A group of aboriginal Siberian taiga people makes its way across a
frozen river. The sky is gray and the wind is growing stronger: a storm
is coming. They unpack their gear, pull out large drums and proceed to
pummel them. “Are you going east?” A girl in a colorful indigenous
outfit and long black hair wails. “Then be careful!” This is followed by
a song that can best be categorized as ethnic rock: there is throat
singing, a keyboard sampler imitating an electric guitar, drumming and
dancing. Also making it into the picture is a bass guitar-looking
instrument made out of something that looks like the skull of a large
animal - and you’ll find that that’s exactly what it is. This is Otyken
and this is how the video for their track ‘Storm’ begins. The band
members are all indigenous Siberians who hail from the Krasnoyarsk
Region, in the heart of the Russian North. Otyken was founded in 2019
and is the brainchild of Andrey Medonos, director of the local museum of
ethnography. Their style is a mixture of rock, R&B and tribal
electronica, complete with throat singing. They perform in three
languages - Chulym, Khakassian and Russian. All the band members are
representatives of the Chulym, Ket and Selkup ethnic groups. And all
hail from tiny villages in the remote taiga - no coffee shops,
pharmacies or even electricity. The name ‘Otyken’ comes from the turkic
word meaning the “holy place where warriors laid down their arms and
held talks”. According to Medonos, Otyken gained popularity thanks to
foreign tourists interested in Siberian life. South and North Americans
and Canadians are frequent visitors, often looking for parallels with
their own cultures. At first, Otyken had a more authentic and
traditional sound, but, in order to increase their reach, the band began
introducing outside elements. The costumes were improvised, as well -
they’re not really true replicas, but more of a mixture of traditional
and modern elements. You’ll often see animal hides, feathers and modern
elements all rolled into one. As for the instruments, the same principle
of embellishment applies. “The most unusual instrument we have is the
morin khuur [a Mongolian string instrument] made from a horse’s skull.
We have other instruments and outfits as well: maracas, horns…” says
Tsveta, who plays the Jaw harp. From: https://www.rbth.com/arts/335614-otyken-siberian-indigenous-band
