Aria (band)

• 1. Introduction

  ›

  Aria, or Ария in Russian, formed in Moscow in 1985 and became the first Soviet band to break heavy metal into mainstream media and commercial success. Before Aria, hard rock had existed in the Soviet underground, but no band had cracked the surface the way Aria would. What made a heavy metal band succeed where others had failed in a country with a state-controlled music industry? How did a group born in a rehearsal studio become the root of an entire family tree of Russian metal bands? And what happens when the voice everyone associates with a band walks out the door?

• 2. Founders and a Name

  ›

  Vladimir Holstinin and Alik Granovsky had already played together in the VIA Poyushchie Serdtsa, a group whose name translates to Singing Hearts, and before that in a band called Alpha. When Alpha dissolved, Holstinin brought Granovsky an idea: a heavy metal band. Granovsky agreed. The two then approached Victor Vekshtein, asking him to serve as manager and to open his studio to them. The vocalist position was filled by Valery Kipelov, who would go on to become the band's most recognizable voice.

  The name Aria was chosen because it was short, easy to remember, and could be transliterated cleanly into other alphabets. One account holds that Holstinin conceived the name because he owned a guitar made by the manufacturer of the same name. Both fans and band members came to be called 'ariytsi' in Russian, an informal term that translates as Aryans. In November 1986, the band released their second album, Who Are You With?, marking the beginning of a prolific run of studio work.

• 3. Iron Maiden of the East

  ›

  Aria's sound drew close enough to the New Wave of British Heavy Metal that journalists and fans nicknamed them the 'Russian Iron Maiden.' The comparison stuck. Public polls have placed Aria among the top ten most popular Russian rock bands, a position shaped in part by a distinctive lyrical approach. Rather than having band members write the words, Aria relied on professional poets. Margarita Pushkina and Alexander Yelin wrote the bulk of the band's lyrics, giving the songs a literary quality unusual in heavy metal anywhere.

  In August 1987, the band began work on what would become Hero of Asphalt, originally under the working title Serving the Forces of Evil. Hero of Asphalt is considered one of Aria's best albums. It was also their first to be released by Melodiya, the state music publishing monopoly, marking the moment a heavy metal band had entered the official Soviet cultural apparatus.

• 4. Tensions and Departures

  ›

  By October 1988, the band's relationship with their manager had reached a breaking point. Udalov left the band that month because of the conflict, and in November a replacement was brought in: Aleksandr Maniakin. The band regrouped and in 1989 released Playing With Fire, now managed by Yuriy Fishkin.

  In 1990, bassist Vitaly Dubinin and guitarist Sergey Mavrin briefly left to sign with a band called Lion Heart and traveled to Munich, only to return in August after finding a way to exit their contract. The band celebrated their five-year anniversary with live shows and then turned to their fifth album, Blood for Blood, released in 1991.

  The early 1990s brought a quieter period. Live shows became less frequent, and a 1994 tour of Germany ended badly. A dispute with the organizers strained relationships within the band itself. Kipelov stopped appearing at the studio where the rest of the band was recording. Within a month it emerged that he had been playing with Master, a separate band. In January 1995, Mavrin left as well, stating openly that he did not believe the band could succeed without his friend Kipelov. Sergey Terentyev stepped in first as a session musician and later became a permanent member. Kipelov returned only after the band faced sanctions from MOROZ Records for breaching their recording contract.

• 5. Kipelov's Exit and Aria's Reinvention

  ›

  In 2001, Aria headlined the NASHEstvie festival and performed with a symphonic orchestra, a show of ambition that suggested confidence in the band's standing. But the following year brought the biggest change in Aria's history. In November 2002, a new lineup was announced. Arthur Berkut, formerly of Autograph, came in as vocalist. Sergey Popov from Master joined as second guitarist. Maxim Udalov returned on drums.

  On the 5th of December, Aria released the single 'Coliseum,' followed by the album Baptism by Fire. Both 'Coliseum' and the title track reached number one on the rock charts. The release was commercially successful, though many fans argued that Berkut's voice simply did not match Aria's identity. The band pressed forward. Their 2006 album Armageddon, released by CD Maximum, introduced two new lyricists and marked Berkut's debut as a composer within the band.

• 6. The Aria Family

  ›

  Since the band's founding, several of Aria's members have left to form bands of their own, creating what became known as the 'Aria Family.' Master, formed by four former Aria members, is considered one of the most influential Russian metal bands. Kipelov formed his own band under his own name after departing in 2002, having remained with Aria for seventeen years.

  In November 2010, Berkut and Kipelov shared the same stage again for Aria's 25th anniversary. The event was called AriaFest, and concerts were held in Saint Petersburg, Moscow, and Ekaterinburg. Less than a year later, in 2011, the band announced that Berkut had been dismissed. No official reason was given, though reports circulated that the band was dissatisfied with his live performances. Mikhail Zhitnyakov took over as vocalist, and Aria released Phoenix that same year, followed by Live in the Studio the next. The album Through All Times appeared on the 25th of November 2014, and The Curse of the Seas followed on the 13th of November 2018.