Russia

As you ascend higher, the temptation of heaven draws nearer,
Where the sun's ray spread its wings through the clouds,
Everything you want and are capable of is the sensation of celestial breadcrumbs,
It is the memory of leaping and soaring, it is the memory of an eagle.

Down like a stone and up like an arrow,
Beauty is a fearsome force,
Angels my brothers and demons my friends,
Oh, look how Russia pulled me about!
I am drunk with your beauty,
This, my friends, is a messianic land,
I surrender in front of you,
You're so insane,
But so beautiful.

These guys have great constitution
Theese girls have deepest hearts
These are the green claws of the Kremlin in the temple of Europe,
Yes, it is the insane jest
My Asiatic cheekbones,
They are loving, yet they are also wicked and proud,
If the sky commands "Shoot", 
I respond with "Roger that" and again and again:

Down like a stone and up like an arrow,
Beauty is a fearsome force,
Angels my brothers and demons my friends,
Oh, look how Russia pulled me about!
I am drunk with your beauty,
This, my friends, is a messianic land,
I surrender in front of you,
You're so insane,
But so beautiful.

As you ascend higher, the sense of death draws nearer,
Where the sun's ray spread its wings through the clouds,
Everything you want and are capable of is the sensation of celestial breadcrumbs,
It is the memory of leaping and soaring, it is the memory of an eagle.

Down like a stone and up like an arrow,
Beauty is a fearsome force,
Angels my brothers and demons my friends,
Oh, look how Russia pulled me about!
I am drunk with your beauty,
This, my friends, is a messianic land,
I surrender in front of you,
You're so insane,
But so beautiful.

What is Russia? It is a vast multinational country with a long and contradictory history. It is a country of experimentation and an experimenter itself. Due to the fact that the Russian state was an empire for a long time, it experiences imperial phantom pains: resentment, a victim complex, and hypercompensation for poverty.

Empires did not arise by chance. Such a form of state turned out to be more progressive than a purely national one because it is based on the interaction of different nationalities, cultures, and ideas. An empire does not guarantee happiness and prosperity to its residents, but the conflicts that people inevitably have to resolve lead to their development. And since the empire is part of the Russian cultural code, it is important to be aware of its failures and achievements, one's involvement in its heritage, and draw conclusions. Instead, some prefer to simply shout, "I am Russian," without bothering to provide justification, forgetting where nationalism, taken to the extreme, leads.

We assert that being Russian means not only thinking in Russian and being proud of one's origins but actively exploring one's own culture, language, thought patterns, establishing cause-and-effect relationships, and realizing the significance of every failure and achievement.

The more complex a concept, the wider the field for manipulations of that concept. Superficial understanding of culture harms it and allows for its exploitation to justify one's own complexes and crimes.

The song "Russia," the third single from the album "Music for Adults," is a snapshot of the emotions of the Russian people towards the empire, culture, their admiration, and despair.

Performed by:
Vocals: Alexander Chernetskiy (Razniye lyudi)
Drums: Igor Cheridnik (Strannye Igry, Avia, Auktyon)
Double bass: Alexey Kiselev
Guitars: Serafim Sinotov (Drugs addicted still alive, Gaft)
Mandolin: Sergey Starodubtsev (Kafe)
Cello: Ivan Kuzmin
Violins: Sergey Simchenko
Choir: Liya Bragina, Svetlana Kosheleva, Veronika Kurbanmamadova

Recorded and mixed at Interzvuk