So Jinjer's writing process is pretty unique, as others have mentioned. Typically, the boys write and record demos of songs to send to Tatiana. She then infamously procrastinates until deadlines are crushingly close, then in a flurry of absolute lyrical genius, interweaves melodies around and through their instrumentals, and writes the lyrics, sometimes in English, sometimes in Russian and then translates them to English. (And, as rare treats, just in Russian.) Ideally, they then workshop the songs with her melodies and lyrics included (likely adding complexity in parts where she doesn't sing, and removing it to avoid stepping on her in places where she does), but often she's so late they just have to wing it. Fortunately they're all _more_ than good enough to do that. (If you haven't done a true live performance yet, prepare to be completely dumbfounded at how good they sound live). One track on their most recent album, published just before the start of the war, "Wallflower", the titular track of the album "Wallflowers", is an introvert's anthem on one level, but on another, it's explicitly about the band hounding her for the lyrics and melodies as the deadlines loom, while all she wants to do is escape to her happy place. It's a really cool video, and an amazing song, though not "typical" of their sound, so not usually suggested to reactors very early on. I'd try to suggest other songs with deep meanings and superb writing, but honestly in their entire discography there's only one song I'd consider any less than incredible. Like many bands, the songs that are "meh" on first listen end up becoming the cherished favorites later on for many. That said, probably their most "important" song is "Home Back", a war protest song from their 2019 album "Macro". The "usual" song after Teacher, Teacher for reactors is Perennial: Live at Wacken (pronounced VAH-ken FYI), which I've seen suggested a number of times. It _is_ phenomenal, and an incredible feat of live performance, especially since it's the last song of their 30 minute daytime festival slot. Then, for those who want more live, and like it heavy, "Who Is Gonna Be The One" Live at Atlas Park is another fantastic one, and actually afaik, only exists live. Their musical journey in general terms ranges from punk rock early on, through metalcore in the mid-years, to jazz/prog/groove-metal fusion that's very much their own unique style, starting with Vlad in the Micro EP, also in 2019. Oh... he learned drums for a previous band who lost their drummer FYI. He was already friends with Roman and Eugene iirc, and when their prior drummer, Dmitriy Kim, decided the touring life wasn't for him (he's really a session drummer at heart), Vlad joined the band, to transformative effect, seriously maturing their sound. Not that I don't love most of the old stuff! It's awesome for different reasons. Jinjer is the real deal... excellence through hardship and desperation that makes them so much more real than bands that just get together to try to make cool music often seem. Ousted from their home state of Donetsk when the war started in 2014 with the annexation of Crimea, they hitchhiked and walked across the country toward Kyiv, playing for their supper with only the gear they could physically carry. Their original drummer from Donetsk was paralyzed when he 'fell' out of a second-storey window of a building they were squatting in. They'd literally set up to rehearse in sewers and underpasses and the like, and even filmed one video in such a place, guerilla-style, with no permits or anything. Tatiana is also a ridiculous natural talent, more akin to Freddy Mercury than the workhorse you assumed in your Pisces video. She only had a few professional singing lessons as a girl, and mostly self-taught by singing along to her favorite artists (one of whom is indeed Gwen Stefani). She smokes, she drinks, she doesn't eat right, she doesn't warm up or take care of her voice in any way, and she believes she won't be able to do it for very long... although according to every vocal coach ever, she's incorrect, and basically tripped and fell into healthy production of distorted vocals. If you want her polar opposite, and what it looks like when someone with her level of raw talent practices intensely and extensively basically from birth, check out Dimash, if you haven't. Tati is actually fairly agnostic about their style. At the time, Ukraine was heavy into metal, so it's how they earned their keep, but she's often said that if she ever left the band, or they ever decided to radically change styles, she'd be very happy with either jazz or reggae. Not surprisingly, as/if you work through their discography, you'll find a _ton_ of influence from both of those genres, and at this point in their career, I'd genuinely consider them prog/jazz fusion over a foundation of djenty groove metal more than anything else. Let me know if you'd like a few suggestions for their jazz or reggae-influenced songs. I don't want to spoil them if you're not specifically curious... but I've already mentioned one of them above. ;) Actually, two. One with a lounge jazz surprise, and one with a bossa nova twist. Ah, hell, make that three, another with a rock-solid blues section. xD Edit: One of your text inserts made me consider... the triplets and the frequent use of the bass to drive the song and counter-melodies instead of guitar, are a heavy funk influence as well. It's hard to categorize Jinjer. They're just Jinjer. They span many genres, feels, and influences, and yet always sound like them, old or new, heavy or introspective. They're all wonderful people, too... all very humble and hard-working. At the start of the current big push by Russia, Tati happened to be out of country, visiting her boyfriend in California, but Vlad, Roman, and Eugene were in Kyiv. They didn't hide away... they were out there, every day, helping deliver supplies, build and fortify bomb shelters, and keep spirits up. Somehow, from bomb shelters and bunkers, they even managed to record at least one all-new video (a drum playthrough), and put together another "multi-concert splice OMV" similar to Teacher, Teacher, during that time. Last year, President Zelensky explicitly ordered them to leave the country, reasoning that they could do more good as cultural ambassadors to the rest of the world, than three more bodies building bunkers. Of course they donated everything they could, including the profits of their merch line, to worthy causes in Ukraine. Not generic international ones, either... they targeted specific individuals and businesses, usually in the art/music/culture space, and donated directly to them, such as a community performance arts hall and concert venue that was destroyed by the bombing. Jinjer is a band you can be proud to call yourself a fan of... musically, culturally, personally, lyrically, they just absolutely kick ass, and are pumping new life into a genre that had honestly grown pretty stale in the decade from mid-00's to mid 10's.
A lot to read here and I got most of it (feeding my son in the middle of the night) but they are w very unique and authentic group. Teacher, Teacher is my favorite that I've heard of theirs so far just because of how the music (not necessarily the lyrics) moves me. The signature changes. The bridge and how they utilize the intensity of the bridge and putting it right after that intimate moment of the song. I REALLY enjoy what they are doing.
