Alexey Romanov: “Anya Pletnyova and I love each other! Alexey Romanov is the new king among composers. After a month-long tour, you returned home.

Now the lead singer of the Vintage group, Alexey Romanof, likes working in the studio, but once he made a lot of efforts to get closer to the stage. At the age of 13, he got into one of the many compositions of “Tender May”, after which, experiencing ups and downs, he changed many groups, until finally, together with Anna Pletnyova, he created a group, in which he gained stable popularity... Alexey invited OK! on a visit, introduced him to his wife Ekaterina and daughters and talked about how life guidelines and values ​​are changing

Photo: Irina Kaydalina

ALexey, in your passport the surname is also Romanof, or is it still a pseudonym?

This is the mother's last name. As for the letter “f” at the end, initially there were two of them, but in Soviet time one was removed so that people would not be jealous. ( Laughs.) By the way, my wife and children’s last name is also Romanof. Inflexible. As a child, I had my father's surname, but it was not so artistic,

When you decided to change your last name, was your dad offended?

Dad took this absolutely calmly. But my mother was very happy.

In general, did your parents allow you much?

No, they were quite strict with me, and now I understand why. I was their first child, and first children are always more demanding. I have the same thing now: eldest daughter My wife and I are much stricter than our younger sister. Probably, if we have a third child, he will generally roll around like cheese in butter, and there will be nothing in his life except cartoons and sweets. ( Smiling.)

How many brothers and sisters do you have?

There were four of us in the family: I have two sisters and a brother. Moreover, my younger sister and I have an age difference of only ten years, that is, my mother was almost constantly in maternity leave. And I, in fact, played the role of senior assistant. My mother and I have always had a wonderful relationship; there has never been a “parent-child” gradation. She and I were friends first and foremost. My mother gave me the maximum amount of freedom - both in childhood and in my youth... I even secondary school didn't finish. ( Laughs.)

How did this happen?

It was 1991. We had a fantastic turnover of staff at our school. Teachers changed every month, and those children who did not have the opportunity to study with tutors fell into poor grades. And to be honest, I didn’t really like studying at school at all. Since I was two years old, I dreamed of making music; this was very clearly manifested in me by reciting poems and performing Alla Pugacheva’s songs, standing on a stool. When I saw some dusty stage in the park, I immediately ran there.

Were there no musicians in your family?

No, although dad is enough on his own musical man, he never developed in this direction. As a child, my mother and I often sang in two voices. This is probably where my passion for music came from. I dreamed of having a piano, but we did not have the opportunity to purchase one. Nowadays many people give away pianos for free - just take them yourself. And then there was a big deficit. To purchase an instrument, they made an appointment in advance or contacted resellers. And I literally dreamed of music... Imagine, I drew keys on pieces of paper and tried to play something. ( Smiling.) As a result, my grandmother somehow collected these three hundred rubles and gave me a piano for my birthday. I remember when I turned nine years old, and I went to enroll in music school.

Successfully?

Naturally, no one wanted to take me. I was overgrown, six-year-old children were accepted there, and I was already nine! A month before admission, I managed to study, picked up a lot of melodies and came to study with Mozart’s “Turkish Rondo”. Everyone was shocked that the boy himself heard and played such a melody. True, they still didn’t want to take me: the system is the system, and there should be no exceptions. But a teacher was found, Larisa Borisovna Goncharenko, she decided to take a risk and took me. I liked absolutely everything about music school. I didn't have to study much there. I am a good listener and have always passed all dictations in solfeggio first.

So your parents didn’t even have to force you to study music?

How could you not? ( Smiles.) Exactly six months before graduation, they found out that I had not been going to music school for a year. All free time I spent in the House children's creativity, was studying pop music, participated in ensembles, moved from one group to another... In general, I did anything, just not to study. And by the age of thirteen I had risen to the point where I was invited to tour with the group “Tender May”.

What class were you in then?

In the seventh or eighth. I took responsibility and, on my mother’s behalf, wrote a statement addressed to the director: “I ask you to let my son go on tour with the group “Tender May” for a month.” I signed, took it and left.

