Master i Margarita - 2020
Trails Don't Lie
Тропы не врут [Tropy ne vrut] or Trails Don't Lie is a band from Saratov, Russian Federation, which is described on some music sites as a «Post Punk Band», whatever that may mean. Perhaps because they originated from the ashes of the former Турбаза Волчья [Toerbaza volchya], which could be translated as Camp of the Wolves and which ceased to existin 2015. Both bands are essentially projects of psychologist, photographer, author and performer Alexey «Belozer», Ilyushin.
The band describes itself as a «Hard Bard Band», and that makes sense. Sometimes Ilyushin really sounds like a Russian bard when he accompanies himself on the acoustic guitar, then again the violence splashes off the stage when the whole band starts enjoying themselves.
On February 9, 2020, we received the message that the band had released a new album with the title Пераспера [Peraspera]. The first of the seven songs on this album is Мастер и Маргарита [Master i Margarita]. The text is a poem that Ilyushin himself had written in 2015, and the following year the song was already on SIM 2016, a compilation album from Saratov Independent Music, a project that has been trying to promote diverse groups from Saratov since 2007.
The song is called The Master and Margarita, but when I hear and read the lyrics, I have to admit that the connection with the novel is not always clear:
Одни хранят лицо открытым,
Другие кутаются в грим,
Одни, как Мастер и Маргарита…
Другие, как масло и маргарин…
Some keep their faces open
Others wrap themselves in makeup
Some are likethe master and Margarita...
Others are like butter and margarine...
Trails Don't Lie - Master i Margarita
Trails Don't Lie
Technical details
Album
Peraspera
Musicians
Alexey «Belozer» Iljoesjin - lyrics, guitar, vocals
Sergey Kirpilenko - bass
Elena Litvintseva - drums
Elena Mikhailova - violin
Dmitry Nochevny - electrical guitar