Ukrainian-American band VINOK is not just another indie-rock band, but a statement of authenticity and social change, influencing a new culture of justice in a land of the unknown.
Band members Nathalie, Ilya, and Anton position themselves as a voice for the marginalized, whilst bringing thought to crucial problems facing society. Co-founder, lead vocalist, and keyboardist Nathalie has practiced as a mental health professional and expressive arts therapist. She has worked extensively with people who witnessed a wide array of abuse and neglect. The band’s virtuoso bassist Anton, who comes from war-torn eastern Ukraine, says music is his salvation, and VINOK’s co-founder and drummer Ilya, a journalist, has witnessed the atrocities executed by authoritarian and corrupt regimes throughout Eastern Europe, and the sheer poverty that resulted from them.
Ilya states, “A holy fool can have two meanings: on one hand, it can be someone who is viewed as holy but is actually a fool (deceitful, evil and destructive), while on the other hand, it can be someone who is not afraid to speak the truth despite the outcome with the hope for a better society. And a big part of our lives is filtering through the two and understanding who is who, and that can be challenging. That’s something we are also trying to tackle in our album.”
‘Holy Fool ’is the band’s first full album and provides fresh, powerful, and insightful music with deep accented rhythms, haunting lyrics, and spiraling powerful vocals.
Speaking more on this, VINOK’s lead vocalist Nathalie explained, “Our musical endeavors in this album are a pathway to reveal the insanity of the world in a creatively insane manner.” VINOK’s music has been influenced and inspired by American novelist and one of the band’s favorite ‘holy fools’, Flannery O’Connor. One of their favorite quotes of hers is, “The truth does not change according to our ability to stomach it.” O’Connor’s southern gothic writing uses ample striking attention-grabbing symbolism with deep meaning. VINOK also uses a lot of symbolism to convey the messages in their music.
With topics ranging from disability rights to feminism, politics, and religion, the band’s sound is an atypical mix of alternative rock and indie art-pop spiced with dashes of garage punk, pulp grunge, and hip-hop. VINOK’s music was mixed by sound producer and engineer Paul ‘PDub’ Walton who worked with legends such as Bjork, U2, Madonna, Massive Attack, Birdy, and The Cure. The album was mastered by Rudy Martinez, who is a voting member of the Grammys as well as an active member of the Audio Engineering Society. VINOK looks to 2021 with positive energy as it’s set to be a huge year for the band. Check out our recent interview with band members Nathalie and Ilya.
For further information on the band, visit.
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