The band was created in Omsk, Siberia, by a young Soviet poet and musician, Yegor (Igor) Letov, in December of 1984, who was inspired mostly by 60's American garage rock and Russian Futurist poetry in his vision of music, lyrics and lifestyle. It was shortly disbanded by KGB in late 1985, after one of band member's mother wrote a complaint that her son is involved in anti-Soviet organisation. Letov was sentenced to compulsory treatment in psychiatric hospital, his friend and fellow band member Konstantin Ryabinov (Kuzya UO or Kuzma) was sent to army, and other people linked with band were warned to break any relationship with Letov. After his release from mental hospital, Letov started recorded his early albums alone (until 1988, when Kuzya UO returned from army) in his home, playing all instruments. His home also was recording spot for all GrOb and his side-project albums: such a DIY-position was one of Letov's main principles. Early GrOb's music (1984-88) is lo-fi straightforward punk/post-punk with some noise rock, garage rock and reggae elements. Later, band's sound developed more in the vein of noise rock, industrial and experimental rock in 1989, and to psychedelic rock and shoegaze in 90s and 00s. GrOb were the ones to fill this vacant niche of counterculture punk bands, and now maintains a huge army of fans, admirers, and followers. It inspired hundreds of subsequent Soviet and then Russian punk bands.
Up to the collapse of the USSR, GrOb was often viewed as an anti-Soviet band. In his deeply symbolic and irrational, "stream-of-consciousness"-lyrics, Letov often spoke against militarism, dictatorship and faceless, conformistic society (although he himself claimed that all "politics" in his songs aren't about concrete regimes and governments, but are the symbols of "eternal, metaphysical totalitarianism"). That was the reason the band was censored and prohibited. Letov and his bandmates spent early years in hiding, recording songs in the kitchens and cellars of their friends' flats. Despite heavy censorship, the band played on several rock festivals (notably its premiere in Novosibirsk in July 1987, where it was considered a sensation, and after which Letov traveled country with Yanka Dyagileva by hitchhiking for half year because of KGB's persecution, which was officially stopped only in December).
Contrary to popular image of an anti-communist, Letov himself claimed to be a "true communist" and has not abolished this claim until the most recent switch in his beliefs. Being the most prominent figure of the Siberian rock, Letov has always been a source of many contradictions. At times he expressed opinions exactly opposite to his earlier sayings - thus, he, along with writer Eduard Limonov, philosopher Alexander Dugin, and composer Sergey Kuryokhin (Сергей Курёхин) appeared aligned with the nationalistic leftist movement called NBP (National Bolshevik Party, rus. НБП, Национал Большевистская Партия) despite his formerly strong opposition to despotism and nationalism. Later, though, he dissapointed in politics and left the movement, saying, that his activity in NBP was mostly sort of conceptualism, a provocation. Letov's contemporary alignment is that of a "World Christian" and "still an anarchist".
GrOb's sound mainly consists of either distorted and lo-fi electric or acoustic guitars, simple bass lines, primitive but memorable tunes, rudimentry percussion and Letov's deeply impassioned voice. During the late 80's they also started occasionally implementing harsh industrial sounds in the background of the music. In the mid-90's in the albums "Солнцеворот" and "Невыносимая Лёгкость Бытия" sound became less noisy and lo-fi but more monolithic, comprising many overlapping guitars and voices, which create shoegazy "wall of sound", long guitar and electronic organ solos, and even some art rock elements, although the basis of sound still was in post-punk and psychedelic rock.
In its last years the band was still very active with full-length albums released in 2004 (Долгая Счастливая Жизнь, "A Long and Happy Life"), 2005 (Реанимация, "Life Support") and 2007 (Зачем Снятся Сны, "What Are Dreams For").
The story of this contradictory but great and original band ended on 19th of February 2008 with Egor Letov's death in sleep at his home in Omsk.
"G.O. is not music, it's more like, you know, conceptual act in the vein of childish naive art. Four chords and maximum approximation to very childish images, something like dadaism".
- Egor Letov, band leader.
Моя оборона
Гражданская оборона Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Макет оказался сильней
Последний кораблик остыл.
Последний фонарик устал.
А в горле сопят комья воспоминаний....
О-О...Моя Оборона!
Солнечный зайчик стеклянного глаза
Траурный мячик нелепого мира
Траурный мячик дешёвого мира.
Пластмассовый мир победил.
Ликует картонный набат.
Кому нужен ломтик июльского неба?
О-О... Моя оборона!
Солнечный зайчик незрячего мира
О-О...Моя оборона!
Траурный мячик стеклянного глаза
Траурный зайчик нелепого глаза...
Пластмассовый мир победил.
Макет оказался сильней.
Последний кораблик остыл.
Последний фонарик устал.
