СОЮЗ (SOYUZ)
СОЮЗ (SOYUZ) is a creative collective originally from Minsk, Belarus, that was founded by multi-instrumentalists Alex Chumak, the band's composer and arranger, and Mikita Arlou. After moving to Warsaw, Poland in 2022, they were joined by drummer Albert Karch and guitarist Igor Wiśniewski. The name of the band is translated as “union”, which reflects the creative nature of the relationship between its members and their collaborators. While the recordings of SOYUZ feature a wider array of instruments, live performances are reimagined by the quartet. They include musical insights from all the performers and leave room for collective improvisation.
SOYUZ’ album “II”, released on Ukrainian label Masterskaya in 2019, explored and reimagined the legacy of jazz-oriented, mostly non-English-language pop music of the 20th century with a crave for musical freedom. For their third album “Force of the Wind”, released in 2022 by the UK-based label Mr Bongo, there is a stronger influence of Música popular Brasileira, building bridges from Brazil to present-day Belarus. It features guest performances by Kate NV and Sessa, on whose album “Estrela Acesa” Alex Chumak also arranged a number of tracks. “Force of the Wind” was selected as one of the best albums of 2022 by Bandcamp, was positively reviewed by KEXP and received airplay on BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 6, KEXP, FIP, NTS Radio, Worldwide FM.
“Force of the Wind” has been presented at various international festivals such as Primavera Sound in Spain, XJAZZ and Überjazz in Germany, OFF Festival in Poland, Bad Bonn Kilbi in Switzerland, ESNS and Wilde Weide in the Netherlands, as well as solo shows throughout Europe.
SOYUZ offered two releases in 2024, the first being a lush orchestral theme entitled “Spring has sprung”, the fruit of a collaboration with iconic Indian singer Asha Puthli and renowned Swedish composer Sven Wunder, recorded exclusively for the “Mr Bongo Record Club Vol.7” compilation. The second release, “Калі ты запытаеш (If You Ask)”, is a dreamy, blissed-out pop single with a ‘70s AOR touch. It features Biel Basile (O Terno, Sessa) on drums & Anthony Ferraro (Toro Y Moi, Astronauts, etc.) on synths and is accompanied by a music video shot by a Brazilian visual artist Gabriel Rolim.
The new album, recorded in São Paulo and Warsaw, is scheduled for release in the fall of 2025.