PUSSY RIOT | LIVE REVIEW
The Globe, Cardiff, Fri 24 Aug
Russian punk band Pussy Riot aren’t really a band. In their own words, the group is more of a messy protest collective with a fluid number of members, for whom music is just one weapon in their struggle against Putin’s political regime (invading World Cup football pitches is another). Their current gig series, Riot Days, is also not really a gig series. There’s plenty of saxophone and droning electronica, but the show is less a discography runthrough and more a hybrid of documentary, surreal performance art and nightmarish cabaret.
After a delayed start and some rocky soundcheck problems, Pussy Riot arrive on stage as a masked quartet. Founding member Maria Alyokhina takes centre stage – her mere presence is a minor victory against the Russian state, after she was barred by the government from travelling to perform here. With the help of English subtitles and archive footage projected on the back of the stage, the group speak in Russian over industrial backing beats, painting a vivid picture in Alyokhina’s mistreatment as a protestor and eventually prisoner of the state.
The relentless spoken word shifts between tedious and hypnotic, climaxing with a simulated orgy that erupts in the middle of the stage. Moments later the band are lighting up cigarettes on stage and flinging water across the crowd in the darkness. Riot Days is ambitious and intense, but it’s an uneven experience, and not one suited for casual punters. The theatrics can’t help but pale in comparison to Alyokhina’s utterly compelling real-life story.
words and photos JASPER WILKINS