Pussy Riot: CHAIKA
If you don’t know who Yuri Chaika is, Pussy Riot’s song “CHAIKA” can help fill in the blanks. The punk-rock protest collective, whose performances have gotten a few members jailed, bravely ridicules the Russian General Prosecutor through music video and spoken word (entirely in Russian). Just last December, Chaika was the subject of an investigative article, in the form of a film, by Alexei Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation. In it, Chaika is tied to corruption as well as violent organized-crime families. It’s Pussy Riot’s sleekest production yet (with TV on the Radio’s David Sitek contributing), a contrast to the raw spontaneity in “Putin Will Teach You How To Love,” but the outrage still emanates from underneath the make-up and costumes.
