{"product_id":"ii-vinyl-lp-cd","title":"II – Vinyl LP\/CD","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e1. Verocai (Верокай) \/ 2. Tezeta featuring Petar Martic \/ 3. Motive I (Мотив I) \/ 4. Mirouze (Мируз) \/ 5. ES-2 Jazz (ЕС-2 Джаз) \/ 6. Lyric (Лирическая) \/ 7. Motive II (Мотив II) \/ 8. Business Partners (Партнеры по бизнесу) featuring Inturist \/ 9. Corrida (Коррида) \/ 10. Credit History (Кредитная история) \/ 11. Nascimento (Насименто)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eSOYUZ (СОЮЗ) stole our hearts back in 2022 when we released their album Force Of The Wind to critical acclaim. Here we proudly present the predecessor to that LP, the band’s sophomore long player from 2019 that was previously only available digitally. It captures a pivotal evolving period in the band's career, the recordings giving a snapshot of what would become their sound on Force Of The Wind, yet with echoes of avant-psychedelic-pop footprints from yester years.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eProduced at a time when band leader \u003cstrong\u003eAlex Chumak\u003c\/strong\u003e had moved from Minsk to Kyiv, torn between the need to try something new and the homesickness it brought about. Travelling back to Minsk almost weekly, Alex joined fellow band members \u003cstrong\u003eMikita Arlou\u003c\/strong\u003e and \u003cstrong\u003eStanislav Murashko\u003c\/strong\u003e to lay down II at Studio 42. The album captures these transient feelings, contextualised through the broad scope of influences the band were nourished by. From MPB to Ethio-Jazz and the Italian library soundtracks of \u003cstrong\u003ePiero Piccioni\u003c\/strong\u003e and \u003cstrong\u003ePiero Umiliani\u003c\/strong\u003e, the album shines with touches of joy from across the globe.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe opening track '\u003cstrong\u003eVerocai'\u003c\/strong\u003e is a tribute to the Brazilian maestro and 'Mirouze', whilst being named after a French favourite of the band, \u003cstrong\u003eJean-Pierre Mirouze\u003c\/strong\u003e, pays clear homage to \u003cstrong\u003eMilton Nascimento\u003c\/strong\u003e and \u003cstrong\u003eLô Borges\u003c\/strong\u003e. A ghostly sample and invisible connection to music made miles away in a different era that has influenced and become part of the band’s lives. This is further reinforced in the album's enchanting closer, the aptly titled 'Nascimento', another nod to the great Brazilian musician and singer. \u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThe beginnings of the cinematic, soul-laden jazz SOYUZ are now known for, are on display across the likes of ‘Lyric’ and 'Motive I'. The latter an orchestrated jazz instrumental with sensuous string sections, all of which were recorded on the warmth of a Studer reel-to-reel and waltzing Rhodes keys.\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eSOYUZ’s wide-ranging palate is further demonstrated in tracks like ‘Business Partners’ with its Krauty, kosmische, new wave production featuring Inturist, and the oh-too-short Anatolian-influenced interlude 'Corrida'. Elsewhere, 'Tezeta' and ‘ES-2 Jazz’ hint at the psychedelic haze of soul-funk, with the former featuring verses from Serbian rapper \u003cstrong\u003ePetar Martic\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eFor this new physical and digital release, the whole album was \u003cstrong\u003emixed from scratch by Ryan Power\u003c\/strong\u003e before \u003cstrong\u003eJoker\u003c\/strong\u003e worked his magic on the remaster. More excellence is to come from SOYUZ, but in the meantime, we are thrilled to present this essential recording from the band’s foundational years, mixed to a level that does it the justice it deserves.\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/videoseries?si=2MC8b6eEhrfAj5Ud\u0026amp;list=PLLVw0r1lOXGs7QIeHRHe29hm0cTABetzx\" height=\"315\" width=\"100%\" allowfullscreen=\"\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" frameborder=\"0\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"СОЮЗ (SOYUZ)","offers":[{"title":"Vinyl LP","offer_id":58738406293888,"sku":"MRBLP300","price":11.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"Limited Edition Gold Vinyl LP","offer_id":58738406326656,"sku":"MRBLP300G","price":10.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":58738406359424,"sku":"MRBCD300","price":6.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0972\/1384\/1792\/files\/Shoopifysquare.jpg?v=1787213605","url":"https:\/\/vinylvers.com\/products\/ii-vinyl-lp-cd","provider":"My Store","version":"1.0","type":"link"}