The crazy thing about Jinjer is all of the music is written and demoed before Tatiana starts writing the lyrics, she often waits until the actual day of recording to write the lyrics because she is, by her own admission, a procrastinator. Vlad also writes a lot of the guitar parts and actually wrote the majority of their last album Wallfowers. Great reaction and I hope to see more Jinjer on your channel!
I'd like to add that all of the music in this case doesn't include (from what I've interpreted from various interviews and other sources) the vocal arrangements. Along with the meaningful and often poetic lyrics Tatiana weaves in her own special kind of magic in a form of melodies, harmonies, different musical influences and cornucopia of expressivity and tonality. She often talks herself down while giving the boys all the credits for the music when she's actually integral part of their sound and vision.
As a complete full on metalhead I am so appreciative that it was a female who came along and turned metal on its head, truly recreating honest genuine metal into the modern landscape. Not since Pantera has a band reinvigorated the metal genre and taken it to completely new levels... and in my humble opinion Eugene has brought bass playing to a whole new stage of perfection... seriously, based on skills alone, he should be remembered up their with Burton/Trujillo/Claypool...a complete phenom with his fingers at his craft, equal to Michaelangelo or Raphael, pure art!
This is high praise. I think everyone in the band is really good and that they all feed off of each other. But yes, they definitely have changed the game and given metal a new genre in its own.
This one isn't necessarily about schools per se, but more about thinking for yourself and not letting influencers (be they teachers, celebrities, influencers...whatever - people in positions of authority) dictate to you how you should be living your life and what rules you should be following. You're right that she's using metaphors (in this case a strict Catholic school) to represent what she's getting at. Love the other recommendations here, especially with you being a musician. Vortex and I Speak Astronomy REALLY showcase their talents as a bad. And of course, Tati just does what Tati does :) Great reaction, look forward to more Jinjer!
On point shifty, the lyrics are not just schools but really anything that tries to control you and your thoughts. Funny that Tati’s family really wanted her to be a teacher when she was at University.
The algorithm brought me to you and I'm glad it did. You're analysis is very good. Detailed while not being boring and talking to your viewers and not talking at them or trying to talk over people's head just to stroke an ego. That's a fine line that many reactors cross. Subbed!
What you said about Vlad is mostly correct. He taught himself drums for the band he was in BEFORE Jinjer. He was a guitar player for that band but they hit a point where they couldn't find a drummer so he picked them up and they found a different guitarist.
@@mcflyjp but still he's a classically trained pianist. You can find at the band's channel videos where Vlad plays some Rakhmaninov on the piano and plays some Gojira and Panthera (I guess) on the guitar.
Jinjer - Vortex will blow you away. From their latest album, would be one of if not their best. Very technical, the drums have a real Jazz influence, the riffs are chunky, and the growl gets very low.
Open handed drummers are fun to watch! You’ll be hard pressed to find any jinjer songs that aren’t awesome. I still jam the older cuts just as much as new stuff. Good vid my dude!
If you haven't done them yet, I'd *highly* recommend Wallflower and Vortex. Wallflower for the incredible lyricism in it (and a great bass lead), and Vortex for the pure technical skill. They're both fantastic.
@@mcflyjp Good choice. Jinjer doesn't have a bad song, but they do have some that are better than good. Though, Teacher, Teacher! is still my favorite.
Awesome reaction, subbed. I would say this is one of my favorites, but usually I find with Jinjer the song I'm listening to at the time is my favorite. No two songs sound the same, except for the fact that you know it's Jinjer immediately. I would definitely suggest Vortex or Wallflower for OMV. FOR a taste of how Amazing they are live ,Perennial live at Wacken or Pit of consciousness live in Kiev. Still just the Tip of the iceberg, I think you'll really love these guys. Also they have some amazing playthroughs, you might consider doing a double or even triple feature. I know I'd be here for it. 🤘
As the channel grows, I may do some double and triple features (I also have a series coming up where I dive deep into bands and talk about what makes them great bands) and they could be part of those future videos!
Jinjer never disappoints. Most mental illness comes from people thinking they can be "whatever" they want and parents and teachers reinforce it. Peace, love and chicken grease
That’s not mental illness though. Depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, all those things don’t stem from thinking you can be “whatever you want”. It’s genetics, chemical imbalances in the brain, past traumas, a plethora of different things.
@@mcflyjp There are physiological issues - sure. I don't dispute that. Trauma is also real - I see that in my fellow vets. Perfectly healthy men and women reduced to an empty shell. Societal norms and traditions have been discarded and replaced - some good and some bad, few have remained. I am not a religious person, but it is hard to discount the "christian" values that our Country was founded on - rights as humans, not established by a law of men. There is good and bad in everything and it is our inherent right to think what we want and to abide by what we feel is best for us. I am very open-minded, but also quite inflammatory - sometimes on purpose to gauge reactions. Thank you for remaining reasonable.
this is probably my 2nd favorite Jinjer song my #1 being "who's gonna be the one" an older song and when heard live it is brutal in the best way possible.
@@mcflyjp the groove is awesome and vocals are brutal and to top it off the ending has an amy winehouse/ gwen steffani feel to it that i really like ( i am a big No Doubt fan )
Great reaction, liked and subbed. These guys hit hard. Sometimes deceptively simple, but when you try to play it, suddenly you notice how much granular detail there is, how integrally blended the instruments are (including Tatiana’s voice). Yeah it’s jazz and it’s hardcore but the composition also feels classical to me in its complexity. It’s the way the instruments mesh. It’s a hallmark of new model Jinjer. As a musician i strongly suggest you check out the individual musicians’ playthrough videos. All of them. And not just the guitar ones. The bass and drum ones too. There aren’t that many. You could probably watch them all in an hour. But you won’t want to. Each one is mind blowing bro. The level of musicianship in this band is off the charts. And what makes it all work is how well they work as a team. It’s absolutely 100% Ukrainian. When they set their collective minds on something, it’s gonna get done, and to a very high level of proficiency!
I definitely will check 9ut the playthroughs, as long as it's songs I've heard. Don't want to spoil anything. And I can see the composition and musicianship and the attention to detail and I want to see more.
The band is amazing from every angle' composition, lyrics, technical skills, performance, etc, i want to suggest you another song ( next on your favorites, probably) : song: pit of conciousness (live at Kiev)
@@mcflyjppit of consciousness live in Kyiv, my favourite band and favourite track - but all their songs are good. Outlander live is good -Ukraine metal awards 2014, though not live sound as there were issues on the day I believe. Another cool reaction.
