Authors

Discussion

This paper explores the effects of Gorbachev’s political and economic reforms on the activities, creative works and worldview of career rock musicians, through the lens of the group Akvarium and frontman Boris Grebenshchikov during the creative zenith and parallel disintegration of ‘original Akvarium’ (1986-1990). Perhaps more than any other domestic rock group established during stagnation, Akvarium had come to embody qualities that Soviet listeners associated with rock music – freedom/unstructuredness, collectivism/collaboration, spiritual exploration, myth-making. The group seized opportunities to record professionally, perform stadium concerts, appear in the mass media (domestic and international) and travel abroad, while also transitioning to a musical style that lent itself more readily to commentaries on for recent history and the current state of the Soviet project. Through an examination of concerts and recordings from this period this paper aims to reach a more precise understanding of how musicians and publics experienced political changes and the meanings they attached to rock music during uncertain times.