The image of the group is mostly formed by Vyacheslav Butusov, its invariable frontman, lead guitar and composer. The lyrics were written mostly by Ilya Kormiltsev, who also wrote lyrics for several other notable "Ural rock" bands of the period.
The band's official site is www.nautilus.ru.
Their history starts in 1978, when three students of Sverdlovsk Institute of Architecture, Vyacheslav Butusov (vocals, guitar), Dmitry Umetsky (bass, backing vocals), and Igor Goncharov (drums) started playing rock-n-roll together for fun. Their first more or less complete, though amateur, recording was made in 1982.
This debut album, entitled "Переезд" (pronounced "pereyezd"; Russian for "crossing" or "moving on") was inclined heavily towards rock-n-roll or even hard rock in the vein of Led Zeppelin, which was completely abandoned by the time of recording the next album. The breakthrough came in 1986 with their third LP called "Разлука" ("razluka"; Apartness). Nautilus Pompilius became true nationwide stars, their brand of keyboard-driven post-punk with new wave elements and catchy melodies bringing them huge success. As ninety-nine per cent of Russian rock were politically engaged, the lyrical image of the band was also important. Nautilus created both pamphlets criticizing the Communist regime, such as "Скованные одной цепью" (Chained Together) or "Шар цвета хаки" (Khaki-Colored Globe), and emotional ballads, the most popular among them "Я хочу быть с тобой" (I Want To Be With You). The biggest hits of this period are still well-known in Russia. Butusov and Umetsky led the band to a cult status, but then Dmitry suddenly quit Nautilus in 1988.
In 1989, after a year and a half of almost uninterrupted touring, many line-up changes and a couple of live recordings, the band broke up while still enjoying enormous popularity and even some official recognition. This decision was unwelcome among fans, but it brought Butusov and Umetsky together once more. They started the band from scratch, but this attempt was unsuccessful and they parted ways soon having made only demos for what was later released as "Человек без имени" ("chelovek bez imeni"; Man Without A Name). But then Ilya Kormiltsev, the man behind the lyrics, decided to join Butusov again. The band had a composer and a lyricist, so the writing and recording began with help of a completely new line-up including Igor Djavad-zade, a Tajikistan-born drummer of some renown due to his involvement in successful jazz projects, and Oleg Sakmarov, the flutist of perhaps the most popular Russian band of the time, Аквариум.
The following three years saw the band change its style to guitar-driven rock and making two further albums. The biggest hit of that period was 1991's medieval-styled ballad "Прогулки по воде" ("progulki po vode" - Walking Upon Water) with lyrics about Jesus walking upon water and preaching to his disciple St. Andrew.
In 1994 Nautilus returned to the mainstream scene with the album "Титаник" (Titanic). The line-up was revised once more, with members of 1988 superstar line-up Albert Potapkin (drums) and Alexei Mogilevsky (keyboards, saxophone) returning to the band, the former since 1992 and the latter since 1994. The next effort was their perhaps most succesful CD entitled "Крылья" ("krylia" - Wings), the sombre title track becoming an instant hit. The band toured Russia and abroad, reaching ever larger audiences, but then finally broke up after one more album "Яблокитай" ("yablokitay" - Apple-China, a pun on the Russian word for "orange" - апельсин, which is borrowed from Dutch where it means literally "Сhina-apple") which didn't appeal to fans as much as the previous two.
Vyacheslav Butusov himself is still fairly popular in Russia and performs with a new band called Ю-Питер.
Матерь богов
Nautilus Pompilius Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Я так долго молчал, но теперь я готов
Я - Создатель всего, что ты видишь вокруг
А ты, моя радость, ты - Матерь Богов
Матерь Богов, Матерь Богов
Этот город убийц, город шлюх и воров
А откроем глаза - и его уже нет
И мы снова стоим у начала веков
Матерь Богов мы гуляли весь день
Под мелким дождем, твои мокрые джинсы
Комком лежат на полу
Так возьмемся скорее за дело
Матерь Богов, Матерь Богов
Мы в который уж раз создаем этот мир
Ищем вновь имена для зверей и цветов
Несмотря ни на что, побеждает любовь
Так забьем и закурим, Матерь Богов
Я рождался сто раз и сто раз умирал
Я заглядывал в карты - у дьявола нет
Козырей, они входят в наш дом, но что
Они сделают нам? Мы с тобою бессмертны
Матерь Богов, Матерь Богов
Матерь Богов мы гуляли весь день
Под мелким дождем, твои мокрые джинсы
Комком лежат на полу
Так возьмемся скорее за дело
Матерь Богов, Матерь Богов
Матерь Богов, Матерь Богов
The lyrics of Наutilus Pompilius's song "Матерь богов" ("Mother of Gods" in English) speak of a dark secret that the singer is ready to reveal. The singer identifies themselves as the Creator of everything around the listener, and declares the listener as the Mother of Gods. The verses describe a world full of killers, whores, and thieves that exists as long as people continue to believe in it. However, the singer suggests opening our eyes, and it will disappear, and we will find ourselves at the beginning of time again.
The chorus, "Матерь Богов" ("Mother of Gods"), is repeated throughout the song, emphasizing the importance of the listener's character. The second verse describes a rainy day spent with the listener, creating and naming animals and plants in a world that they are creating together. They acknowledge that love is the driving force behind all they do, and they light up and smoke something before getting back to their work.
The third verse details the many times the singer has been born and died and looked into the cards without fear because they are immortal. The song ends with the chorus repeated twice more.
Overall, "Матерь богов" is a song that covers themes of creation, mortality, and love. It suggests that people can control their perceptions of the world they live in and change it to reflect values like love instead of violence and reminds us that we are all part of something more significant than ourselves.
Line by Line Meaning
Я открою тебе самый страшный секрет
I will reveal to you the most terrifying secret
Я так долго молчал, но теперь я готов
I have been silent for so long, but I am now ready
Я - Создатель всего, что ты видишь вокруг
I am the Creator of everything that you see around you
А ты, моя радость, ты - Матерь Богов
And you, my joy, you are the Mother of the Gods
Этот город убийц, город шлюх и воров
This city is full of killers, whores and thieves
Существует покуда мы верим в него
It exists as long as we believe in it
А откроем глаза - и его уже нет
But if we open our eyes, it is already gone
И мы снова стоим у начала веков
And we stand again at the beginning of time
Матерь Богов мы гуляли весь день
Mother of the Gods, we walked all day
Под мелким дождем, твои мокрые джинсы
In the light rain, your wet jeans
Комком лежат на полу
They are crumpled on the floor
Так возьмемся скорее за дело
So let's get down to business
Мы в который уж раз создаем этот мир
We create this world for the umpteenth time
Ищем вновь имена для зверей и цветов
We search again for names for animals and flowers
Несмотря ни на что, побеждает любовь
Despite everything, love prevails
Так забьем и закурим, Матерь Богов
So let's light up and smoke, Mother of the Gods
Я рождался сто раз и сто раз умирал
I was born a hundred times and died a hundred times
Я заглядывал в карты - у дьявола нет козырей
I looked into the cards - the devil has no trumps
Они входят в наш дом, но что
They enter our house, but what of it
Они сделают нам? Мы с тобою бессмертны
What can they do to us? You and I are immortal
Матерь Богов мы гуляли весь день
Mother of the Gods, we walked all day
Под мелким дождем, твои мокрые джинсы
In the light rain, your wet jeans
Комком лежат на полу
They are crumpled on the floor
Так возьмемся скорее за дело
So let's get down to business
Матерь Богов, Матерь Богов
Mother of the Gods, Mother of the Gods
Contributed by Camilla M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.