@@mcflyjp it's not common but most Jinjer's songs have at least one live video which is better than OMV. Or not worse at least. Here're a few of their songs with an outstanding live performances: - Pit of Consciousness (live in Kyiv) - On The Top (live in Kyiv, the same show) - Perennial (live at Wacken) - Who's Gonna Be The One (live at Atlas) - Words Of Wisdom (live at Atlas, the same show) - Captain Clock (live at Resurrection, doubtful sound quality but astonishing Tatiana's performance) - Judgment & Punishment (Tatiana's one take vocal performances would be the best choice) - Vortex (live at Hellfest) - Cloud Factory (live in Kyiv) - Bad Water (live in Kyiv, the same show) It's a most common brief of Jinjer best live performances. There're other great lives of another songs at the different concerts. For example, they have live album recorded at Melbourn show, which have a bunch of great tracks (I'd point to Retrospection, Sit Stay Rollover and Teacher,Teacher, by the way).
Excellent reaction and analysis as usual! Glad you liked the track I hope it was what you were looking for. If you want some more stuff like this from them I recommend JINJER - Judgement (& Punishment) - Tatiana Shmayluk - One Take Vocal Performance which is very cleanly done as a studio one take similar to how the Pisces video was done, but focusing on Tatiana or JINJER - Vortex (Official Video) | Napalm Records which is one of their newer tracks. Also hope to get some Spiritbox reactions because I think you would really enjoy their stuff as well.
Spirit box is coming soon. I actually posted to my community page as to which spiritbox song to start out with. If you have any suggestions I’m all ears.
@@mcflyjp Spiritbox - Blessed Be (Official Music Video), Spiritbox - Rule Of Nines (Official Music Video) and Spiritbox - Constance (Official Music Video) then if you want to see the lead singer live one take Spiritbox - Circle With Me - Courtney LaPlante live one take performance or Spiritbox - Rule of Nines - Courtney LaPlante live one take performance
This is easily my favorite Jinjer song too. Such a bad ass song. Pisces is great, but it's not indicative of Jinjer. It's a great introduction, but it's not real Jinjer. This shows more of their Djent side. Really cool shit.
For time changes perhaps some Tool reactions are in order? Not sure if you're familiar with their discography, but they are their own genre practically.
There are all sorts of different Jinjer songs I want to point you towards for all sorts of reasons, you're not going to go wrong whatever you listen to next but I think, more than anything, I'd like to see you do "Ape" (pretty please)
@@mcflyjp this song resonates with your mention about jazz blended with metal. Ape oftenly considered as a metal jazz. But it's modern jazz. The song has more complicated structure than Teacher,Teacher. It's definitely more progressive.
@@glebivanov6323 much like Polyphia the chord progression was very simple throughout the entire song and didn’t change except for the interlude. What was fantastic was the stuff they were playing on top of it. The note choices the chord inversions, etc.
Tatiana Shmailyuk, lead singer of the Ukrainian progressive-metal band Jinjer, wrote this scathing number about religious hypocrites after a good friend - a fellow musician and Pisces - accused her of being immoral. The so-called friend took offense when Shmailyuk posed in lingerie on Instagram to promote a woman's small business. After receiving some perverted comments, the singer removed the post but, little did she know, the damage was done
Oh, fun bonus fact: Nobody in the band now is original. None of them have any idea what 'Jinjer' means, why it's spelled like that, or where it came from. It's just what they're called, and it's a cool, memorable name, so they stuck with it.
How is that possible? I'm not saying I don't believe you just that I need more context. Like the original five kept leaving and getting replaced and we are now on the "3rd replacement" of each band member?
@@mcflyjp Yeah, basically. Keep in mind, this is a warzone band. As I understand it, way back in the mid-00's, they were just like, an underground punk rock band, playing local bars and the like. They rotated through several rounds of members, partly just normal churn of non-established bands, part from the unrest in the area in the build-up to the initial invasion in 2014. I believe Roman was the first of the current line-up to join, and even when he joined, nobody was original. Actually... okay, lemme look it up to be sure. Okay yeah, so the original line-up when they had solidified their identity as a local punk-rock band, was Maksym Fatullaiev on vocals, Dmytro Oksen on rhythm guitar, Rostyslav Lobachov on lead guitar, Oleksiy Svynar on bass, and Vyacheslav Okhrimenko on drums. That group only ever had one EP released, that isn't even listed in Jinjer's catalog on streaming services. In 2010, the lead singer and lead guitarist quit the band. I believe the lead singer, Maksym, even said that _he_ wasn't the one who named the band. Not wanting to be done, the others recruited Roman and Tati in 2010. I don't think they even met the original singer or lead guitarist. Tati's vocal abilities started to nudge the band away from punk and into metal, and I think the drummer and bassist weren't into it, so they left as well in 2011. Enter Eugene Abdukhanov and Oleksandr Koziychuk in 2011, and they started getting serious. This is the lineup that Jinjer themselves (the current and famous band) consider the "original lineup": Tati, Roman, Eugene, Olek, and Oksen. From what I recall from interviews, Tati and Eugene, separately have said that they just never really talked about the name much in that time. They were more focused on trying to make a living as unknown musicians trying to claw their way into success. They released a new EP and started to get regional attention... and then the conflicts started in their area. The next couple of years were chaos, with them fleeing and playing their way across the country, during which Olek, the 'original drummer', fell out of a window and broke his back, becoming a paraplegic. (I believe he's since regained some functionality, but obviously he couldn't continue at the time) They did still have Dmytri Oksen on rhythm guitar, and got a temporary drummer for touring, Yevhen Mantulin, as they re-established themselves in Kyiv and recorded their first full album, Cloud Factory (self-published, later picked up by Napalm). At some point, they recruited Dmitri Kim, the drummer you can see in Sit, Stay, Roll Over and I Speak Astronomy, an excellent, if somewhat bland metal drummer, fully completing their transition into metal. As they got serious and started touring that album internationally, Dmytro left the band. I dunno why, probably didn't like the touring lifestyle. Kim finished the Cloud Factory tour, then recorded King of Everything with them, then left for the same reason to go back to being a studio drummer. At that point, Vlad, who was already friends with some of the band and had recently learned to play drums for his previous band, joined them and fully matured their sound into what it is today. So yeah... zero original members, nobody who's currently in the band ever even _met_ the founding members, and nobody who toured as they rose to prominence really knew the story of the name. By the time they questioned it, and started discussing other names, they were too far in, and it would've been too expensive in terms of renown to change names just as they were gaining popularity, so they kept it. I doubt the lineup will change again. Vlad and Eugene talk about how locked-in they are, how they feel like one person when they play, and how that kind of musical bond is rare and precious. I don't know much about Roman... afaik, he doesn't speak English, so Tati and Eugene do most of the media outreach for Western media... but my impression of him is as a very loyal person with tremendous work ethic and great humility, and I can't see him leaving either. Tati might... but I doubt it. She's an introvert, a procrastinator, and a creature of habit. None of those make dramatic changes very likely, heh. This odd history is also why they use so many backing tracks, even live. Two of their published albums were as a five-piece, and they don't have a second guitarist anymore, so they _have_ to pipe in Oksen's parts for those songs anyway... and once you're doing that, you may as well compose with some added ambient tracks as well, and some self-harmonizing, and voila. You have a four-piece with a gigantic sound that isn't afraid of playing to a click track with pro-tools add-ins. From what I understand, they also run the lights from the laptop next to Vlad on stage, or did at one point.
