Shmely (“The Bumblebees”) is a metal band formed in the city of Rivne (Ukra… Read Full Bio ↴Shmely (“The Bumblebees”) is a metal band formed in the city of Rivne (Ukraine). Their current style may be described as industrial//dark/folk metal, while their early music was influenced by punk rock. The lyrics are often mysterious or comic, utulizing (urban) folklore topics.

The band was founded about 1993 by Lyolya Zasedateleva (vocals, music) and Alexander “Shmel” Shmelyov (vocals, music, lyrics) who have been the only permanent members ever since. In 1999 they settled in Moscow (Russia) and lived there till their relocation back to Ukraine in 2018. Most of the time, the band pretty actively toured the post-Soviet states, averagely released 1-2 albums a year, and participated in various music projects either by their own or by other musicians (AntiVirus, Alan Waters, Abort Mozga, etc.)

Over the last years, Shmely have been closely working with Uroboros mini-theater based in Odesa (Ukraine).

Main discography

1998 - Дурацкие книжки (Foolish Little Books), Туловище (The Trunk), Тротиловые cказки (Trotyl Tales)
1999 - Пурга (The Blizzard), Петля Соблазна (The Loop of Temptation), Злорадостная опухоль (The Gloating Tumor), Вулканизация души (Vulcanization of the Soul)
2000 - Трахни небо (Fuck the Sky), Принцеssа Беz Труsоv (The Princess without Panties)
2001 - Спазмы рока (Spasms of Fate), Бомба в убежище (A Bomb in a Shelter)
2003 - Негатив Пространства (Negative of Space), Агрессивный покой (Aggressive Peace)
2004 - Тень сердца (The Shadow of the Heart)
2005 - Лёд (Ice), Восемь женщин на радуге (feat. Alan Waters) (Eight Women on a Rainbow)
2006 - Пуговица (The Button)
2007 - Кошкины обиды (The Cat’s Grudges)
2008 - Карамельные cтрахи (Caramel Fears)
2009 - М. Я. У. (Московская ярмарка удовольствий) (The Moscow Fair of Pleasures), Мощи (recorded in 2000) (The Relics)
2010 - Механическая балерина (The Mechanical Ballerina), Цех по реабилитации параноиков (The Paranoiacs’ Rehabilitation Department)
2011 - Топливо (Fuel), Театр уродов (The Theater of Freaks)
2016 - Я вернусь к тебе… (I’ll Come Back to You…), Пара трупов (A Couple of Corpses), Белый карандаш (The White Pencil), Злорадостная опухоль (The Gloating Tumor, a new version of 1999 album)
2017 - 16 Чудес (16 Wonders)
2018 - Территория Ноль (Territory Zero)
2020 - Твариною поруч (The Beast Nearby)
2021 - Чорний Лic (The Black Forest)
2022 - Хаос Желаний (The Chaos of Wishes)

Тоска
Шмели Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Облака мясистые
Ветер издувал.
Вдаль дорога скучная
Увела.

А на бесплотных зернышках
Лихо танцует любовь
Раздирая ноженьки

В кровь.

Тоска, тоска
Тоска
Пурга безумная
И я...

А в грибах загадочных
Поселился дух
С птицами разговаривал
Вслух

А на высохшей речке
Запускали на колесиках свечки
Чтоб было чем гордиться
И за что напиться

Тоска, тоска
Тоска
Пурга безумная
И я...

Надоело рыбам плавать,
Надоело птицам летать,

Надоело видеть радугу,
Надоело умирать...

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Шмели's "Тоска" describe a sense of weariness and boredom with life. The first stanza paints a picture of dull scenery with dense, meaty clouds and a monotonous road leading into the distance. The second stanza introduces the idea of love dancing on weightless seeds, causing pain and even drawing blood. The chorus repeats the word "тоска" (which translates to "melancholy" or "despair") three times before describing a crazy blizzard and expressing the singer's own feelings of despair.

The third stanza adds a touch of magical realism to the song, as a spirit takes up residence in mysterious mushrooms and talks to birds. The fourth stanza describes a ritual of launching candles on wheels down a dried-up river in order to brag about achievements and have something to drink to. The final lines express a sense of exhaustion with life, with fish tired of swimming, birds tired of flying, and all living beings tired of seeing rainbows and dying.

Overall, "Тоска" speaks to feelings of ennui and stagnation, suggesting a desire for something new and exciting.

Line by Line Meaning

Облака мясистые
The clouds looked exceptionally thick and puffy

Ветер издувал.
The wind blew vigorously

Вдаль дорога скучная
The road ahead seemed mundane and unexciting

Увела.
It carried me away from everything familiar

А на бесплотных зернышках
Meanwhile, on tiny floating particles

Лихо танцует любовь
Love dances wildly and passionately

Раздирая ноженьки
Shredding its legs apart

В кровь.
Leaves nothing but pain and turmoil

Тоска, тоска
Melancholy, melancholy

Тоска
Melancholy