I take it the parents didn't know about this?

I called my mother from Kerch.

And what did she tell you?

I was glad that I was found, alive and well. She knew how I had dreamed about this for a long time, and said that I was great.

The child is thirteen years old, he dropped out of school, moved to another city...

Yes. Now it sounds strange, but in the 90s for large family it was normal. Of course, if now my daughter doesn’t call me two hours after school ends, I’ll call everyone I know to find her. And then it was a different time. From the age of five I rode the subway and bus myself. I was very independent and celebrated my thirteenth birthday on the train when I went on my first tour.

What were these tours like?

This was probably the 35th cast of Tender May. To be precise, the group was called "White Roses". This is one of the variations on the theme of this whole huge Razin orphan company. Naturally, all the children sang in voices other than their own. But I always sang live. I really liked it all. This was the first and last global tour with this band. In my opinion, its director was imprisoned after those tours.

Were you paid well for your appearances?

These were box office concerts. If you collected money, you ate, but if you didn’t collect, you remained hungry. I remember one day I had no money at all, and one of the directors of the Philharmonic in Feodosia came up to me, gave me three rubles and said: “Go eat, son.”

After a month of touring, have you returned home?

Yes. And I even tried to go to school, but somehow it didn’t work out. My parents were worried, my mother went to school and argued with the director. But I was never able to study. Worked in different teams, recorded his songs in the studio, tried to somehow perform himself.

Do you regret now that you couldn’t force yourself to finish your studies then?

No. I didn’t regret it then and I don’t regret it now. But they call me to teach.

You do not want?

What have you been doing all this time?

For four years I was essentially “closed.” Somehow I did something. But there was no recognition, no songs. I now understand that some projects need to sit out or wait in order to be able to shoot on time. And then I was fifteen or sixteen years old, I was kicking my feet, rushing forward, accusing the producers of not doing anything... Now it’s nice for me to just record songs in the studio. And then I wanted everything to be the other way around, I wanted to perform on stage. I didn’t yet know what stadiums were... All this came with the Amega group.

Alexey, you were so looking forward to this success, did it turn your head?

Certainly! ( Smiling.) Those who say that they are not blown away by success are lying. This is colossal work, which is associated with enormous energy costs. We were paid one hundred dollars for the concert. Of course, there were a lot of concerts and a decent amount of money was collected, but... They appeared internal problems, and they were solved with the help of alcohol...

How did you deal with all this?

My wife saved me. Katya and I met just at the moment when the history of the Amega group had just ended and nothingness had begun. I was just wandering around and didn’t know what to do with myself. Then I came to Yuri Aizenshpis, and he said to me: “Lyosh, what are you doing? If you had come to me a week ago, I would have taken you. And so I just took a new boy, Dima Bilan.” Of course, he politely refused me.

Was it time for a rethink?

I once thought that the changes in my life were destructive. I just spoke to the president of some republic, flew on his personal plane, and then landed in Moscow and with a fee of fifty dollars I went on a minibus.

Alexey, how did you meet Katya?

At a party after the New Year. Everything was banal - no meetings and glances on the bridge. We just communicated more and more often, and then we could no longer be without each other. And my mother also greatly influenced our relationship. She liked Katya right away. And for the first time in my life I felt harmony, the hearth of a family in its embryonic state. Katya and I just felt that we were together, that’s all. Our wedding cost, in my opinion, five hundred dollars - at that time a decent amount for me. It included payment for a restaurant and a limousine. Although even this money I had to save for several months.

But your songs were performed by famous artists.

I have already written a real hit for “Nepara” “Cry and See”, several songs for Yulia Savicheva, Katya Lel and Alsou. By the way, once they paid me for three songs with an old car. I was in seventh heaven! I couldn't believe that I now had my own car. She was only eight or nine years old. I was happy.

Was it the car you used to get into an accident, in which you met Anya Pletnyova?