@@mcflyjp Oh, fun bonus facts: Dmytri Kim, the drummer with the long hair in a few videos, is still good friends with the band, and still involved with them. He works with them on their videos, and does some engineering and mastering for them, and even helps workshop songs sometimes. Dmytri Oksen is also still on good terms with them. If you do the OMV of "Disclosure" from Wallflowers, he's the bald intelligence operative interrogating Tatiana in the video.
My favorite songs make me uncomfortable the first time I listen to them, Jinjer does that to me a lot. Check out Vortex it’ll make that little spot in between your shoulders go crazy.
My favorite songs are the ones where I have to listen multiple times to catch everything that is going on. They have depth. But I totally get the uncomfortable feeling being a good thing too.
@@mcflyjp yes exactly, that’s why it’s uncomfortable you don’t know exactly what’s going on because it’s different and contains so much then after a few listens it’s just awesome. I’d really like to see a musical breakdown of Vortex in the future because they do soooo much in that song I still don’t understand half of it.
No, no, no... Vlad did not learn how to play drums for the band. Vlad was the drummer for the band Zlam before being invited to join Jinjer. Yes; he is a classically trained pianists but he plays several instruments and (obviously) has been playing drums for some time.
Yeah after a bunch of comments I get it now. (Obviously) he's very good. But skil doesn't ALWAYS correlate to time played. Usually does but some people are prodigy's or naturally good at certain instruments. But also I didn't go in and research the band. I learned my lesson on that.
@@mcflyjp The colors mostly. Not sure if it's everyone but when watching on the phone they basically blended into the background so I had to get real close to read.
Jinjer lyrics never have one layer. Yes, this is about religious schools, although I don't believe any of them actually attended one. But it's also about indoctrination in general, and not trusting leaders. Very Rage Against the Machine in theme and message.
Ah, man, you stll don`t know anything about Jinjer. They really have song structure, kind of... because they use it only to simply change the song the moment you think you know what will happen next. Almost every of their songs from is a rollercoaster. Only with a rollercoaster you know where to get out again. With Jinjer...? Well... Try out "I speak Astronomy" to get strange time signitures, try out "Vortex" to get your brains blown off, well, with "Ape" you get the same, "Wallflower" is a very deep song, then - actually, try any of their songs, people wiser than me already stated, that Jinjer is incapable to write a bad song.... 🤣🤘
@@mcflyjp Yes, I know and that means you know something about them! And you seem to be someone who knows what he`s talking about! 👍 The thing is: Jinjer keeps on surprising 🤣 So don`t you ever trust your instincts concerning them: They always find something to get past your defences and strike you unaware. So, no offence, you do a great job! 🤘
So Jinjer's writing process is pretty unique, as others have mentioned. Typically, the boys write and record demos of songs to send to Tatiana. She then infamously procrastinates until deadlines are crushingly close, then in a flurry of absolute lyrical genius, interweaves melodies around and through their instrumentals, and writes the lyrics, sometimes in English, sometimes in Russian and then translates them to English. (And, as rare treats, just in Russian.) Ideally, they then workshop the songs with her melodies and lyrics included (likely adding complexity in parts where she doesn't sing, and removing it to avoid stepping on her in places where she does), but often she's so late they just have to wing it.
Fortunately they're all _more_ than good enough to do that. (If you haven't done a true live performance yet, prepare to be completely dumbfounded at how good they sound live).
One track on their most recent album, published just before the start of the war, "Wallflower", the titular track of the album "Wallflowers", is an introvert's anthem on one level, but on another, it's explicitly about the band hounding her for the lyrics and melodies as the deadlines loom, while all she wants to do is escape to her happy place. It's a really cool video, and an amazing song, though not "typical" of their sound, so not usually suggested to reactors very early on.
I'd try to suggest other songs with deep meanings and superb writing, but honestly in their entire discography there's only one song I'd consider any less than incredible. Like many bands, the songs that are "meh" on first listen end up becoming the cherished favorites later on for many.
That said, probably their most "important" song is "Home Back", a war protest song from their 2019 album "Macro".
The "usual" song after Teacher, Teacher for reactors is Perennial: Live at Wacken (pronounced VAH-ken FYI), which I've seen suggested a number of times. It _is_ phenomenal, and an incredible feat of live performance, especially since it's the last song of their 30 minute daytime festival slot. Then, for those who want more live, and like it heavy, "Who Is Gonna Be The One" Live at Atlas Park is another fantastic one, and actually afaik, only exists live.
Their musical journey in general terms ranges from punk rock early on, through metalcore in the mid-years, to jazz/prog/groove-metal fusion that's very much their own unique style, starting with Vlad in the Micro EP, also in 2019.
