Gogol Bordello - Rock in Rio Madrid 2012 - 43

Gogol Bordello - Rock in Rio Madrid 2012 - 57

Gogol Bordello - Rock in Rio Madrid 2012 - 06

Gogol Bordello is an American punk rock band from the

Lower East Side The Lower East Side, sometimes abbreviated as LES, is a historic neighborhood in the southeastern part of Manhattan in New York City. It is located roughly between the Bowery and the East River from Canal to Houston streets. Traditionally an im ...

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

, formed in 1999 by musicians from all over the world and known for theatrical stage shows and persistent touring. Much of the band's sound is inspired by

Romani music Romani music (often referred to as gypsy or gipsy music, which is sometimes considered a derogatory term) is the music of the Romani people who have their origins in northern India but today live mostly in Europe. Historically nomadic, though n ...

mixed with punk and dub, incorporating

accordion Accordions (from 19th-century German ''Akkordeon'', from ''Akkord''—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a reed ...

and

violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...

(and on some albums,

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to pr ...

). The band has appeared in several popular films, most notably ''

Everything Is Illuminated ''Everything Is Illuminated'' is the first novel by the American writer Jonathan Safran Foer, published in 2002. It was adapted into a film of the same name starring Elijah Wood and Eugene Hütz in 2005. The book's writing and structure recei ...

'' (2005) in which lead singer

Eugene Hütz Eugene Hütz (; uk, Євген Гудзь, Yevhen Hudz, ; born Yevgen Oleksandrovych Nikolayev-Symonov, ua, Євген Олександрович Ніколаєв-Симонов, on 6 September 1972) is a Ukrainian-born singer, composer, disc ...

co-starred with Elijah Wood in a dramedy/adventure story about the Nazi purges in Ukraine. The group appears playing a brass band in a set that included the "

Star-Spangled Banner "The Star-Spangled Banner" is the national anthem of the United States. The lyrics come from the "Defence of Fort M'Henry", a poem written on September 14, 1814, by 35-year-old lawyer and amateur poet Francis Scott Key after witnessing the bo ...

" and the traditional Yiddish song "Bublitschki". Gogol Bordello contributed the song " Start Wearing Purple" to the film's score. The band is the focus of the 2008 documentary '' Gogol Bordello Non-Stop''. The band recorded the song "Let's Get Crazy" for

Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pemberton in Atlanta ...

Euro 2012 The 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2012 or simply Euro 2012, was the 14th European Championship for men's national football teams organised by UEFA. The final tournament, held between 8 June and 1 ...

advertising campaign.

History and influences

"Gogol" comes from

Nikolai Gogol Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol; uk, link=no, Мико́ла Васи́льович Го́голь, translit=Mykola Vasyliovych Hohol; (russian: Яновский; uk, Яновський, translit=Yanovskyi) ( – ) was a Russian novelist, ...

, a classical writer of Ukrainian origin. He serves as an ideological influence for the band because he "smuggled" Ukrainian culture into Russian society, which Gogol Bordello intends to do with Romani/East-European music in the English-speaking world. " Bordello", in Italian, refers to a brothel or a "gentleman's club". The band was originally titled Hütz and the Béla Bartóks, but Eugene Hütz says that they decided to change the name because "nobody knows who the hell

Béla Bartók Béla Viktor János Bartók (; ; 25 March 1881 – 26 September 1945) was a Hungarian composer, pianist, and ethnomusicologist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century; he and Franz Liszt are regarded as H ...

is in the United States." The band played their first show as the unofficial band at an after-hours club called ''Pizdetz'' where they became the house band and DJ Hütz became the house DJ. Gogol Bordello's first

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

was released in 1999, and since then they have released six full-length albums, and one EP. In 2005 the band signed to punk label SideOneDummy Records. On 27 April 2010 Gogol Bordello made its major record label debut with '' Transcontinental Hustle'' on Rick Rubin's American Recordings, a subsidiary of

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

Sony Music Entertainment Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainment ...

