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Cult Austrian Soviet-nostalgia band Russkaja breaks up over safety fears

Cult Austrian ska-punk band Russkaja, surfing Soviet nostalgia in Vienna for two decades, announced its break-up Saturday over safety fears following the Ukraine war.

Published: 5 February 2023 11:10 CET

singer and co-founder of Soviet nostalgia ska-punk band Russkaja, Georgij Makazaria performing with the band

This file photo from April 2022 shows singer and co-founder of Soviet nostalgia ska-punk band Russkaja, Georgij Makazaria (C) performing with the band at a concert in Kapfenberg, Austria. On Saturday, the band said it was breaking up over safety fears following the Ukraine war. Photo: Alex HALADA / AFP

Russkaja includes six men and one woman and started in Vienna 18 years ago.

The band enjoyed great success in the United States with its blend of “Russian Turbo Polka Metal”.

“Presented as pro-Russian despite our condemnation” of the invasion of Ukraine, “our group Russkaja has become a daily target on the Internet”, the seven-member band, which includes a Russian and Ukrainian, said on Facebook.

“The Soviet imagery is forever damaged” and “the war in Ukraine that Russia started on February 24, 2022 no longer allows us to use it satirically,” Russkaja wrote.

“And then we fear for the safety of our team and we don’t want anything serious to happen during a show.”

At first, the band — one of whose tag lines is “peace, love and Russian roll” — had decided to continue performing while clearly showing its support for Kyiv.

The bassist Dimitrij Miller is Ukrainian.

But its logo is in the shape of a red star, its lead singer from Moscow and some of its lyrics such as “the Russians have landed” had to be rewritten.

Signs of hostility have multiplied and “no one in this group wants to represent anymore something which, in a time like ours, is exclusively associated with war, death, crime and bloodshed”, Russkaja added.

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EXPLAINED: How will Austria's new 'federal museum card' work?

While visiting a museum can be extremely cheap or even free in some countries, Austria has some expensive exhibitions. Some of the country’s best museums, such as the National History or the Albertina, for example, cost almost €20.

It becomes more affordable if you buy yearly tickets, which are often worth it from the third visit on, but it does limit the number of times Austrians go to museums — or at least the variety of the visits — if you buy one or two yearly tickets.

With that in mind, Austria’s federal government introduced a new “Federal Museum Card” this week, which will allow the holder unlimited visits without restriction to all federal museums making cultural exploration more affordable and accessible.

READ ALSO: One day in Vienna – How to spend 24 hours in the Austrian capital

How much will it cost and how can I buy it?

According to the Austrian Secretary for Culture, the federal museum card (Bundesmuseencard) will be sold for €99 a year. It will be valid from July 1st when anyone can buy them online or in the participating museums.

For comparison, a yearly ticket for Mumok Museum costs €22, while for Albertina, it costs €78.

Isn’t there something similar already in Austria?

Sort of. There was a previous federal museum card sold since 2018, but this only offered one admission to each museum for €66 a year. In 2023, 7,700 of these cards were sold, Der Standard reported.

The new card is a significant upgrade from its predecessor. State Secretary for Culture Andrea Mayer (Greens) described it as a “genuine yearly ticket”, offering unlimited access to all federal museums, a stark contrast to the previous card which only allowed one admission to each museum.

The older version will be phased out as cards expire.

READ ALSO: Eight unique Austrian museums you need to visit

Which museums are included?

You can visit all the federal museums in Vienna with the card: Kunsthistorisches Museum, Naturhistorisches Museum, Albertina, Belvedere, Museum moderner Kunst (Mumok), Technisches Museum, Museum für angewandte Kunst (Mak) plus the Austrian National Library. The card is valid for regular and special exhibitions and whenever the museums are open.

Additionally, the idea is to incentivise spontaneous short visits. Cardholders can breeze through a “fast lane” without queuing at the counter; no prior bookings are necessary, enhancing the overall museum experience.

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