Starified Premiere “Don Loco” Video; Fat Hits Coming Jan. 15
Moscow-based heavy rockers Starified were part of a recent glut of pickups by Ripple Music, and they’ll make their debut on the label Jan. 15 with their third album overall, Fat Hits. The LP runs 10 tracks/41 minutes and is being given its first public airing today with a premiere of the band’s video for “Don Loco.”
Upon its arrival in a great unknowable future, Fat Hits will serve as the follow-up to Starified‘s 2018 outing through CSBR Records, Feathers, which found the band restructured from the five-piece they were on their debut to a trio, with just guitarist Yuriy Berezovik and bassist Dmitri Shurpakov carried over from the original lineup on the prior 2017 self-titled debut. The newcomer in this pared down version of the group for Feathers was lead vocalist/drummer Vadim Ambartsumian, and he continues to make an impression 
as Starified strip away excess from their songwriting and refine their material in songs like “Wider Lane,” “An Ode to Tenacious D” and indeed “Don Loco” to an accessible blend of heavy and hard rock drawing from an array of influences modern and otherwise. There’s some glam in “An Ode to Tenacious D,” and yes, I mean that, but the later “Pick a Fight” delves into atmospherics for its verses before returning to ground for a breakout chorus.
Their songs are energetic, at times aggressive in that later-’90s grunge-is-over-what-do-we-do-now kind of way, as on “Saraton,” and while the penultimate “Noah” seems to show some patience in its rollout — at least until the screaming starts — the finale “Same Old River” is unabashed in its commercial readiness in a way that “Wider Lane” earlier hints toward. Does Russia have rock radio? If so, Starified have a single. A few, actually.
From the opening bruiser “Scapegoat” through “Don Loco” — the cinematic clip for which you can see below — and the sans-frills structures of “What If” and “Anti-Rebel,” Fat Hits is clean and sharp in its production and holds its purpose in the songcraft, but isn’t to be taken lightly in terms of performance. Less “a drummer who sings” than both a drummer and a vocalist, Ambartsumian casts a significant presence and is forward in the mix, but he, Berezovik and Shurpakov are all pretty clearly on the same page when it comes to knowing what they want their sound to do, and that would seem to be to engage as many ears as possible.
Like it says in the headline, Jan. 15 is the due date for Fat Hits. Think of the “Don Loco” video as a preview in the meantime.
And please enjoy:
Starified, “Don Loco” official video premiere
STARIFIED (hard rock, stoner, progressive) – a Moscow based power-trio with a singing drummer (est. 2017). The band members call themselves students of the old-school rock masters: from Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath to Foo Fighters and Jack White. Their shows are known for mad expression and glamourous entourage. STARIFIED has already had two Russian tours, a European tour, lots of shows in their hometown – Moscow, released two LP’s, a number of live videos, produced their official music video and they keep on working on the new material.
Starified are:
Vadim Ambartsumian – vocals, drums
Yuriy Berezovik – guitars
Dmitri Shurpakov – bass guitar
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Tags: Fat Hits, Moscow, Ripple Music, Russia, Starified, Starified Fat Hits