А в горле сопят комья воспоминаний...
О-О... Моя оборона!
Траурный мячик незрячего мира
О-О...Моя оборона!
Солнечный зайчик стеклянного глаза
О-о... Моя оборона!(4 раза).
The lyrics to "Моя Оборона" by Гражданская Оборона paints a gloomy picture of a world dominated by plastic, cardboard and other artificial materials. The first stanza suggests that this artificial world has won over the organic world, with the final ship and lantern having gone out cold and tired. This description of the world is a metaphor for how human beings, in their pursuit of technological advancement and convenience, have forgotten about nature and the consequences of their actions on the planet.
The chorus, "О-О...Моя Оборона!" is a call to arms for the singer's defense of his values and beliefs. The "траурный мячик" (mourning ball) and "солнечный зайчик" (sun bunny) are symbolic of the singer's fragile innocence and hope, which are casualties of this new world order.
The final stanza returns to the bleakness of the world and reiterates the haunting refrain. The singer's "горло" (throat) is filled with "комья воспоминаний" (chunks of memories), which suggests that he is mourning the loss of a simpler and more natural world. The singer's defense is to hold onto these memories and to keep fighting against the pervasive artificiality that threatens to engulf them.
Overall, the song is a critique of modern society and the environmental damage that has been done in the name of progress. It is a plea for people to remember the beauty of the natural world and to fight against the forces that seek to destroy it.
Line by Line Meaning
Пластмассовый мир победил.
The fake, plastic world triumphed over the real one.
Макет оказался сильней
The imitation proved stronger than the original.
Последний кораблик остыл.
The last bit of hope has vanished.
Последний фонарик устал.
The last light has burned out.
А в горле сопят комья воспоминаний....
The painful memories bring a lump to the throat.
О-О...Моя Оборона!
Oh-oh...my defense!
Солнечный зайчик стеклянного глаза
The sunny bunny with glass eyes.
Траурный мячик нелепого мира
The mourning ball of a ridiculous world.
Траурный мячик дешёвого мира.
The mourning ball of a cheap world.
Ликует картонный набат.
The cardboard bells are ringing in celebration.
Кому нужен ломтик июльского неба?
Who needs a piece of the July sky?
Солнечный зайчик незрячего мира
The sunny bunny of a blind world.
Траурный зайчик нелепого глаза...
The mourning bunny of a ridiculous eye...
О-О... Моя оборона!
Oh-oh...my defense!
Contributed by Micah O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@Ignatius_Loyola
Пластмассовый мир победил
Макет оказался сильней
Последний кораблик остыл
Последний фонарик устал
А в горле сопят комья воспоминаний
О-о-о... Моя Оборона
Траурный мячик стеклянного глаза
О-о-о... Моя Оборона
Солнечный зайчик дешёвого мира
Солнечный зайчик незрячего мира
Пластмассовый мир победил
Ликует картонный набат
Кому нужен ломтик июльского неба
О-о-о... Моя оборона
Траурный мячик незрячего мира
О-о-о... Моя Оборона
Солнечный зайчик стеклянного глаза
Солнечный зайчик дешёвого мира
Пластмассовый мир победил
Кирпич оказался сильней
Последний кораблик остыл
Последний фонарик устал
А в горле сопят комья воспоминаний
О-о-о... Моя оборона
Траурный мячик незрячего мира
О-о-о... Моя оборона
Солнечный зайчик стеклянного глаза
О-о-о... Моя оборона
О-о-о... Моя оборона
О-о-о... Моя оборона
О-о-о... Моя оборона
@PNGFox-fz5dl
Гения память забыта не станет ,
Вся почесть и марш пройдёт чутким строем ,
Фанаты в печали ,
Все песни со смыслом обретаю новые смыслы и краски ,
Спасибо Егор!
Твои песни забыты не будут ,
Любить , уважать , помнить меньше не будем ,
Спасибо , за жизнь , и за сказы ,
Твои о судьбах несчастной страны !
@brass941
Если кому-то вдруг интересно, что за странные железобетонные плиты торчат из земли на фоне Егора Летова, так вот это памятник защитникам перевалов Кавказа, расположенный в Карачаево-Черкесии. Спасибо за внимание.
@evgnyshinkarenko2288
Спасибо тебе
@brass941
@Введите Имя всегда рад помочь!
@timka0781
Спасибо
@ItIsNotReal19
Я только хотел задаться этим вопросом)
@bilbo_beggins
я понял
@user-he4di3fh8n
Как говорил пушной
"Девочки,20- у нас с вами совершенно разные Егоры"
@taimer5649
Не добавить, не прибавить.
@meowww223
Авторитеты подъехали
@user-oe2fk3xn8o
твой пушной говна кусок,всем похуй,что он говорит. он не достоин упоминаться здесь .