Oh... he learned drums for a previous band who lost their drummer FYI. He was already friends with Roman and Eugene iirc, and when their prior drummer, Dmitriy Kim, decided the touring life wasn't for him (he's really a session drummer at heart), Vlad joined the band, to transformative effect, seriously maturing their sound. Not that I don't love most of the old stuff! It's awesome for different reasons.
Jinjer is the real deal... excellence through hardship and desperation that makes them so much more real than bands that just get together to try to make cool music often seem. Ousted from their home state of Donetsk when the war started in 2014 with the annexation of Crimea, they hitchhiked and walked across the country toward Kyiv, playing for their supper with only the gear they could physically carry. Their original drummer from Donetsk was paralyzed when he 'fell' out of a second-storey window of a building they were squatting in. They'd literally set up to rehearse in sewers and underpasses and the like, and even filmed one video in such a place, guerilla-style, with no permits or anything.
Tatiana is also a ridiculous natural talent, more akin to Freddy Mercury than the workhorse you assumed in your Pisces video. She only had a few professional singing lessons as a girl, and mostly self-taught by singing along to her favorite artists (one of whom is indeed Gwen Stefani). She smokes, she drinks, she doesn't eat right, she doesn't warm up or take care of her voice in any way, and she believes she won't be able to do it for very long... although according to every vocal coach ever, she's incorrect, and basically tripped and fell into healthy production of distorted vocals.
If you want her polar opposite, and what it looks like when someone with her level of raw talent practices intensely and extensively basically from birth, check out Dimash, if you haven't.
Tati is actually fairly agnostic about their style. At the time, Ukraine was heavy into metal, so it's how they earned their keep, but she's often said that if she ever left the band, or they ever decided to radically change styles, she'd be very happy with either jazz or reggae. Not surprisingly, as/if you work through their discography, you'll find a _ton_ of influence from both of those genres, and at this point in their career, I'd genuinely consider them prog/jazz fusion over a foundation of djenty groove metal more than anything else.
Let me know if you'd like a few suggestions for their jazz or reggae-influenced songs. I don't want to spoil them if you're not specifically curious... but I've already mentioned one of them above. ;) Actually, two. One with a lounge jazz surprise, and one with a bossa nova twist. Ah, hell, make that three, another with a rock-solid blues section. xD
Edit: One of your text inserts made me consider... the triplets and the frequent use of the bass to drive the song and counter-melodies instead of guitar, are a heavy funk influence as well. It's hard to categorize Jinjer. They're just Jinjer. They span many genres, feels, and influences, and yet always sound like them, old or new, heavy or introspective. They're all wonderful people, too... all very humble and hard-working. At the start of the current big push by Russia, Tati happened to be out of country, visiting her boyfriend in California, but Vlad, Roman, and Eugene were in Kyiv. They didn't hide away... they were out there, every day, helping deliver supplies, build and fortify bomb shelters, and keep spirits up. Somehow, from bomb shelters and bunkers, they even managed to record at least one all-new video (a drum playthrough), and put together another "multi-concert splice OMV" similar to Teacher, Teacher, during that time.
Last year, President Zelensky explicitly ordered them to leave the country, reasoning that they could do more good as cultural ambassadors to the rest of the world, than three more bodies building bunkers. Of course they donated everything they could, including the profits of their merch line, to worthy causes in Ukraine. Not generic international ones, either... they targeted specific individuals and businesses, usually in the art/music/culture space, and donated directly to them, such as a community performance arts hall and concert venue that was destroyed by the bombing.
Jinjer is a band you can be proud to call yourself a fan of... musically, culturally, personally, lyrically, they just absolutely kick ass, and are pumping new life into a genre that had honestly grown pretty stale in the decade from mid-00's to mid 10's.
A lot to read here and I got most of it (feeding my son in the middle of the night) but they are w very unique and authentic group.
Teacher, Teacher is my favorite that I've heard of theirs so far just because of how the music (not necessarily the lyrics) moves me. The signature changes. The bridge and how they utilize the intensity of the bridge and putting it right after that intimate moment of the song. I REALLY enjoy what they are doing.
The crazy thing about Jinjer is all of the music is written and demoed before Tatiana starts writing the lyrics, she often waits until the actual day of recording to write the lyrics because she is, by her own admission, a procrastinator. Vlad also writes a lot of the guitar parts and actually wrote the majority of their last album Wallfowers. Great reaction and I hope to see more Jinjer on your channel!
Thank you so much. There will definitely be more Jinjer as this band is slowly becoming one of my favorites.
I'd like to add that all of the music in this case doesn't include (from what I've interpreted from various interviews and other sources) the vocal arrangements. Along with the meaningful and often poetic lyrics Tatiana weaves in her own special kind of magic in a form of melodies, harmonies, different musical influences and cornucopia of expressivity and tonality. She often talks herself down while giving the boys all the credits for the music when she's actually integral part of their sound and vision.
As a complete full on metalhead I am so appreciative that it was a female who came along and turned metal on its head, truly recreating honest genuine metal into the modern landscape. Not since Pantera has a band reinvigorated the metal genre and taken it to completely new levels... and in my humble opinion Eugene has brought bass playing to a whole new stage of perfection... seriously, based on skills alone, he should be remembered up their with Burton/Trujillo/Claypool...a complete phenom with his fingers at his craft, equal to Michaelangelo or Raphael, pure art!
This is high praise. I think everyone in the band is really good and that they all feed off of each other.
But yes, they definitely have changed the game and given metal a new genre in its own.
This one isn't necessarily about schools per se, but more about thinking for yourself and not letting influencers (be they teachers, celebrities, influencers...whatever - people in positions of authority) dictate to you how you should be living your life and what rules you should be following. You're right that she's using metaphors (in this case a strict Catholic school) to represent what she's getting at.
Love the other recommendations here, especially with you being a musician. Vortex and I Speak Astronomy REALLY showcase their talents as a bad. And of course, Tati just does what Tati does :)
Great reaction, look forward to more Jinjer!
Thank you so much. Sometimes the metaphors get so deep that I take them literal. That all makes sense now that you point them out! Great message.
On point shifty, the lyrics are not just schools but really anything that tries to control you and your thoughts. Funny that Tati’s family really wanted her to be a teacher when she was at University.