This happened on March 8, 2006. My wife and I arrived at the concert of the group “Guests from the Future,” I parked, backed up and drove into someone’s car. Anya was passing by at that moment and just saw me standing and worrying. And I really almost cried over my broken bumper when Anya jumped out of a passing car, practically grabbed me by the scruff of the neck and said: “Listen, I want to work with you.” I only found out later that it dawned on her like that. Her intuition is fantastic. And I stand and think about my own things. What job? What are you even talking about? I have a bumper, I have the first accident in my life. ( Smiling.) As a result, the car was repaired, and the Vintage group still exists. When you talk about it now, you can’t believe that 9 years have passed. We locked ourselves in the studio for six months, looking for a new sound, a “new” Anna Pletnyova, not the same as she was in the Lyceum group. And it took another six months for our first single “Mama Mia” to appear on the radio. There were moments when I heard the words “downed pilots” behind me and I gave up. The same thing happened with Anya. But together we were able to break through this wall. We were very lucky to meet each other at that stage. Anya is a person whom today I can call my friend and true partner. And we survived because we were together.

Photo: Irina Kaydalina

Alexey, does your wife have anything to do with music?

No, God forbid!

Should there be only one artist in a family?

It’s funny to me when a husband and wife sit together on makeup before a photo shoot or filming. “Oh, darling, look, isn’t my mascara running?” ( Laughs.) I think this is not normal. I’ll tell you honestly: I don’t really want to sit on makeup myself, but I have to do it, that’s my job. But a singing wife is a nightmare!

What does Katya do?

She is a bank employee, she has a modest position. I'm constantly trying to get her out of this job. He was even ready to open a beauty salon for her or kindergarten. Still, a woman must go to work. She needs to dress up and communicate with someone. But Katya doesn’t want to quit. This bothers us very much, because our holidays do not coincide, and besides, the children have holidays in different time.

How old are your daughters?

Mia is eleven, and Ariana is three and a half.

Are you probably spoiling them?

I turn on strict dad at certain moments when I can no longer endure it.

Is it possible to be strict with girls?

Yes, when their behavior is out of line. The only one Mia listens to is me. She is very headstrong among us, although she is an excellent student, thank God. But sometimes I feel that the same difficult age is approaching, as it once was for me.

Alexey, aren’t you afraid that your daughter, like you once, will decide to quit school?

She has good genetics - Mia is like her mother. Katya’s education is great. So I can be absolutely calm.

The Vintage vocalist had his first sex experience in pioneer camps

The other day, a new song from the Vintage group known for its sexual image, “Roman,” appeared in rotation on the radio. We couldn’t miss such a great opportunity to talk with the author of the music of the new hit and the band’s vocalist Alexei Romanov. True, the conversation turned not only about creativity, but also about personal life. Handsome Alexey is not too willing to talk about the most intimate things, but for Express Gazeta he made an exception.

History of creation new song very interesting. We wanted to record a trio with two famous singers. And then our soloist Anya Pletneva arrived from Switzerland, listened to the song and said: “I’ll sing alone!” - says Alexey. - Anya’s intuition is very important to me. Even our meeting with her was not accidental. We met during an accident right on the street. I had only been driving for three months and crashed into a Skoda. I was waiting for the traffic cops. And at that time Anya Pletneva was passing by. She saw me, got out of the car and immediately offered to work together. No, it had nothing to do with sudden passion. She, of course, knew who I was and wanted to do a joint project.

And then I accidentally saw it and thought: “Oh, Romanov, wonderful!” It’s just that sometimes you’re driving along the road and thinking about something, and suddenly you see that it’s lying around. Why not pick something...

Almost nothing is known about Alexey’s personal life. Therefore, we did not miss the opportunity to ask him some juicy questions. The conversation unexpectedly turned out to be frank.

The sexual image of “Vintage” is our worldview. In this way we express all our hidden and unhidden emotions. But not needs. People usually implement them before the age of 24. Then it starts adulthood and some games and fantasies. And this is much more interesting. The fantasy world is sometimes better than reality,” Alexey shared.

- When did you first start thinking about sex?

