Lumen is one of the most popular Russian rock bands. They are regarded by music critics as representatives of a new wave of alternative music.
Some say that the band's music belongs to punk rock. And the soloists of the group do not pay attention to labels, they just create and have been creating high-quality music for over 20 years.
The history of the creation and composition of the Lumen group
It all started in 1996. Young people who lived in provincial Ufa decided to create a rock band. The guys spent the day playing the guitar. They rehearsed at home, on the street, in the basement.
The Lumen group of the mid-1990s included such soloists: Denis Shakhanov, Igor Mamaev and Rustem Bulatov, who is known to the general public as Tam.
At the time of 1996, the team remained nameless. The guys went on the stage of local clubs, played the hits of the bands that have long been loved by many: "Chayf", "Kino", "Alisa", "Civil Defense".
Young people really wanted to become popular, so 80% of the time they were engaged in rehearsals.
They took place at home. Neighbors often complained about the musicians. Tam solved this problem by finding a nook in the local art house. And although there was not much space, the acoustics were at the highest level.
In the late 1990s, the standard rock band, by convention, should have included a vocalist, bassist, drummer, and at least one guitarist.
Based on this, the soloists were looking for another member. They became Evgeny Ognev, who did not stay long under the wing of the Lumen group. By the way, this is the only musician who left the original composition.
The official date of the creation of the team was 1998. During this period of time, the soloists compiled a short musical program, and they began to appear with it at various music festivals and student concerts. This allowed the group to win the first fans.
In the early 2000s, the guys put the Golden Standard figurine on the shelf of awards. In addition, the group took part in the festival "We are together" and "Stars of the XXI century". Then they held a solo concert in one of the cinemas in Ufa.
The creative path and music of the Lumen group
The peak of the rock band's popularity was in 2002. This year, the musicians presented the album Live in Navigator club to fans.
The collection was recorded during a live performance at the local nightclub "Navigator" by sound engineer Vladislav Savvateev.
The album contains 8 tracks. The musical composition "Sid and Nancy" got into the rotation of the radio station "Our Radio". It was after this event that the Lumen team was seriously talked about.
Thanks to the track, the group became popular, but in addition, they participated in one of the main Moscow music festivals.
In 2003, the band's soloists re-recorded "Sid and Nancy" at a professional recording studio. By the time the track was recorded, the band had decided on the sound style.
Now the group's songs included elements of punk, post-grunge, pop-rock and alternative, and the lyrics corresponded to the perception of young maximalists and rebels.
Young people liked this approach of the soloists of the Lumen group, so the popularity of the group began to increase exponentially.
After finding their own style of performance, the group signed a contract with a small Moscow label. From that moment on, the group's songs became especially "tasty".
With the support of producer Vadim Bazeev, the group has accumulated material for the release of the album "Three Ways". Some songs of the new album topped the Russian radio charts.
The success of the album, which contained musical compositions: "Dream", "Calm me!", "Protest" and "Goodbye", allowed the band's soloists to go on their first national tour.
In 2005, the band released the musical compositions Blagoveshchensk and Don't Hurry, which became part of the new album One Blood. A few months later, the live version was followed by a full-fledged collection "Dyshi".
Despite recognition and popularity, the team could not find a producer or even a sponsor. Lumen operated solely on the funds they raised from concerts and CD sales.
In this regard, the release of the new album took place in a short time, taking a lot of moral strength from the musicians.
After the presentation of the new collection "True?", which became a real top thanks to powerful lyrics and excellent vocals, the group won new fans. The tracks "While you were sleeping" and "Burn" became real and immortal hits.
In support of the new collection, the band performed at the B1 Maximum nightclub. In addition, the Lumen group won the "Best Young Group" nomination according to the music magazine Fuzz.
It was a confession, it seems that the guys "climbed" to the very top of the musical Olympus.
In the late 2000s, the Russian rock band decided to reach a new level. The guys performed with their concert program on the territory of the CIS countries.
In addition, the band took part in the St. Petersburg music festival Tuborg GreenFest in the company of Linkin Park.
The rock band didn't stop there. The musicians continued to work on collections, they recorded new tracks and video clips.
There was a short break only in 2012. At the same time, there were rumors that the Lumen group was ceasing creative activity. But the soloists made it clear that the break is due to the fact that they have accumulated a lot of material, and it takes time to sort it out.
In the summer of 2012, the rock band appeared at the Chart Dozen festival. The musicians did not miss other rock festivals either. At the same time, the musicians presented the new album "Into Parts". The album contains only 12 tracks.
The most popular song of the collection was the composition “I didn’t forgive”. A video clip was edited for the track, which included photographs taken during the dispersal of a peaceful civil demonstration in Moscow.
In support of the record, the musicians traditionally went on tour. At one of the concerts, the soloists of the Lumen group said that they would soon present their seventh studio album, No Time for Love, to their fans.
At the time of 2010, the band was one of the most popular rock bands in Russia. The guys managed to maintain this status in 2020. Despite their popularity, the soloists of the group "did not put crowns on their heads." They helped young rock musicians get on their feet.
More than twice, the soloists of the Lumen group announced a creative competition, and also created a special training program for the selection and arrangement of musical compositions.
They rewarded the most active and talented participants with gifts and, most importantly, with support.
At the same time, the musicians began to work closely with other Russian rockers. So, musical compositions appeared: “But we are not angels, guy”, “Our Names” with the participation of the Bi-2 collective, “Agatha Christie” and “Porn Films”.
The band's soloists keep in touch with fans through the Planeta.ru project. There they also posted a request to raise funds for the release of a new album.
Having raised money in 2016, the group's discography was replenished with the album Chronicle of Mad Days.
Lumen group now
2019 for fans of the Russian rock band began with joyful events. The musicians presented the song "Cult of Emptiness" at the "Chart Dozen" award ceremony. As a result of voting, the musicians received the prestigious award "Soloist of the Year".
In March, the Nashe Radio radio station hosted a presentation of the single "To those who trample the earth." A few months later, a fresh EP appeared on the official website, which, in addition to the above-mentioned tracks, included the songs Neuroshunt and Fly Away.
The EP was warmly received not only by Lumen fans, but also by music critics.
On the official website, the musicians posted a poster for performances for 2019. In addition, the soloists reported that fans will be able to see the group's performance at the Dobrofest, Invasion and Taman music festivals.
In 2020, the musicians shared a edited video version of the Fear concert, which took place on the territory of Moscow.
“During a live broadcast, not everything can be done to the maximum quality, so after the end of the first part of the tour, we worked with editing, color and sound,” the musicians said.
In 2020, the next performances of the group will take place in Samara, Ryazan, Kaluga, Kirov and Irkutsk.
Lumen team in 2021
In early July 2021, the premiere of the live version of the debut LP of the rock band took place. The collection was called “Without preservatives. Live". Note that the track list of the disc includes compositions presented in other studio albums of the Lumen group.