. Many of the songs on ''Transcontinental Hustle'' were inspired by Hütz's move to Brazil. The band has toured extensively throughout

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

and

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. They have made numerous appearances at international festivals and have toured with such diverse bands as Primus, Flogging Molly, and

Cake Cake is a flour confection made from flour, sugar, and other ingredients, and is usually baked. In their oldest forms, cakes were modifications of bread, but cakes now cover a wide range of preparations that can be simple or elaborate, ...

. In an interview with NPR, frontman

cites

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...

and Parliament-Funkadelic as among the band's main musical influences. They have also mentioned Manu Chao,

Fugazi Fugazi (; ) is an American post-hardcore band that formed in Washington, D.C., in 1986. The band consists of guitarists and vocalists Ian MacKaye and Guy Picciotto, bassist Joe Lally, and drummer Brendan Canty. They are noted for their style-tr ...

Zvuki Mu Zvuki Mu (russian: Зву́ки Му , roughly translated as "Sounds of Moo") was a Russian alternative rock/indie/post-punk band founded in Moscow in 1983. Lead singer and songwriter Pyotr Mamonov was one of the most revered and eccentric fig ...

Karamelo Santo Karamelo Santo is a Latin rock band from Mendoza, Argentina. Formed in 1992 for Goy Karamelo, they released their first album, ''La Kulebra'' (The snake) in 1995. Since then, they have released nine more albums. The single "Que No Digan Nunca" is ...

, Sasha Kolpakov and

The Clash The Clash were an English rock band formed in London in 1976 who were key players in the original wave of British punk rock. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they also contributed to the and new wave movements that emerged in the wa ...

as influences. They performed live at the Bonnaroo Music and Arts festival 2011 for Bonnaroo's 10 year anniversary, playing a 1.5 hour set in the middle of the night and performed with Devotchka. Gogol Bordello released "Let's Get Crazy" in 2012, the new song was part of

's advertising campaign for the

European Football Championships The UEFA European Football Championship, less formally the European Championship and informally the Euro, is the primary association football tournament organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). The competition is contes ...

, which were part-hosted by

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

. The track samples one of their earlier singles, "

Wonderlust King "Wonderlust King" is a song by gypsy punk band Gogol Bordello, written by frontman Eugene Hütz. It was released as the first and only single from 2007's ''Super Taranta!'', and it was their fourth single overall. Music video The video consi ...

", and the Coca-Cola advertising jingle. In 2012 former guitarist Oren Kaplan sued Hütz for personal damages. The 2010 song "Immigraniada" was remixed by Bassnectar becoming a smash hit amongst his fans hoping for a live performance anytime the band and he are in proximity to each other. Following the

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...

, Hütz released a video on social media condemning the Russian invasion, and has remained vocal about raising relief funds for the victims of the invasion. Gogol Bordello announced a benefit concert shortly after which sold out quickly, followed by announcing a benefit tour. Bordello collaborated with Les Claypool of the funk band Primus on the song "Man with the Iron Balls", praising Ukrainian President

Volodymyr Zelensky Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy, ; russian: Владимир Александрович Зеленский, Vladimir Aleksandrovich Zelenskyy, (born 25 January 1978; also transliterated as Zelensky or Zelenskiy) is a Ukrainian politicia ...

's courage. The proceeds of the track are set to benefit Nova Ukraine, a non-profit organization that provides humanitarian relief to the people of Ukraine.

Film appearances

* 2004 – '' Kill Your Idols'' – Hütz was interviewed in this documentary about New York's "

art punk Art punk is a subgenre of punk rock in which artists go beyond the genre's rudimentary garage rock and are considered more sophisticated than their peers. These groups still generated punk's aesthetic of being simple, offensive, and free-spirit ...

" music scene. * 2005 – ''

'' – In

Liev Schreiber Isaac Liev Schreiber (; born October 4, 1967) is an American actor, director, screenwriter, producer, and narrator. He became known during the late 1990s and early 2000s after appearing in several independent films, and later mainstream Hollywoo ...

's directorial debut, which stars Elijah Wood, the role of Alexander Perchov was played by

. It includes cameo appearances by other Gogol Bordello members in the train scene. * 2006 – ''The Pied Piper of Hützovina'' – Documentary by Pavla Fleischer about a road trip she and

took to Ukraine to trace his roots. * 2006 – '' Wristcutters: A Love Story'' – "Eugene", played by American actor

Shea Whigham Franklin Shea Whigham Jr. (born January 5, 1969) is an American actor best known for portraying Elias "Eli" Thompson in the drama series ''Boardwalk Empire''. He also appeared in the first season of ''True Detective'' and the third season of ' ...