About 12-13 years old. But these were not pornographic or erotic fantasies, but just some pictures. My first sex experiences took place in pioneer camps. All these kisses in wooden houses... True, I didn’t like kissing at first. It was somehow incomprehensible and uncomfortable. But everyone did it, which means I had to do it too. And I had my first sex when I was 15. She was a little older than me, and we met in a group. This was not connected with first love, but simply came out as a matter of course. It turned out unusual and strange, because there was no physiological delight. I think at this age it is generally difficult to get full pleasure. Probably, for everyone this is just satisfaction of interest. And first love... Everything was quite banal.

I was already an artist, but the girl had nothing to do with show business. We dated for a year, which was quite a long time for me. And then I had a lot of novels at the time when I sang in the A-Mega group. This happened on tour and everywhere and always. Probably every week I had new girl. I think that they all wanted a long-term relationship, but with me then it was simply impossible, I was completely unprepared for it. And now sex without love is unrealistic for me. In the absence of any feelings, it brings enormous disappointment. Because you want, first of all, to satisfy yourself, but the person next to you is not particularly interesting. Well, perhaps only as a test subject or used. And then you feel only disgust.

- So, you gave up this life because you fell in love so much?

Yes, I met a girl at a party of mutual friends who became my wife. At the age of 25 I got married and we have been together for seven years. My daughter has now started first grade. I didn't plan all this in advance. It’s just that by that time everything had settled down in my head and I was tired of the wild life. I wanted stability, although when we were dating and even lived for a year, I hadn’t thought about it yet. But it was love at first sight. I am generally very amorous and still fall in love. But I can’t cheat on my wife.

-Who do you love?

I sincerely love Anya Pletneva. And she's probably in love with me. But our feelings with her are much deeper and higher than those based on sex.

- But on tour, fans are probably besieging you...

And I lock myself in my room and surf the Internet. The only thing we do is meet with fan clubs. These are, as a rule, teenagers who still know little about sex.

- But for them, I think, you are a sex symbol...

Yes, I'm not a sex symbol. I don't go to parties and I'm reserved and closed person. Most people don’t even know that I work in the Vintage group and that suits me. I enjoy the fact that I can go to the store and choose products in peace for two hours without signing autographs. So if a girl fan comes up to me and says “Alexey, I love you!”, I’ll just hug her. Fatherly...

But “Vintage” has a very strong image sexual group... I remember footage from the video “ Bad girl", in which Anya Pletneva hugs a naked male butt. By the way, was that butt yours, by any chance?

Shocking is part of the job and just a kind of performance. Just like that scandalous group has not yet appeared on our stage. It's always nice to break stereotypes. And yes, I admit: it was my butt that starred in the video. But Anya didn’t see anything. Everything was securely covered in front.

- I still envy her...

Come on, men are no different from each other. But I don’t think that we will again show a man’s butt in any video. Even mine. Let's come up with something new and more fascinating.

- Erotica or porn? Would you act in such a film as an experiment?

There is only one porn film that deserves my personal attention - this is "Caligula". But since then no one has decided to repeat the same story. And no one else could show sexual intercourse as beautifully as there. Not that I watch a lot of porn... By the way, in this moment I'm quite skeptical about it. For me it's some kind of zoo. And before, we tried on porn films for ourselves. But my only conclusion after such experiments is that these strange poses are very uncomfortable.

U Russian pop group“Vintage” was released fifth studio album Decameron. Alexey Romanov, the author of the hits “Eva, I loved you”, “Bad Girl”, “Loneliness of Love”, the producer and composer of the group told Lenta.ru about the secret of creating hits, pirate ratings, a new stage in the life of the group, the formation of a “Russian show business”, that “Pussy Riot” is not music, that the “Voice” project does not allow young artists to stay afloat, and that Zemfira can be used to judge the number of intellectuals in our country.

You have released a new record, how do you assess it - will it be a hit?

The new album of the group “Vintage” is called “Decameron”. It’s difficult for soloist Anya Pletneva and I, as creators, to evaluate it, but we are pleased with the performance: first place on iTunes. The disc went on sale in mid-October and has been available online since the end of July. Physical media has long been obsolete, since everyone has mp3 players, phones and computers. Unless someone wants a disc for their collection. And there are still such people.

