind now that he had nothing to occupy himself with. Sometimes god was good. Nikolai pulled out two cigarettes and set them to his lips, lighting both and offering one to Helena.

"Aren't you a bit young to smoke?" she asked, lips twisting into a wry little smile. Her fingers brushed his when she took one, sending a little electric jolt through him.

"Maybe. But being young has never stopped me from doing anything I wanted to do." He hoped that came out as bold, maybe even flirtatious, rather than childish. He wasn't sure it did. It was easier, with girls his own age. Acting as though he knew what he was doing got him a long way among his peers, since most of them had even less of an idea than he did.

"I guess I smoked when I was your age too," she said, laughing. "And drank, and smoked weed, and got into trouble. It's just funny, you know? You feel all kinds of grown when you're sixteen, but when you look back at yourself, you see a child."

"You're not even so old," Nikolai said. "Twenty four, twenty five? You must be younger than my aunt."

"Nah. Same age. I'll take it as a compliment though."

So twenty nine, if she really was the same age as Talia. It should have curbed his interest, but it didn't. She was still beautiful, and interesting, and she spoke to him like he was a person, not just a kid.

"What's your husband like?" He asked.

"Oh? He's…" she trailed off, thinking about it, blowing a thin stream of smoke out while she considered her answer. "He's a good man. But we probably wouldn't have married if not for our son. Aaron turned seven this year."

It was hard to imagine Helena as someone’s mother, let alone someone who was closer to his age than she was. He really didn’t want to think about that. "Sorry, I was just curious. I did not mean--"

"It's fine, Kolya. Really. I'm not unhappy, by any means. He's a good business partner, and we agree about important things." She shrugged, like it didn't matter one bit, still wearing an easy smile on her red-painted lips. "Romance is not so important anyway. I’ve got more important things to worry about."

Nikolai couldn't help but see that as sad, in a way. He'd known her for all of an hour, maybe two, and he already thought she deserved better than that. The way she talked to him, her offer to cook, the thoughtful gift of hard to find Western rock and roll tapes for a boy she had never met, combined with the stories that Aunt Talia told painted a picture of a woman who deserved to be with someone that loved her well, gave her everything she wanted and more. He wished he was older. Maybe, in another life, he could have been that man.

But it was foolish to dwell on things that couldn't be. Better to be her friend than nothing. He had a feeling she would be a good friend to have.

They spent the afternoon like that, listening to music and making gnocchi, rolling little lumps of dough across the backs of forks to make a small mountain of dumplings, laughing together at Helena’s tone-deaf attempts to sing along. It was somehow more endearing than if she had been a song bird, a flaw that made her more human.

Not that he could think of her as anything else. She was just more vibrant, more alive than anyone he’d ever met. Like she had been struck by lightning and still carried an electric charge beneath her skin. He felt it every time they touched, purposefully or by accident, her hip bumping his as she danced, or their fingers brushing when he offered her another cigarette. That electricity fell from her lips too, when she got talking about something that she cared about, and sometimes she absently changed languages mid-sentences, flowing from Russian to English and sometimes to French and Spanish. He did his best to keep up with her anyway, even though there were times when he was just nodding along, listening to the cadence of her voice, watching the enthusiasm in her eyes.

After Talia and Sasha returned from the hospital, Nikolai had to share her attention for hours, as they ate, and she held the baby, and she sat on the couch, cuddled up next to Natalia, the two of them reminiscing in soft voices while Nikolai washed the dishes, straining to hear. Sasha was the only one that seemed to notice Nikolai’s frequent glances over his shoulder, and came to lean against the counter next to him, a mug of tea in his hand.

“Don’t fall in love, Kolya,” he said in a low voice, his dark eyes laughing at Nikolai’s misfortune.

Good advice. But not advice Nikolai was certain he’d be able to follow.

[mariacallous]

There’s a new collaborative album on Russian airwaves right now — and it’s a bit of a head-scratcher. On one side is 51-year-old Sergey Shnurov, frontman of the ultra-popular ska-punk band Leningrad and a fixture of the Russian music scene for decades. On the other is Instasamka, a brash Gen Z rapper who rose to fame by mastering the attention economy on Instagram in the vein of Cardi B. How the two artists decided to team up is anybody’s guess, but the result — titled Boomers and Zoomers — says a lot about the current state of the Russian music industry. Meduza breaks down the recent evolution of these musicians’ careers, their shifting relationships to the authorities, and why this strange collaboration makes some sense.

[russianreader]

Elections Wrap-Up

Photo by Alexandra Astakhova Voting in prison is not a bad form of entertainment. Dozens of prisoners are escorted to the ballot boxes simultaneously, providing a rare opportunity to chat and exchange news with your neighbors. We were assembled in the “gully” and launched in pairs into a room equipped for a polling station. The convicts had fun arguing who to vote for. Mostly, of course, there…

[jazzplusplus]

Jazz Jamboree 69 - Varsovie / Warsaw / Warszawa

Leningrad Dixieland, Mark Murphy, Erik Moseholm Trio, Maynard Ferguson Quartet, Swing House Septet, Lucky Thompson, Adam Makowicz, Aladar Pege Quartet, Retupera Band...

