Foje was one of the most successful and best known rock bands in Lithuania.

History

Foje was formed in the present-day

Antakalnis Antakalnis (''literally'' lt, 'the place on hills', adapted in pl, Antokol) is an eldership in the Vilnius city municipality, Lithuania. Antakalnis is one of the oldest, and largest historical suburbs of Vilnius City. It is in the eastern ...

Secondary School in

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional u ...

Andrius Mamontovas Andrius Mamontovas (born 23 August 1967) is a Lithuanian rock musician. He is also a songwriter, actor, performer and record producer. He was one of the co-founders of the Lithuanian rock band Foje and the initiator of the LT United project. ...

, Arnoldas Lukošius and Darius Tarasevičius in 1983 under the name of Sunki Muzika ("Hard Music"), few months later Algis Kriščiūnas joined the band. In 1984 it was renamed to Foje (literal meaning: "

foyer A lobby is a room in a building used for entry from the outside. Sometimes referred to as a foyer, reception area or an entrance hall, it is often a large room or complex of rooms (in a theatre, opera house, concert hall, showroom, cinema, etc ...

"). Through its years, the band survived a number of lineup changes, and released over 10 albums. The group cited several influences, including the sound of

the Stranglers The Stranglers are an English rock band who emerged via the punk rock scene. Scoring 23 UK top 40 singles and 19 UK top 40 albums to date in a career spanning five decades, the Stranglers are one of the longest-surviving bands to have origin ...

, as well as the 1980s post-punk movement (for example the notable nod to

Depeche Mode Depeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in Basildon, Essex, in 1980. The band currently consists of Dave Gahan (lead vocals and co-songwriting) and Martin Gore (keyboards, guitar, co-lead vocals and main songwriting). Depech ...

on Foje's 1989

electronica Electronica is both a broad group of electronic-based music styles intended for listening rather than strictly for dancing and a music scene that started in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term is mostly used to ...

album ''Žodžiai į Tylą''). These influences were combined with the often gloomy, desperate lyrics of the band's leader

. In 1997 the band performed three farewell gigs in the Lithuanian cities of

Klaipėda Klaipėda (; ; german: Memel; pl, Kłajpeda; russian: Клайпеда; sgs, Klaipieda) is a city in Lithuania on the Baltic Sea coast. The capital of the eponymous county, it is the third largest city and the only major seaport in Lithuani ...

Kaunas Kaunas (; ; also see other names) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the largest city and the centre of a county in the Duchy of Tra ...

and

, with attendance of 60,000 in the final performance on 17 May in

Vingis Park Vingis Park ( lt, Vingio parkas) is the largest park in Vilnius, Lithuania, covering . It is located in a curve of the Neris River, hence its Lithuanian name: 'vingis' means "bend", "curve"; the same meaning has the historical Polish name of the l ...

of Vilnius. After disbanding Mamontovas started a solo career. Two of the band's songs - " Laužo šviesa" ("The Light of the Bonfire") (1986) and "Meilės nebus per daug" ("There will not be too much love") (1994) - were voted by the media professionals into the Top 20 best Lithuanian songs of the 20th century in 2000.">"Radiocentras" išdalino apdovanojimus
by ''

Baltic News Service The Baltic News Service (BNS) is the largest news agency operating in the Baltic states. Founded in April, 1990, by a group of students (the founding CEO was Allan Martinson), it sought to inform foreign correspondents in Moscow of developments ...

Members

(1983–1997) - Vocals, guitar, drums, keyboards * Arnoldas Lukošius (1983–1989, 1992–1997) - Keyboards, accordion * Algis Kriščiūnas (1983–1985, 1992–1997) - Drums *

Darius Burokas Darius may refer to: Persian royalty ;Kings of the Achaemenid Empire * Darius I (the Great, 550 to 487 BC) * Darius II (423 to 404 BC) * Darius III (Codomannus, 380 to 330 BC) ;Crown princes * Darius (son of Xerxes I), crown prince of Persia, m ...

(1986–1988, 1990–1997) - Bass, keyboards * Darius Tarasevičius (1983–1985) - Bass *

Romas Rainys Romas may refer to: Geography * Romãs, Decermilo e Vila Longa, a ''freguesia'' (civil parish) of Sátão, Portugal People * the Romani people Given name * Romas Dalinkevičius (1950-2001), Lithuanian painter. * Romas Dressler (born 1987), Ger ...

(1985–1988) Bass, Guitar * Eugenijus Pugačiukas (1985–1991) - Drums * Saulius Valikonis (1986–1988, 1989–1991) - Saxophone *

Gediminas Simniškis Gediminas ( la, Gedeminne, ; – December 1341) was the king or Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1315 or 1316 until his death. He is credited with founding this political entity and expanding its territory which later spanned the area ranging from ...

(1988–1989) - Bass * Jaunius Beinortas (1988–1989) - Guitar * Robertas Meržvinskas (1988–1989) - Saxophone * Robertas Griškevičius (1989–1990) - Keyboards

Discography

*1989 - Geltoni krantai (Yellow Shores) (MC) *1990 - Žodžiai į tylą (Words Into Silence) (LP, MC) *1991 - Gali skambėti keistai (It Might Sound Strange) (LP, CD, MC) - first CD album in Lithuanian music history *1992 - Kitoks pasaulis (A Different World) (LP, CD, MC) *1993 - Vandenyje (In The Water) (LP, CD, MC) *1994 - Tikras garsas (The Real Sound) (MC) *1994 - M-1 (dancemixes) (CD, MC) *1994 - Aš čia esu (I Am Here) (MC) *1994 - Aš čia esu (LP Picture Disc) *1995 - Kai perplauksi upę (When You Swim Across The River) (CD, MC) *1995 - Live On The Air (MC) *1996 - 1982 (MC, CD) *1997 - The Flowing River EP (CD) *1997 - Mokykla (School) (MC) *1999 - Vilnius - Kaunas - Klaipėda (CD, MC) *2002 - Paveikslas (The Picture) (CD, MC) *2006 - Kita paveikslo pusė (The Other Side of the Picture) (CD) *2013 - AM+FOJE=30 (AM - Andrius Mamontovas) (CD)

References

External links

Foje official website
{{Authority control Lithuanian rock music groups Musical groups established in 1983 Musical groups disestablished in 1997 1983 establishments in Lithuania 1983 establishments in the Soviet Union 1997 disestablishments in Lithuania Music in Vilnius Soviet rock music groups