, is partly based on Eugene Hütz, whose music ("Through the Roof and Underground", "Occurrence on the Border", and "Huliganjetta") is featured in the film as that recorded by the character's old band. Contrary to the belief that he has received no credit for this, the film credits show the copyrights for both Gogol Bordello songs, as well as giving thanks to Eugene multiple times throughout the credit roll. * 2008 – ''

Filth and Wisdom ''Filth and Wisdom'' is a 2008 British comedy-drama film directed by Madonna, starring Eugene Hütz, Holly Weston, Vicky McClure and Richard E. Grant. It was filmed on location in London, England, from 14 to 29 May 2007. Locations included two ...

'' – The entire band appeared in this independent film directed by

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...

is the protagonist. Madonna also allowed Eugene to add his own dialogue into the script. * 2008 – '' Gogol Bordello Non-Stop'' – The development of the band was documented in this film directed by Margarita Jimeno. It follows the band's rise from underground legends to international fame from 2001 to 2007. * 2009 – ''Larger Than Life in 3D'' – Live High-def digital concert footage shot in stereoscopic 3-D at the Austin City Limits festival in October 2009. * 2009 – ''Live From Axis Mundi'': Professionally recorded live concert footage shot in New York. * 2011 – ''Grain'': Short film, 'Against the Nature' appears on the credits. * 2017 – "American Wedding" '' Fargo'' Season 3 Episode 2 "The Principle of Restricted Choice" closing credits * 2017 - "Risky Bismuth" ''

The Tick ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'' Season 1 Episode 10 "Trans Continental Hustle" closing credits * 2018- “I Would Never Wanna Be Young Again” into plays during monster wedding scene in “Hotel Transylvania 3”

Members

; Current members Gogol Bordello tour

(lead vocals, acoustic guitar, percussion) – Ukraine (1999–present) * Sergey Ryabtsev (violin, backing vocals) – Russia (2000–present) * Pedro Erazo (percussion, MC) – Ecuador (2007–present) * Boris Pelekh (guitar, backing vocals) – Russia (2015–present) * Vanessa Walters (percussion, backing vocals, general performance) (2016–present) * Ashley Tobias "TOBI" (backing vocals, dance, percussion, general performance) – United States (2017–present) * Korey Kingston (Drums, percussion) (2020-present) * Gill Alexandre (Bass, backing vocals) (2021-present) ; Former members * Pamela Jintana Racine (percussion, backing vocals, dance, general performance) – United States (1999-2017) * Eliot Ferguson (drums, backing vocals) – United States (1999-2009) * Sasha Kazatchkoff (accordion) (1999) * Vlad Solovar (guitar) (1999) * Oren Kaplan (guitar, backing vocals) – Israel (2000–2012) *

Yuri Lemeshev Yuri Lemeshev (born 1954 or 1955) is an American accordion player and former member of gypsy punk band Gogol Bordello.accordion Accordions (from 19th-century German ''Akkordeon'', from ''Akkord''—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a reed ...

, backing vocals) – Russia (2001–2013) *

Ori Kaplan }, born October 1, 1969) is an Israeli jazz saxophonist and a music producer. He moved to the United States in 1991. He has worked with many artists including Shotnez Tom Abbs, Firewater, Gogol Bordello, and Balkan Beat Box (of which he is a foun ...

(saxophone, backing vocals) – Israel (no relation to Oren Kaplan, co-leads

Balkan Beat Box Balkan Beat Box (BBB) is an Israeli musical group. Founded by Tamir Muskat and Ori Kaplan in 2003, BBB was later joined by Tomer Yosef who became a core member. The group plays Mediterranean-influenced music that incorporates Jewish, Southeastern ...

with

Tamir Muskat Tamir Muskat (in Hebrew תמיר מוסקט) is an Israeli musician/producer-sound engineer who was born and raised in Petach Tikva, Israel as son of a Romanian immigrant. His father was the manager of Anzeagi Conservatorion for music in Petach T ...

