Viktor Tsoi - Rise To Fame

Rise To Fame

1987 was a breakthrough year for Kino. The release of their 5th album Blood Type (Gruppa Krovi) triggered what was then called "Kinomania". The open political climate under glasnost allowed Tsoi to make Blood Type his most political album yet it also allowed him to record a sound of music that no one before him was able to play. Most of the tracks on the album were directed at the youth of the Soviet Union, telling them to take control and make changes within the nation, some of the songs addressed the social problems crippling the nation. The sound and lyrics of the album made Tsoi a hero among Soviet youth and Kino the most popular rock band ever. In the diverse Soviet republics fans translated his originally Russian lyrics into their native languages as well. Over the next few years, Tsoi appeared in several successful movies and also traveled to the USA to promote his films at film festivals. Several more albums were released, their themes were once again mostly political, further fueling the band's popularity. Even though Tsoi was a huge star, he still lived a relatively ordinary life. He kept his old job in the boiler room of an apartment building, a fact that surprised many people. Tsoi said that he enjoyed the work and he also needed the money to support the band, as they still received no government support and their albums were copied and passed around the nation via samizdat free of charge. This made Tsoi even more popular among the people because it showed that he was down to earth and they could relate to them. He also went on tour in 1988-1989 to Italy, France and Denmark. Kino's finest hour came in 1990 with a concert at Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium. 62,000 fans filled the stands to celebrate the triumph of the USSR's most successful rock group.