[jungleindierock]

The Last Dinner Party - Caesar on a TV Screen

Every night when we say goodbye I know that I can see myself as a man When I put on that suit I don’t have to stay mute I can talk all the time ‘Cause my shoulders are wide

And I’m falling like the leaves on Leningrad I follow your footprints when I can’t hold your hand My darling believe me I was born to be with you But it’ll be me that the world will answer to

And just for a second I could be one of the greats I’ll be Caesar in a TV screen Champion of my fate No one can tell me to stop I’ll have everything I want Anyone And everyone will like me then

Everyone will like me then When I was a child I never felt like a child I felt like an emperor with a city to burn I got down on my knees Begged the men in the trees To give me an answer Je ne veux pas penser

And it’s raining like it did in Leningrad My lover would like to buy a flat in Leningrad And I’d trade my tongue in just to hear him every night To talk about Red Scare and how they got it right

And just for a second I could be one of the greats I am Caesar on a tv screen, champion of my fate No one can tell me to stop I’ll have everything I want Anyone And everyone will like me then Everyone will love me!

The Last Dinner Party are an all girl indie rock five piece from London. They consist of Abigail Morris (vocals), Lizzie Mayland (vocals, guitar), Emily Roberts (lead guitar, mandolin, flute), Georgia Davies (bass), and Aurora Nishevci (keys, vocals). Starting in 2022 as The Dinner Party, they changed their name ealry in 2023 to The Last Dinner Party to avoid confusion with American band Dinner Party.

To date they have released five singles, Caesar on a TV Screen being the fifth. The girls debut album Prelude To Ecstasy will be released on the 2nd February 2024.

Sites : Facebook I X I Site

[doomandgloomfromthetomb]

Sonic Youth - Old Greek Theatre, Melbourne, Australia, January 20, 1989

Daydream Nation — down under! The end of the 1980s saw Sonic Youth taking their new double LP masterpiece all over the world, from London to Leningrad, from Tokyo to Nijmeegen. But first, they rode the silver rocket to New Zealand and Australia for the first time.

What we've got here is a pretty rough audience tape, but don't let that discourage you. The lo-fi nature of the recording gives everything a pleasingly scuzzy edge, a sense of impending chaos, a teenage riot about to happen. It also makes me think: is Daydream Nation Sonic Youth's most metal album? Something about the way the band leans into some of the wicked riffs here feels kinda Slayer-ish. Maybe?

Then again, I can't imagine even the most insane death metal vocalist finding the intensity that Kim Gordon brings to "Eliminator Jr." on this particular evening in Melbourne. Yowza! Another highlight is the noise section of "Silver Rocket" — which is actually a little more quizzical and playful than other renditions of this song, moving into semi-harmolodic zones, if you can dig it. The whole show wraps up with some Aussie underground royalty guest stars — Rowland and Harry Howard (and perhaps Epic Soundtracks?) from These Immortal Souls join SY for a demonic "I Wanna Be Your Dog," everyone losing their hearts on the burning sands. Well, come on!

Bandcamp | Merch | Concert Chronology

[twofoursixohjuan]

1, 15, 21, 23 for the song asks!!

an ask! woo!

1: A song you like with a color in the title? Blue Skinned Beast by Madness (which was apparently written about Margaret Thatcher)

15: A song that is a cover by another artist? Malia J's cover of Smells Like Teen Spirit owns my entire soul

21: A favourite song with a person’s name in the title? Tomorrow Wendy by Andy Prieboy (ft. Johnette Napolitano), which is an AIDS song and an absolute gorgeous heartbreaker. If it's gotta be a full name then Walter Tevis by The Nectarine No. 9 (lovely lyrics)

23: A song that you think everybody should listen to? On a comic note? Leningrad Cowboys' version of Stairway To Heaven with the Red Army Choir (it's actually brilliant). In seriousness? Find a full pipe-and-drum band playing Amazing Grace, stand as close as you can and have your world rocked and your socks blown off. Green Hills Of Tyrol (aka The Scottish Soldier) and Flower Of Scotland (one of history's most badass national anthems) will have the same effect

[justforbooks]

The production of Shostakovich's Seventh Symphony was considered something of great national importance during that time of war, as music was an incredible piece of propaganda. Many of the musicians from all the different symphonies and orchestras in Leningrad had either joined the Red Army, died, or were dying of starvation as the Nazis starved the city to death. Musicians were so hard to come by that those who were still alive were given extra rations in order to make sure they both came to rehearsals and gained enough strength to perform the entire symphony.

Shostakovich wrote this symphony with more instruments/musicians than what was standard in an orchestra at the time. He apparently did this because he knew members of the orchestra would get extra rations in the starving Leningrad, and the more people he could get in the orchestra, the more people he knew would be fed.

The premiere took place on August 9th 1942 and it did take place during the siege! Since there weren't enough musicians left from the Leningrad Radio Orchestra to perform the piece, the city put together what was basically a recruitment campaign, asking for any musicians left in the city who were able to play. Remaining spots were filled by members of the Red Army band, or Leningrad musicians in the Red Army called back from the front.

Daily inspiration. Discover more photos at http://justforbooks.tumblr.com

[dumblemonchickenwing]