Romowe Rikoito is a

neofolk Neofolk, also known as apocalyptic folk, is a form of experimental music blending elements of folk and industrial music, which emerged in punk rock circles in the 1980s. Neofolk may either be solely acoustic or combine acoustic folk instrumenta ...

band based in

Nida, Lithuania Nida (german: Nidden, Kursenieki: ''Nīde'') is a resort town in Lithuania, the administrative centre of Neringa municipality. Located on the Curonian Spit between the Curonian Lagoon and the Baltic Sea, it is the westernmost point of Lithuania a ...

. It was formed by Glabbis Niktorius at 1995 and named after ancient Prussian spiritual center Romowe (also known as Rikoyto). The group has published 5 albums – first two albums ''Narcissism'' and ''L’Automne Eternel'' based on ideas of melancholy,

death Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...

and

grief Grief is the response to loss, particularly to the loss of someone or some living thing that has died, to which a bond or affection was formed. Although conventionally focused on the emotional response to loss, grief also has physical, cogni ...

, while ''Āustradēiwa'', ''Undēina'' and ''Nawamār'' are dedicated to

Old Prussia Prussia (Old Prussian: ''Prūsa''; german: Preußen; lt, Prūsija; pl, Prusy; russian: Пруссия, tr=Prussiya, ''/Prussia/Borussia'') is a historical region in Europe on the south-eastern coast of the Baltic Sea, that ranges from the Vis ...

. They sing in the

Old Prussian language Old Prussian was a Western Baltic language belonging to the Baltic branch of the Indo-European languages, which was once spoken by the Old Prussians, the Baltic peoples of the Prussian region. The language is called Old Prussian to avoid con ...

History

In 2014, Lithuanian independent music label published Romowe Rikoito's 4th album ''Undēina'' which is described as a "magical journey through modern Western Baltic world" by the label Dangus. Almost all compositions are performed in

Prussian language Old Prussian was a Western Baltic language belonging to the Baltic branch of the Indo-European languages, which was once spoken by the Old Prussians, the Baltic peoples of the Prussian region. The language is called Old Prussian to avoid con ...

, beside using dark folk instruments, its sounding enriched by folk instruments such as

kanklės Kanklės () is a Lithuanians, Lithuanian plucked string instrument (chordophone) belonging to the Baltic region, Baltic box zither family known as the Baltic psaltery, along with the Latvian kokles, Estonian kannel (music), kannel, Finnish kant ...

and

ocarina The ocarina is a wind musical instrument; it is a type of vessel flute. Variations exist, but a typical ocarina is an enclosed space with four to twelve finger holes and a mouthpiece that projects from the body. It is traditionally made from c ...

. ''Undēina'' is dedicated to the

Prussian mythology The Prussian mythology was a polytheistic religion of the Old Prussians, indigenous peoples of Prussia before the Prussian Crusade waged by the Teutonic Knights. It was closely related to other Baltic faiths, the Lithuanian and Latvian mytholo ...

, sages and sacred places. All sounds were recorded in nature while visiting forests, rivers, sacred places of Old Prussia.

Musical style and lyrical themes

The music of Romowe Rikoito is characterized as "deep, unique, full of twilight, melancholy, sacred harmony, mysterious hope and

decadence The word decadence, which at first meant simply "decline" in an abstract sense, is now most often used to refer to a perceived decay in standards, morals, dignity, religious faith, honor, discipline, or skill at governing among the members of ...

" by label Dangus.Išleistas ROMOWE RIKOITO albumas "Austradeiwa"
/ref> Compositions are performed by

acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...

cello The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a Bow (music), bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), t ...

flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

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 ...

, keyboards. This band performed various poems written by

Aleister Crowley Aleister Crowley (; born Edward Alexander Crowley; 12 October 1875 – 1 December 1947) was an English occultist, ceremonial magician, poet, painter, novelist, and mountaineer. He founded the religion of Thelema, identifying himself as the pro ...

Dante Gabriel Rossetti Gabriel Charles Dante Rossetti (12 May 1828 – 9 April 1882), generally known as Dante Gabriel Rossetti (), was an English poet, illustrator, painter, translator and member of the Rossetti family. He founded the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhoo ...

Gerard de Nerval Gerard is a masculine forename of Proto-Germanic origin, variations of which exist in many Germanic and Romance languages. Like many other early Germanic names, it is dithematic, consisting of two meaningful constituents put together. In this ca ...

Chidiock Tichborne Chidiock Tichborne (after 24 August 1562 – 20 September 1586), erroneously referred to as Charles, was an English conspirator and poet. Life Tichborne was born in Southampton sometime after 24 August 1562Phillimore, Hampshire Parish Records, ...

also a Prussian version of intro of the first Lithuanian poem "

Metai The Seasons ( lt, Metai) is the first Lithuanian poem written by Kristijonas Donelaitis around 1765–1775. It is in quantitative dactylic hexameters as often used for Latin and Ancient Greek poetry. It was published as "''Das Jahr''" in Königsb ...

" by

Kristijonas Donelaitis Kristijonas Donelaitis ( la, Christian Donalitius; 1 January 1714 – 18 February 1780) was a Prussian Lithuanian poet and Lutheran pastor. He lived and worked in Lithuania Minor, a territory in the Kingdom of Prussia, that had a sizable Lithuani ...

Members

Current

* Glabbis Niktorius – vocal, guitars * Alwārmija – vocal * Aleks Āulaukis (Alexey Popov) – guitars * Anny (Anna Ivanova) – cello

Former

* Johnny (Sergey Ivanov) – guitars * Poonk (Dmitry Demidov) – violin, tape, keyboards, sounds * Victoria Koulbachnaya – flute, keyboards * Elena Kosheleva – violin * Julia – voice

Discography

* ''Narcissism'' (1997) * ''L’Automne Eternel'' (2000) * ''Āustradēiwa'' (2005) * ''Undēina'' (2014) * ''Nawamār'' (2016)

References

Links

Official pageOfficial Facebook pageOfficial BandCamp page
{{Authority control Neofolk music groups Musical groups established in 1995 Lithuanian musical groups