But for many, it is still more convenient to download songs from pirated sites rather than buy them.

Of course. And not only in our country, as is commonly thought. Pirates are everywhere, only in some countries they are seriously addressing this problem, while in others they are not. But the album is also in first place on pirate sites.

But what about it? We're keeping an eye on everything.

Are there any trends in pop music right now?

Now no one is interested in the identity of the performer. People listen to music, choose something for themselves, save it on their phone or somewhere else, and they don’t care who does it or why. Like fast food. And this is normal, this is the way of life now. The days of superheroes are over. We see the fragments of history in the person of Rihanna or Lady Gaga, and everything else is DJs and absolutely faceless groups. There used to be Jim Morrison, Paul McCartney, Freddie Mercury, Michael Jackson, and everyone was Mickey Mouse, parading their whole lives. Each has its own character and its own manner. This is no longer the case. Now it is customary to release singles, they work from several months to six months: people dance to them, meet, fall in love, then they smoothly migrate to the storage rooms and ten years later they are released on retro compilations. And those who “get hooked” on this or that band already follow its news, songs, and concerts.

Which audience is hooked on you?

The Vintage group has amassed an army of fans in eight years. With every album comes a new generation of fans, and I don't mean age. If the album is dance, then 12-18 years old, and if “Decameron” - older audience, thinking people. It's nice that they go to Wikipedia after hearing unknown words. "Infanta", for example. I read a lot of reviews. Maybe what I say will sound somewhat arrogant, but we are doing a little bit of educating our contemporaries, especially younger generation, which, by and large, does not interest anything.

Why is the time of superheroes over?

The mass market is crowding out everything. Globalism. I can assume that this is why high fashion died. When Karl Lagerfeld finishes his show in Milan, a ship with patterns is already sailing to China. Whoever is faster is on horseback.

Are there big differences between our show business and Western show business?

The West is very different. America is the birthplace of show business. This is such a closed and divided market that no one - neither our European nor Chinese colleagues - can get there at any price. This is the same as if one of the ordinary Russian guys gets into The White house. That is, never. Everything is very clear there. If you are a young talented girl Stefani Germanotta, then they sign a lifetime contract with you, and you are on a permanent tour. You constantly perform, record new phonograms on the plane, sleep when you are injected, then they inject you again - and you go on stage, sing, then they inject you again so that you fall asleep, and so on. I'm exaggerating now, but in America show business is a machine. It's easier in Europe. There is no such thing there. And we have a tasty market even for European artists, many of whom want to get here, because the market is little developed and brings in a lot of money in terms of digital sales. Of course, it cannot be compared with America, everything is a hundred times more serious there, but nevertheless, I am pleased that our market is taking shape. Although not long ago “Russian show business” was a dirty word.

Image: provided by the press service of the Vintage group

Why do people kill like this in America?

There the amounts are a hundred times greater. They work in their own and global markets. Of course, Europe has them in to a lesser extent interested because America covers absolutely everything. It's impossible for us to get there. To Europe - maybe. Tatu just succeeded. They came out on ABC wearing “no war” T-shirts, it was a thing back then, and it was a PR stunt. Although they have a gold disc, I think. But this is an exception.

And Pussy Riot too.

But this is not music. Madonna recently said that she likes the music of Pussy Riot. But, I must admit, I don’t really believe it. Everyone was so supportive of them that she had no chance for a different opinion. I'm not talking about the human factor, I'm talking about music. They may be great guys, but the music is bad. This is not music at all. It is unlikely that they aspired to become musicians in the full sense.

So I believe that politics and music are categorically incompatible. You can break the wood in one direction or the other. Where politics begins, music ends.

What kind of music do you listen to?