Great reaction to Jinjer.. Also I recommend you to to check Home back by Jinjer... You will be surprised how good they are... 🤘❤️
I'll make sure to make note of this.
The algorithm brought me to you and I'm glad it did. You're analysis is very good. Detailed while not being boring and talking to your viewers and not talking at them or trying to talk over people's head just to stroke an ego. That's a fine line that many reactors cross. Subbed!
Oh wow thank you for that kind words! My goal is not to flex a knowledge muscle but hopefully give people a different perspective on music.
What you said about Vlad is mostly correct. He taught himself drums for the band he was in BEFORE Jinjer. He was a guitar player for that band but they hit a point where they couldn't find a drummer so he picked them up and they found a different guitarist.
Gotcha, still amazing! Especially with how good he is!
@@mcflyjp but still he's a classically trained pianist. You can find at the band's channel videos where Vlad plays some Rakhmaninov on the piano and plays some Gojira and Panthera (I guess) on the guitar.
Jinjer - Vortex will blow you away.
From their latest album, would be one of if not their best.
Very technical, the drums have a real Jazz influence, the riffs are chunky, and the growl gets very low.
Vortex has gotten a lot of requests so definitely added that to the list.
I cry everytime i hear the line Disgrace, I smile to you... I /like/ it... Like you do ... But Goddess it tears at me
It's a very sad topic! But the way they out it to music is so good.
Open handed drummers are fun to watch! You’ll be hard pressed to find any jinjer songs that aren’t awesome. I still jam the older cuts just as much as new stuff. Good vid my dude!
Jinjer's time signature changes never throw one off, you can always bang your head on the 8th notes
The sign of a good band if the audience can't miss a beat.
If you haven't done them yet, I'd *highly* recommend Wallflower and Vortex. Wallflower for the incredible lyricism in it (and a great bass lead), and Vortex for the pure technical skill. They're both fantastic.
Vortex was the most requested in the comments. So probably doing that one next.
@@mcflyjp Good choice. Jinjer doesn't have a bad song, but they do have some that are better than good. Though, Teacher, Teacher! is still my favorite.
I love how you go into what they are doing musically, not many reactors that I've personally seen go in as deep of detail as you do.
As a musician (guitarist for 16 years. 20 if you count me being off and on) I can't _not_ dive into the music. It's engrained in me.
Awesome reaction, subbed.
I would say this is one of my favorites, but usually I find with Jinjer the song I'm listening to at the time is my favorite.
No two songs sound the same, except for the fact that you know it's Jinjer immediately.
I would definitely suggest Vortex or Wallflower for OMV. FOR a taste of how Amazing they are live ,Perennial live at Wacken or Pit of consciousness live in Kiev.
Still just the Tip of the iceberg, I think you'll really love these guys.
Also they have some amazing playthroughs, you might consider doing a double or even triple feature.
I know I'd be here for it. 🤘
As the channel grows, I may do some double and triple features (I also have a series coming up where I dive deep into bands and talk about what makes them great bands) and they could be part of those future videos!
Love it! For time signature changes, give Home Back a listen. Still melts my brain. 🙌🏻
Ohh brain melters from time signature changes are my favorite.
The smooth 7/8 section melts my brain
Jinjer never disappoints.
Most mental illness comes from people thinking they can be "whatever" they want and parents and teachers reinforce it.
Peace, love and chicken grease
That’s not mental illness though. Depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, all those things don’t stem from thinking you can be “whatever you want”.
It’s genetics, chemical imbalances in the brain, past traumas, a plethora of different things.
@@mcflyjp There are physiological issues - sure. I don't dispute that. Trauma is also real - I see that in my fellow vets. Perfectly healthy men and women reduced to an empty shell.
Societal norms and traditions have been discarded and replaced - some good and some bad, few have remained. I am not a religious person, but it is hard to discount the "christian" values that our Country was founded on - rights as humans, not established by a law of men.
There is good and bad in everything and it is our inherent right to think what we want and to abide by what we feel is best for us.
I am very open-minded, but also quite inflammatory - sometimes on purpose to gauge reactions.
Thank you for remaining reasonable.
this is probably my 2nd favorite Jinjer song my #1 being "who's gonna be the one" an older song and when heard live it is brutal in the best way possible.
That's awesome. Can I ask what about it makes it your favorite?
@@mcflyjp the groove is awesome and vocals are brutal and to top it off the ending has an amy winehouse/ gwen steffani feel to it that i really like ( i am a big No Doubt fan )
I Speak Astronomy and Sit Stay Roll Over are another two song I think you would like.
Looks like yet another Rabbit hole to go down! I'm excited for it.
Great reaction, liked and subbed. These guys hit hard. Sometimes deceptively simple, but when you try to play it, suddenly you notice how much granular detail there is, how integrally blended the instruments are (including Tatiana’s voice). Yeah it’s jazz and it’s hardcore but the composition also feels classical to me in its complexity. It’s the way the instruments mesh. It’s a hallmark of new model Jinjer.
As a musician i strongly suggest you check out the individual musicians’ playthrough videos. All of them. And not just the guitar ones. The bass and drum ones too. There aren’t that many. You could probably watch them all in an hour. But you won’t want to. Each one is mind blowing bro. The level of musicianship in this band is off the charts. And what makes it all work is how well they work as a team. It’s absolutely 100% Ukrainian. When they set their collective minds on something, it’s gonna get done, and to a very high level of proficiency!
I definitely will check 9ut the playthroughs, as long as it's songs I've heard. Don't want to spoil anything. And I can see the composition and musicianship and the attention to detail and I want to see more.
The band is amazing from every angle' composition, lyrics, technical skills, performance, etc, i want to suggest you another song ( next on your favorites, probably) : song: pit of conciousness (live at Kiev)
Already on my list and I definitely see how great the band is from composition,to technicality, performance, etc.
I love also the dissonances they do with the guitar riffs... it's a big thing in their sound, where you can recognize this band...
Definitely a pretty unique sound.
This is a compilation of more than one concert though all recorded live.
The music isn't live recording I'm assuming. Just the video.
Great reaction and breakdown 👍🤘
You might want to check out, Outlander. A personal favorite of mine 😉
I'll add that one to the list. Are there any of their songs that I should watch Live instead of recording?