) (2001-2004) * Katheryn McGaffigan (percussion, backing vocals, dance, general performance) – United States (2002) * Susan Donaldson (percussion, backing vocals, dance, general performance) (2002-2003) * Andra Ursuta (percussion, backing vocals, dance, general performance) – Romania (2003-2006) * Chris Tattersall (drums, backing vocals) – United Kingdom (2004) * Elizabeth Sun (percussion, backing vocals, dance, general performance) – China and Scotland (2004–2016) * Rea Mochiach (bass, percussion,

electronics The field of electronics is a branch of physics and electrical engineering that deals with the emission, behaviour and effects of electrons using electronic devices. Electronics uses active devices to control electron flow by amplification ...

and beat programming in the studio, backing vocals) – Israel (2005) *

Karl Alvarez Karl Matthew Alvarez (born March 10, 1964) is an American bassist and songwriter for both the Descendents and All (band), All, the band that resulted after the Descendents disbanded again in 1987. Alvarez joined the Descendents after the ''Enjoy! ...

(bass) – United States (2006) * Oliver Charles (drums) – United States (2009-2016) * Michael Ward (guitar) – United States (2011–15) * Pasha Newmer (

; backing vocals) – Belarus (2013–2018) * James Ward (accordion) – Scotland * Kristian Mangieri (harmonica, general performance) * Thomas ‘Tommy T’ Gobena (Bass, backing vocals) (2006-2021) *Alfredo Ortiz (Drums) (2016-2020)

Timeline

Discography

Albums

* ''

Voi-La Intruder ''Voi-La Intruder'' is the debut album by Gogol Bordello, released in 1999 by Rubric Records. Track listing Notes The album is composed in two Movements. *Tracks 1-10 are Movement One - Songs of Immigration, appx. 35.01 min. *Tracks 11-1 ...

'' (1999) * '' Multi Kontra Culti vs. Irony'' (2002) * '' Gypsy Punks: Underdog World Strike'' (2005) * ''

Super Taranta! ''Super Taranta!'' is the fourth album by Gypsy punk band Gogol Bordello. It was released on July 10, 2007 by SideOneDummy Records, produced by the band and Victor Van Vugt. The album charted in several countries, including reaching #67 in the U ...

'' (2007) * '' Trans-Continental Hustle'' (2010) * '' Моя Цыганиада'' (2011) * ''

Pura Vida Conspiracy ''Pura Vida Conspiracy'' is the sixth studio album by Gypsy-punk band Gogol Bordello Gogol Bordello is an American punk rock band from the Lower East Side of Manhattan, formed in 1999 by musicians from all over the world and known for th ...

'' (2013) * ''

Seekers and Finders ''Seekers and Finders'' is the seventh studio album by Gypsy-punk band Gogol Bordello. It was released in August 2017 under Cooking Vinyl and is their first studio album since 2013's '' Pura Vida Conspiracy''. This is the first Gogol Bordello al ...

'' (2017) * ''

Solidaritine ''Solidaritine'' is a 2022 studio album by American Gypsy punk band Gogol Bordello. It has received positive reviews from critics. The album has a theme of supporting the Ukrainian people in the Russo-Ukraine War and was supported by a tour th ...

'' (2022)

EPs

* ''

East Infection ''East Infection'' is currently the only EP by Gogol Bordello, released in 2005 by Rubric Records. Released prior to the album '' Gypsy Punks'', it consists of leftover tracks from that album's sessions. The title track remains a live favourite. ...

'' (2005)

Compilations

* ''Punk Rock Strike Vol. 4'' (2003) * ''2005 Warped Tour Compilation'' (2005) * ''2006 Warped Tour Compilation'' (2006) * '' Gypsy Beats and Balkan Bangers'' (2006) * ''The Rough Guide to Planet Rock'' (2006) * ''2007 Warped Tour Compilation'' (2007)

Notes

References

External links

* *

AllMusic Entry AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

Interview at NPR's Studio 4A (2006) with several songs performed
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gogol Bordello Musical groups from New York City Gypsy punk groups 1999 establishments in New York City ATO Records artists Cooking Vinyl artists American Recordings (record label) artists