There are no new names in my iTunes: Zemfira, Madonna, Alanis Morissette, Bjork, Tchaikovsky, Daft Punk, David Guetta, Depeche Mode, Elton John, George Michael, Lady Gaga, Leni Kravitz, Mariah Carey, Michael Jackson, Mylene Farmer, Pet Shop Boys, Rihanna, Sandra, Sting and so on. I was brought up on the music of Michel Cretu - the man who created Enigma, Arabesques, and invented Boney M. At the same time, I adore classical music, I draw a lot from Tchaikovsky. Of the latter, I liked the Belgian artist Stromae, the Australian singer Sia, who worked with David Guetta and has now released a multi-platinum album in Australia. I don't listen to everything, it's hard to get me hooked, but I love a rich melodic line.

Who among the Russians is interesting?

Zemfira. “Tattoo” tore the whole world and my brain, including a long time ago, in 2000. It’s hard for me to single out contemporary artists. I can rather name the producers: Maxim Fadeev, Konstantin Meladze, Potap, Alexey Ryzhov from Disco Crash. These are guys doing the same thing as us: they make music for our country. This is the backbone. In an age when there are no superheroes, producers are coming to the fore.

Only no one knows them, and on Saturdays they can easily go to Auchan - this is a huge plus. I would like one of the artists to surprise me, but this is not happening yet.

I do not pay attention to it. For me, everything connected with the show and the human factor is all “Star Factory”. How many performers are given a huge head start by these programs and then thrown out onto the street? Of all the participants in various TV shows, only Polina Gagarina is currently afloat. The Vintage group is categorically against participating in any shows: a circus on ice, stars in a zoo... I perfectly understand how popular they are, you can hit a good jackpot and gain publicity. But can we be popular only thanks to our music?

You have an unexpected position for the world of pop music...

And we also have alternative pop music. We have dedicated our entire lives to pop music, we like it very much, we have done a lot to improve its quality in our country. Pop music can be intellectual. There are plenty of examples. But everyone has stereotypes. Pop music is two stomps, three stomps, I love you, but you don’t love me, blood-carrots-love (in principle, there are no other rhymes). But rock is super-high-quality and intellectual. But in all segments there are exceptions.

Do you think Zemfira is pop or rock?

Zemfira is an element. This is a poet, our great contemporary. If it weren't for her, everything would look very sad. I love her very much, and I’m glad that she purposefully does not make commercial records, that she does exactly what she wants.

But her records are just selling.

Not like the first three. It’s one thing when the whole country has bought you up, it’s another when it’s just a fan club. But Zemfira has a very large fan club. From Zemfira we can now judge how many intellectuals there are in our country. You need to find out what sales her latest disc has - that's how much it is.

Name Alexey Romanov familiar to any person who has the slightest understanding of Russian rock music. Group Resurrection was and remains one of the recognized values ​​of the genre; in addition, Romanov played a leading role in a group no less popular in the Soviet Union NE. Despite the fact that Resurrection’s last studio work was released back in 2003, Romanov does not stop actively touring. And now a book of his poems is being published - as they have become popular songs, and unknown, but no less self-sufficient. On the eve of the presentation of the publication Sounds contacted Alexey and learned about the upcoming publication, the current state of the Resurrection and the musician’s favorite guitars.

Sounds: Many artists are now turning to crowdfunding on a regular basis, but you are using it for the first time, as far as I know. What are your impressions?
Alexei: To be honest, I haven't done much of it. It does Andrey Kharchenko, my friend and, part-time, an experienced producer who is trying to help me. He completed the entire process of preparing the book quite quickly. I didn't even expect it to work at all. But somehow everything worked out, and there will be a presentation on December 19th. In principle, it’s more important for me to play a concert, but Andrey considers it a presentation of the book. Following an old producer's habit, he decided to make a joke

Sounds: His initiative?
Alexei: Yes, he came up with everything, found a proofreader, sorted it all out while in London, brought in someone from Amsterdam... It feels, in general, that everything happened on its own.
Sounds: Did you take part in the preparation?
Alexei: I gave a selection of poems. And we also selected photographs, looked at the layout of the pages, I made small comments - I could confuse a word or write something incorrectly.
Sounds: What time period were the poems in the book?
Alexei: From the creation of the world to the present day.
Sounds: Are there any that were written a long time ago?
Alexei: Relatively recent... I don’t take this very seriously, if something happens, I’ll write it down. If I like it, I’ll remember that it’s there.