Perennial, live at Wacken is also one to check out 🔥🔥
@@mcflyjppit of consciousness live in Kyiv, my favourite band and favourite track - but all their songs are good. Outlander live is good -Ukraine metal awards 2014, though not live sound as there were issues on the day I believe. Another cool reaction.
@@mcflyjp it's not common but most Jinjer's songs have at least one live video which is better than OMV. Or not worse at least.
Here're a few of their songs with an outstanding live performances:
- Pit of Consciousness (live in Kyiv)
- On The Top (live in Kyiv, the same show)
- Perennial (live at Wacken)
- Who's Gonna Be The One (live at Atlas)
- Words Of Wisdom (live at Atlas, the same show)
- Captain Clock (live at Resurrection, doubtful sound quality but astonishing Tatiana's performance)
- Judgment & Punishment (Tatiana's one take vocal performances would be the best choice)
- Vortex (live at Hellfest)
- Cloud Factory (live in Kyiv)
- Bad Water (live in Kyiv, the same show)
It's a most common brief of Jinjer best live performances. There're other great lives of another songs at the different concerts. For example, they have live album recorded at Melbourn show, which have a bunch of great tracks (I'd point to Retrospection, Sit Stay Rollover and Teacher,Teacher, by the way).
Excellent reaction and analysis as usual! Glad you liked the track I hope it was what you were looking for. If you want some more stuff like this from them I recommend JINJER - Judgement (& Punishment) - Tatiana Shmayluk - One Take Vocal Performance which is very cleanly done as a studio one take similar to how the Pisces video was done, but focusing on Tatiana or JINJER - Vortex (Official Video) | Napalm Records which is one of their newer tracks. Also hope to get some Spiritbox reactions because I think you would really enjoy their stuff as well.
Spirit box is coming soon. I actually posted to my community page as to which spiritbox song to start out with. If you have any suggestions I’m all ears.
@@mcflyjp Spiritbox - Blessed Be (Official Music Video), Spiritbox - Rule Of Nines (Official Music Video) and Spiritbox - Constance (Official Music Video) then if you want to see the lead singer live one take Spiritbox - Circle With Me - Courtney LaPlante live one take performance or Spiritbox - Rule of Nines - Courtney LaPlante live one take performance
@@KuruptKrn thanks for this. I got it! Spiritbox reaction soon.
One of the best
This is easily my favorite Jinjer song too. Such a bad ass song. Pisces is great, but it's not indicative of Jinjer. It's a great introduction, but it's not real Jinjer. This shows more of their Djent side. Really cool shit.
Yeah I want to get into them much more! This song is really awesome though!
If you like time signature changes then tool is for you as well
Definitely love me some tool!
Imma insist mate, you should react to the band McFLY and their brand 2 new songs: "Where did all the guitars go?" and "God of Rock n Roll"
Hmmmm I feel like this is so meta It needs to happen.
For time changes perhaps some Tool reactions are in order? Not sure if you're familiar with their discography, but they are their own genre practically.
Definitely familiar with tool. But I honestly don't know more than two songs of theirs.
There are all sorts of different Jinjer songs I want to point you towards for all sorts of reasons, you're not going to go wrong whatever you listen to next but I think, more than anything, I'd like to see you do "Ape" (pretty please)
Actually one I haven't heard suggested yet. I will add it to the list.
@@mcflyjp It's like the most perfectly brutal jazz assault imaginable 😆
@@mcflyjp this song resonates with your mention about jazz blended with metal. Ape oftenly considered as a metal jazz. But it's modern jazz. The song has more complicated structure than Teacher,Teacher. It's definitely more progressive.
@@glebivanov6323 much like Polyphia the chord progression was very simple throughout the entire song and didn’t change except for the interlude. What was fantastic was the stuff they were playing on top of it. The note choices the chord inversions, etc.
Finally a reviewer that really understands music. Subbing
That's big praise. Thank you so much for that!
Hope you react to Vortex!
Most likely will be my next Jinjer Reaction! 😁
Tatiana Shmailyuk, lead singer of the Ukrainian progressive-metal band Jinjer, wrote this scathing number about religious hypocrites after a good friend - a fellow musician and Pisces - accused her of being immoral. The so-called friend took offense when Shmailyuk posed in lingerie on Instagram to promote a woman's small business. After receiving some perverted comments, the singer removed the post but, little did she know, the damage was done
Weird world we live in I tell ya. The human species can't seem to get to it if their own way.
Try Pit of Consciousness Live in Kiev.
Got many requests for this so it will be soon
Oh, fun bonus fact:
Nobody in the band now is original. None of them have any idea what 'Jinjer' means, why it's spelled like that, or where it came from. It's just what they're called, and it's a cool, memorable name, so they stuck with it.
How is that possible? I'm not saying I don't believe you just that I need more context. Like the original five kept leaving and getting replaced and we are now on the "3rd replacement" of each band member?
@@mcflyjp Yeah, basically. Keep in mind, this is a warzone band.
As I understand it, way back in the mid-00's, they were just like, an underground punk rock band, playing local bars and the like. They rotated through several rounds of members, partly just normal churn of non-established bands, part from the unrest in the area in the build-up to the initial invasion in 2014.
I believe Roman was the first of the current line-up to join, and even when he joined, nobody was original. Actually... okay, lemme look it up to be sure.
Okay yeah, so the original line-up when they had solidified their identity as a local punk-rock band, was Maksym Fatullaiev on vocals, Dmytro Oksen on rhythm guitar, Rostyslav Lobachov on lead guitar, Oleksiy Svynar on bass, and Vyacheslav Okhrimenko on drums. That group only ever had one EP released, that isn't even listed in Jinjer's catalog on streaming services.
In 2010, the lead singer and lead guitarist quit the band. I believe the lead singer, Maksym, even said that _he_ wasn't the one who named the band.
Not wanting to be done, the others recruited Roman and Tati in 2010. I don't think they even met the original singer or lead guitarist. Tati's vocal abilities started to nudge the band away from punk and into metal, and I think the drummer and bassist weren't into it, so they left as well in 2011.
Enter Eugene Abdukhanov and Oleksandr Koziychuk in 2011, and they started getting serious. This is the lineup that Jinjer themselves (the current and famous band) consider the "original lineup": Tati, Roman, Eugene, Olek, and Oksen.
