Rockin' it, Siberian-style, with the Red Elvises (article published in today's Santa Cruz Sentinel)
When Igor Yuzov was growing up in his native land of Ukraine, the country was still under the control of the Soviet Union, and the so-called “Iron Curtain” that separated the Communist Bloc from the West kept many facets of western culture out of the reach of most citizens. There was, however, a dedicated underground network of people who sought out and smuggled in bits of culture from countries such as the United States, and they were sold or traded in secretive black markets. A young Yuzov took a keen interest in these hard-won treasures—particularly rock n’ roll records.
“It was really hard to get western music, it was almost kind of illegal—you had to go to special places in the park where people exchanged western records, and they got so much money, it’s unbelievable—but people still managed to do it,” says Yuzov.
Those early musical introductions inspired a lifelong love of rock n’ roll, and eventually led Yuzov to where he is today—singer and guitarist for cult favorites the Red Elvises. With an eclectic mix of sounds and influences ranging from early rock n’ roll, rockabilly and blues to traditional Russian wedding music, klezmer, polka, swing and more, the band has been steadily cultivating an ever-growing fan base across the globe since releasing their first album in 1996.
Yuzov, who began playing music at an early age, ended up playing in a rock band that came to the United States to tour one year—and he was immediately smitten, especially with Southern California.
“I walked on Venice Beach, and I loved it, and I was like, ‘this is the place for me,’ and I’ve lived here since then, basically. I just fell in love with California, I realized, ‘This is paradise,’ it was just like watching a movie.”
Becoming a professional musician was not something that he even considered being a possibility when he decided to move to the U.S.—but through a twist of fate, he encountered Oleg Bernov, a friend from the old country who had also recently made the move to California, and after a short period of struggling, the two began making a name for themselves as a popular act on the local streets.
“It just happened that we started playing music, and people started liking it—when Oleg showed up with his acoustic bass, the first day we walked on Venice Beach we made so much money, I didn’t even call my job—I was like, ‘I’m not going back,’ and that was it,” Yuzov laughs.
The band quickly graduated from playing on the streets to pulling in crowds at local music clubs, and over the course of the next decade, the Red Elvises would expand beyond their home base of Southern California and soon toured across America, releasing albums such as Surfing in Siberia, I Wanna See You Bellydance, and Rockenrol. With the addition of several other friends and musicians to the revolving lineup, the band has become a perennial live favorite, performing hundreds of shows every year. The unorthodox sounding rockers have even been featured in major motion pictures including Six String Samurai and appeared on television programs like Melrose Place.
On the Red Elvises’ new album, Drinking With Jesus, the amalgamated sounds that fans have come to expect are evidenced in plenty.
The title track kicks the collection off with a hilarious tale about some late night antics with the revered religious figure, sung over some twangy guitar licks, propulsive drumming, and scream-along choruses.
Lyrics such as “Jesus had a shot of Jose Cuervo/Then we had some whiskey on the rocks/Then we started dancing like two maniacs/Then he said to me/You are a drunk. You are a loser. You are a womanizer. Hallelujah!” will likely make listeners crack up upon hearing them for the first time, but the arresting hooks and utter enthusiasm with which the tune is played are infectious, as is the case with many of the Red Elvises’ songs.
After all these years of building up a solid fan base and perpetually performing live, the Red Elvises have naturally attracted the attention of a few major record labels, who have made the band offers to sign with them—but Yuzov is staunchly opposed to the idea.
“I think being an independent band is much more pleasant right now, especially these days with the internet—you can just tour and record your songs relatively cheaply, so for a band like us, I think it would be completely different to sign with some big label. I don’t think we’re a commercial band, or that our music is for the big masses, we’re a very cult band,” he laughs. “I like the way it stays—I really like what I’m doing, and I’m very grateful that I can tour, and people listen to my music, and I make my living doing it. I’m very happy about that.”
Info Box:
Igor + Red Elvises
Sunday, April 19
9 p.m.
$12-$15
Moe’s Alley
1535 Commercial Way
Santa Cruz
(831) 479-1854
www.moesalley.com
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