Sounds: Recently, in a series of books about Russian rock, an edition was published about you, written by Andrey Burlaka. Have you read this book?
Alexei: Burlaka and I have known each other for quite a long time - to be honest, I’m surprised that he didn’t contact me directly. I could give you the manuscript and let you proofread it. I didn’t see it, but those who read it told me that it was nonsense.

Sounds: What is the current state of your projects and the projects of the Resurrection musicians? Are there any live programs or studio work in the pipeline?
Alexei: We haven’t started anything special yet, I play free music, I have a concert version of a trio: accompanied by a bassist and a drummer. Recently I was invited to perform with Araks. The program is mainly composed of Antonov's songs, etc. The singer there is Anatoly Aleshin, which in itself is wonderful. They made seven songs with me, and I enjoy skating with them, because they are a professional team. Well, I have never performed so loudly before.

Sounds: Do you go to concerts of other performers? Something from the music you're in Lately impressed both the author and the listener?
Alexei: I constantly make some discoveries. True, for the most part, I fill in the gaps in classical music. Well, in jazz and blues. Of our artists, I am currently interested in Romario.
Sounds: This is from relatively young people, it turns out.
Alexei: Everything is relative. Artists grow old quickly, and then remain young for a long time. Regarding concerts: I go to concerts infrequently and quite casually, although I am constantly invited here and there. Either laziness, or something else... But it happens, yes.
Sounds: Judging by Facebook, you travel often. Is this a hobby, a subject of interest, something inspiring for you?
Alexei: And this, and that, and the third. We spent our entire conscious youth locked up. Now we have the opportunity to get visas for several years, and as soon as a spare penny appears, my wife and I try to sneak away somewhere.

Sounds: Do you think that cases similar to those that happened to rock musicians in pre-perestroika Soviet times - with you, for example - are real now?
Alexei: Not much has changed for me, to be honest. I still see that anyone can be captured and imprisoned for anything, even for hijacking spaceships.

Sounds: As far as I know, you collect guitars, tell me about the most valuable exhibit for you personally.
Alexei: Not that big. I got rid of some obvious junk... I have an amazing Martin Dreadnought D-42 hybrid model Peter Frampton. It was recreated based on his missing tour guitar. It's signed and has Frampton's autograph inside. And it is one of 70 copies produced, that is, it is a limited edition. I rarely wear it anywhere, but recently I took part in recording a couple of songs with it Gennady Ryabtsev (multi-instrumentalist and member Dynamics and groups Yuri Antonov, now Hieromonk Herman, regent male choir Valaam Monastery- approx. Sounds). It turned out that she sounds amazing on the microphone - I didn’t expect this from her. I play this guitar at home, practice and compose, but it has also proven itself great in combat conditions. The rest of the tools are inexpensive. There are favorites. Fender Bullet Deluxe '81, I take it to Araks concerts. In Resurrection I play a rather rare Gibson. It is not very expensive, but the model itself is interesting - with two cutouts and a small “head”.

Alexey Romanov: creative evening and presentation of the book of poems "All over again"
Moscow, Central house writers

You can't read or write in the bullpen. There you can only count the bugs and watch how they move sunbeams. And in solitary confinement, I embarked on my favorite eastern activities - meditated, rose above the floor, recalled my life in detail... I had romantic hopes that I would write something there, but nothing happened. By the way, in prison I had to undergo an examination for insanity - fate provided me with the opportunity to reject it. But on common sense I realized that a camp is better than a madhouse. Sooner or later they leave the camp, but never leave the madhouse. It settles inside a person.

Melik-Pashayev and some musicians left; Golutvin and others continued to wait for Romanov, prepared concert program“Seasons”, based on the poems of Yuri Levitansky and others famous poets. When recording the album, Romanov, who returned from prison (who sang and played bass guitar), was able to offer only one of his new song- “My joy hastens.”