From what I recall from interviews, Tati and Eugene, separately have said that they just never really talked about the name much in that time. They were more focused on trying to make a living as unknown musicians trying to claw their way into success. They released a new EP and started to get regional attention... and then the conflicts started in their area.
The next couple of years were chaos, with them fleeing and playing their way across the country, during which Olek, the 'original drummer', fell out of a window and broke his back, becoming a paraplegic. (I believe he's since regained some functionality, but obviously he couldn't continue at the time)
They did still have Dmytri Oksen on rhythm guitar, and got a temporary drummer for touring, Yevhen Mantulin, as they re-established themselves in Kyiv and recorded their first full album, Cloud Factory (self-published, later picked up by Napalm).
At some point, they recruited Dmitri Kim, the drummer you can see in Sit, Stay, Roll Over and I Speak Astronomy, an excellent, if somewhat bland metal drummer, fully completing their transition into metal.
As they got serious and started touring that album internationally, Dmytro left the band. I dunno why, probably didn't like the touring lifestyle. Kim finished the Cloud Factory tour, then recorded King of Everything with them, then left for the same reason to go back to being a studio drummer. At that point, Vlad, who was already friends with some of the band and had recently learned to play drums for his previous band, joined them and fully matured their sound into what it is today.
So yeah... zero original members, nobody who's currently in the band ever even _met_ the founding members, and nobody who toured as they rose to prominence really knew the story of the name. By the time they questioned it, and started discussing other names, they were too far in, and it would've been too expensive in terms of renown to change names just as they were gaining popularity, so they kept it.
I doubt the lineup will change again. Vlad and Eugene talk about how locked-in they are, how they feel like one person when they play, and how that kind of musical bond is rare and precious.
I don't know much about Roman... afaik, he doesn't speak English, so Tati and Eugene do most of the media outreach for Western media... but my impression of him is as a very loyal person with tremendous work ethic and great humility, and I can't see him leaving either. Tati might... but I doubt it. She's an introvert, a procrastinator, and a creature of habit. None of those make dramatic changes very likely, heh.
This odd history is also why they use so many backing tracks, even live. Two of their published albums were as a five-piece, and they don't have a second guitarist anymore, so they _have_ to pipe in Oksen's parts for those songs anyway... and once you're doing that, you may as well compose with some added ambient tracks as well, and some self-harmonizing, and voila. You have a four-piece with a gigantic sound that isn't afraid of playing to a click track with pro-tools add-ins. From what I understand, they also run the lights from the laptop next to Vlad on stage, or did at one point.
@@mcflyjp Oh, fun bonus facts:
Dmytri Kim, the drummer with the long hair in a few videos, is still good friends with the band, and still involved with them. He works with them on their videos, and does some engineering and mastering for them, and even helps workshop songs sometimes.
Dmytri Oksen is also still on good terms with them. If you do the OMV of "Disclosure" from Wallflowers, he's the bald intelligence operative interrogating Tatiana in the video.
That's really interesting. Sometimes people realize touring is not for them. But glad he was able to continue to be a part of the band!
I think you will really enjoy Vortex OMV and Pit of Consciousness live in Kiev
Both of these have got a lot of requests so definitely adding to the list.
My favorite songs make me uncomfortable the first time I listen to them, Jinjer does that to me a lot. Check out Vortex it’ll make that little spot in between your shoulders go crazy.
My favorite songs are the ones where I have to listen multiple times to catch everything that is going on. They have depth. But I totally get the uncomfortable feeling being a good thing too.
@@mcflyjp yes exactly, that’s why it’s uncomfortable you don’t know exactly what’s going on because it’s different and contains so much then after a few listens it’s just awesome. I’d really like to see a musical breakdown of Vortex in the future because they do soooo much in that song I still don’t understand half of it.
Definitely about catholic school abuse.
"I smile to you because I want you to see how I break the rules in front of your Trinity"
That's how I took it. Got different explanations in comments. But that's music. It can be interpreted different ways.
No, no, no... Vlad did not learn how to play drums for the band. Vlad was the drummer for the band Zlam before being invited to join Jinjer. Yes; he is a classically trained pianists but he plays several instruments and (obviously) has been playing drums for some time.
Yeah after a bunch of comments I get it now. (Obviously) he's very good. But skil doesn't ALWAYS correlate to time played. Usually does but some people are prodigy's or naturally good at certain instruments.
But also I didn't go in and research the band. I learned my lesson on that.
First time watching your channel. I like the reaction and the popup text comments but one comment, the text was very hard to read.
Thanks for letting me know. Was it too small or the colors?
@@mcflyjp The colors mostly. Not sure if it's everyone but when watching on the phone they basically blended into the background so I had to get real close to read.
@@jpric155 alright I'll make note of it and try to find easier colors to read. Thanks.
Jinjer lyrics never have one layer. Yes, this is about religious schools, although I don't believe any of them actually attended one. But it's also about indoctrination in general, and not trusting leaders. Very Rage Against the Machine in theme and message.
I get that. To be fair, Teachers are the leaders or rulers of the classroom.
Ah, man, you stll don`t know anything about Jinjer. They really have song structure, kind of... because they use it only to simply change the song the moment you think you know what will happen next. Almost every of their songs from is a rollercoaster. Only with a rollercoaster you know where to get out again. With Jinjer...? Well...
Try out "I speak Astronomy" to get strange time signitures, try out "Vortex" to get your brains blown off, well, with "Ape" you get the same, "Wallflower" is a very deep song, then - actually, try any of their songs, people wiser than me already stated, that Jinjer is incapable to write a bad song.... 🤣🤘
I wouldn't say I don't know anything. I mentioned their composition " song structure" in the video. But I want to know more for sure
@@mcflyjp Yes, I know and that means you know something about them! And you seem to be someone who knows what he`s talking about! 👍
The thing is: Jinjer keeps on surprising 🤣 So don`t you ever trust your instincts concerning them:
They always find something to get past your defences and strike you unaware.
So, no offence, you do a great job! 🤘
@@bernhardkulzer9125 no offense taken. I know there are lots of surprises awaiting me with this band.