Obiymy Doschu – Vidrada (self-release, 2025)
Obiymy Doschu return with Vidrada, their third full-length album. A seven-year build brought melodic, song-oriented progressive rock. Yet, the record also features live strings, hints of jazz and pop, post-rock surge, and neoclassical music. On top of that, Ukrainian-language poetry provides the foundation.
The album title translates to joy, refuge, solace, apt for a work forged in Kyiv under the shadow of Russia’s invasion.
Track By Track
- Діти / Children (7:01)
Song-first and melody-led. Piano sets the pace, post-rock guitars dominate, and the vocals glow. Acoustic guitars add class. - На відстані / At Distance (5:08)
Electric piano and elegant electric guitars rise from restraint to a full-bodied wall of sound. - Буревій / Hurricane (5:34)
The record’s finest. A sharp, song-centric drive with splendid strings opens the lane for a proper electric guitar solo that actually says something. - Відрада / Refuge (6:26)
Piano and drums lay a patient foundation. The noticeable build arrives in waves. - Після війни / After The War (4:44)
A folk-rock edge leads into a confident progression. - Час / Time (5:29)
Begins with a great jazzy groove. The piano solo earns the spotlight. - Істини / Truths (8:57)
The lone misstep. An unfortunate turn toward prog metal with growled vocals that feels dated and saps the album’s sophistication. - Не опускати руки / Don’t Give Up (6:16)
A hooky, pop-leaning song with marvelous strings that serves as a graceful parting statement.
The writing leans closer to melodic post-rock than progressive rock. In my opinion, the band is very stingy with instrumental breaks. A few more passages for the band’s clearly gifted players would have been welcome.
Musicians: Volodymyr Agafonkin on vocals, acoustic guitar; Mykola Kryvonos on bass; Yaroslav Gladilin on drums; Olena Nesterovska on viola; Yevhenii Dubovyk on piano, keyboards; and Oleksii Perevodchyk on electric guitars.
Guest musicians include Kateryna Nesterovska on violin I; Anastasiia Shypak on violin II; Artem Zamkov on cello; Karina Sokolovska on backing vocals; Mariia Zhytnikova on backing vocals (1, 4); Andriy Tkachenko on extreme vocals (7); and Oleksiy Katruk on contributions to guitar parts.