In 1985, he became a participant in the “In the Same Rhythm” project organized by Melik-Pashayev. Vladimir Kuzmin also participated in the project; when Kuzmin leaves, bass guitarist Evgeny Kazantsev, who played with him, begins to accompany Romanov. Alexey played at a dance in Sokolniki in 1987, and at the same time worked at Perovsky’s “Leisure”: “It was necessary to get a job, otherwise you could get a criminal offense for parasitism. A wonderful opportunity arose to spend the winter and spring rehearsing with friends in the Von Meck mansion, several new things appeared, we still gave a couple of concerts, and then the state-owned Vermona burned down and we were fired. They categorically refused to perform “Apples in the Snow.”

Alexey Vorobyov - Alice Music: Romanov Alexey Dmitrievich Lyrics: Rakova Ekaterina Sergeevna, Kovalev Alexander Valerievich Director: Dmitry Zakharov.

In 1987, Romanov again reunited with Golutvin in the SV group, bringing Kazantsev there; On this occasion, the album “Return” is released. In 1990, after recording the only vinyl record SV “Soldier of the Universe” Romanov, Kazantsev, drummer Yuri Kitaev decide to perform new songs as a threesome and leave the group.

In 1991, Kazantsev was replaced by Andrei Sapunov, and a year later Kitaev was replaced by his son famous singer Andrey Kobzon. The trio gives concerts and takes part in the TV show “ Living water", which promoted the performance of music not accompanied by a soundtrack; Romanov sings there his song, close to punk rock, “My last love(nicknamed Death)." However, the trio managed to release the album “Seven Things” on a CD only in 1995, a year after the group “Resurrection” began to exist again. Vladimir Presnyakov Sr. and the last keyboard player SV Andrey also took part in the recording (as saxophonist)

Miansarov.

Romanov wrote the song “Bright Room” not based on his own poems, but on a poem by the poet Silver Age Mikhail Kuzmin. Six of Romanov’s songs were sung by the author himself and only one (“I have nothing to console you with”) by Sapunov.

Alexey Romanov remains the leader of Resurrection to this day.

Personal life

Alla Romanova - ex-wife, later the wife of Andrei Makarevich

Larisa Romanova - current wife, member of the group Los De Moscu

Discography

Group "Resurrection"

;Studio albums

• 1979-1980 - Resurrection 1 ( in 1993, a remastered double-disc re-release was released containing songs from the album “79” and recordings from 1980, also known as “Who’s to Blame? / Resurrection 79-80.” In 2002, a remastered version of the album “79” was released.)
• 1981 - Sunday 2 (a remastered re-release was released in 1992)
• 2001 - All over again (new songs + new recordings of songs from different years)
• 2003 - Taking your time

;Live albums

• 1994 - Concert. DK Mehtech (1982)
• 1995 - We love you - double, recording of a concert in the Rossiya Hall on June 16, 1994
• 1995 - More alive than all the living - recording of the concert in the Promotion club hall 03.28.95
• 1998 - Live Collection - recording from a concert on television
• 2000 - 50 for two - joint concert with the group Mashina Vremeni (20 years of the Resurrection group and 30 years of Mashina Vremeni) at the Olimpiysky sports complex
• 2003 - Taking Your Time Live - concert-premiere of the album “Not in a Hurry” at the Druzhba University Center on March 5, 2003
• 2005 - Look how I live - concert, published by Soyuz studio
• 2005 - I'm used to wandering alone - concert in Novokuznetsk, published by Soyuz studio

;Collections

• 1996 - Legends of Russian rock, “Resurrection”, issue 1
• 2002 - Legends of Russian rock, “Resurrection”, issue 2

Trio: Romanov - Sapunov - Kobzon

;Studio albums

• 1995 - 7 things

Solo creativity

;Studio albums

• 1994 - Sunlit Road

;Live albums

• 1994 - Acoustic concert (Alexey Romanov and Konstantin Nikolsky)

Group "SV"

;Studio albums

• 1983 - I'm happy
• 1984 - Moscow time
• 1987 - Return
• 1988 - Do your thing
• 1990 - Soldier of the Universe

;Live albums

• 1990 - Concert dedicated to the 10th anniversary of the Resurrection group
• 1991 - “Time Machine” - XX!