A Star named "Sun" (Zvezda po imeni "Solntse") [Import]

Kino (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• ASIN: B0002FO0EA
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #178,994 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the essential albums of the Russian rock scene., June 25, 2005

By 

O. Yakimenko "CommunistOlga" (Vienna, Austria.) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Star named "Sun" (Zvezda po imeni "Solntse") (Audio CD)

Viktor Tsoy wasn't the best vocalist of all time, nor were the rest of Kino guitar, keys or drums virtuosos. Nevertheless, Kino managed to become one of the most influential rock bands Russia has ever had; it's not at all hard to find their followers in any apartment block in any Russian city today, whether young or old. A myriad walls are covered with lyrics from their songs and the portraits of band members, and I think that what had made them so famous is perhaps at its best on "A Star named 'Sun'" - memorable [yet so simple that almost every teenager who takes up guitar starts out with Kino songs] leitmotivs, piercing lyrics, and Tsoy's raw, at first glance monotonous but at second moving vocals. Kino had a good sense of humour, but this is their nostalgia album.
The entire album can probably be summed up with the title of one track: "An unhappy song", where Tsoy sounds as if he is close to collapsing and is only kept awake by the need to tell a story. The beats are bouncy at times, but those times are few and rare, and the lyrics are always ice, raw earth and grief.

Despite the fact that it is not the title track, I find the highlight to be "A Pack of Cigarettes" - a song which many can probably relate to, with its lyrics giving perhaps the most intense feeling of homesickness and exhaustion any album has ever offered.

If you want an album to listen to when you're feeling meditative or nostalgic, and maybe with the need to sort out your thoughts and relax, this is definitely the right choice; Tsoy soothes the ear and calms [and clenches] the heart.

5.0 out of 5 stars Russian Punk-Rock at Its Best, February 19, 2009

By 

DJ "DJ" (Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Star named "Sun" (Zvezda po imeni "Solntse") (Audio CD)

One of my most favorite albums by Kino.
Great stuff !!

Highly recommended. Russian understanding is options, although it does help to understand the lyrics to put songs in perspective.

5.0 out of 5 stars Hard to find music, January 12, 2009

By 

Dakota Kid (South Dakota) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Star named "Sun" (Zvezda po imeni "Solntse") (Audio CD)

My wife is Russian and has lived in the United States for a little over a year. She misses some of her Russian music and was very happy to find a Russian Music CD that she liked on Amazon.