Srazhalys
Melodic flavors of Eastern Europe and Central Asia merge with Celtic sensibilities and hard-driving rock rhythms to shape the sound of Srazhalys.
Click on an album below to give a listen:
A Brief History of Srazhalys
The group Srazhalys was unwittingly formed in 2002 when J Roth mistook a domra for a balalaika. He’d been traveling across Russia looking for an affordable balalaika to bring home with him. It wasn’t until his final destination: St. Petersburg that he found a secondhand shop selling folk instruments. After carefully scrutinizing each instrument, he made his choice and took it to the counter to purchase only to be informed that it was not a balalaika but a domra.
This was a dilemma. J had really wanted a balalaika, but he’d already developed an attachment to the domra he’d chosen. Defying reason and practicality, he bought both instruments and thus the band Srazhalys was formed, for these instruments – more than their players – are the heart of the music and the ensemble.
It’s a working-class hero story (post-Soviet collapse style) of how the instruments made it safely to the U.S., but that’s a tale for another time. Suffice it to say, they arrived after many months and almost immediately the song Bala was composed with Mags following not long after. J couldn’t play both the balalaika and domra at the same time so he recruited his cousin-friend Paul Cameron to see if he could make sense of these three-stringed instruments. Paul was instantly hooked. Starting in 2004, the four of them ( J, Paul, domra, balalaika) began to make musical appearances around Minneapolis with guest guitarists.
It wasn’t until 2009 though, that Srazhalys found it’s next core member: Ryan Murphy. Ryan was the younger cousin of J & Paul and, though originally recruited to play guitar, Ryan soon got his hands on the balalaika and domra and was instantly coaxing new rhythms and melodies out of them. It wasn’t long before he began writing new songs for the group.
The next year, bassist Matt Ides was added to the group. Matt brought a sense of purpose and organization to the ensemble and helped Srazhalys emerge into the wider public sphere. He’s a solid, versatile bass player, using bow and fingers to give the sound of Srazhalys a richer texture. (There’s more to Matt than just his bass playing: listen to Matt’s soundscape work.)
Little-by-little new instruments were added to the ensemble: Paul acquired a bouzouki; Ryan brought in a tenor guitar; Matt found a mandocello; and J added his mandolin to the mix.
Instrument members of the group:
balalaika
domra
guitars (acoustic, classical, tenor)
double bass
clarinet
concertina
bouzouki
mandolin
mandocello
As of 2020, the group has ceased performing live but are working on their third album, which will be a departure from their previous work, this one incorporating drums and synths in addition to their usual arsenal of acoustic instruments.
Listen to Srazhalys’ live, in studio appearances on KFAI Radio’s “Century Song” (click on an image below):
Watch Srazhalys at the International Festival (2017)
A list of all the shows played by Srazhalys.
