Epidemic (group)

Beginning (1993-1995)

The group was founded by guitarist Yuri Melisov ^[5] . The first attempts to organize a group were made back in 1993, but the composition was assembled only two years later. In 1995, a still unnamed band recorded the Phoenix demo album with Melisov's vocals. Already this debut material was released on the famous label Moroz Records . According to the then drummer of the group Andrei Laptev, at that time there was no agreement with the label on the release of albums yet, and the participants had to pay their own money to be published under the label of this label. ^[6]

The birth of the group. First albums (1995-1999)

Since 1995, the group has gathered and received the name - "Epidemic". The first concert of the group took place on December 20, 1995 in the recreation center of MPEI. This day is considered the official starting point in the history of the team. To record the first album, vocalist Pavel Okunev and guitarist Roman Zakharov joined the group, becoming the second composer of the group. The debut release, “ Will to Live ” (1998), consisted of only five tracks, but the next year the group released a full-length album, “ At the Edge of Time ”. The composition that took part in his recording consisted of Yuri Melisov (guitar), Roman Zakharov (guitar), Pavel Okunev (vocals), Ilya Knyazev (bass) and Andrei Laptev (drums).

The Enigma of the Wizardry (2000-2003)

In 2000, Paul left the Epidemic to engage in independent creativity, and founded the Arda group. He was replaced by Maxim Samosvat . The first album with the participation of the new vocalist, " The Enigma of the magic country ", was more melodic and less influenced by speed metal . In the summer of 2001, the video clip shown on MTV Russia was shot on the ballad “I prayed for you”. The epidemic was among the nominees of MTV Europe Music Awards 2002 from Russia and was among the five winners. Musicians attended the presentation of this prestigious award in Barcelona . In one of the shows on MTV, the group performed together with the legendary Alice Cooper . ^[one]

In 2001, after recording the album "The Enigma of the Magic Country", one of the leaders, Roman Zakharov, who was replaced by Pavel Bushuev, left the group.

At the end of 2002, Andrei Laptev left the group due to disagreements with the team. He is replaced by Yevgeny Laikov, and then Dmitry Krivenkov .

Elven Manuscript (2004-2005)

With the new cast, Y. Melisov began to realize his long-held dream: a plot metal opera . His initial plans included a production based on the book series Dragonlance ^[7] , but in the end an independent, albeit similar, plot was written. Musicians from the groups Aria , Arida Vortex , Black Obelisk , Master and Boni NEM took part in the recording of the concept album Elven Manuscript . The presentation of the album together with the Aria group took place on February 13, 2004 in front of the six thousandth audience ^[8] at the Friday the 13th festival. The popularity of the epidemic is increasing dramatically. The song from the album - “Go Your Way” took the first place in the charts of Our Radio “ Chart Dozen ” for a month.

Soon the second guitarist Pavel Bushuev leaves the band. He is replaced by Ilya Mamontov .

Life at dusk. Decade. Chronicles (2005-2006)

In 2005, the group released the album " Life at Dusk ", which consisted of songs rewritten in the new composition by Melisov from albums preceding the "Elven Manuscript". On the official website of the group, a vote was taken among the fans, according to the results of which the songs were selected for dubbing. Arrangements and vocals have changed, they have become more diverse and heavier. Grab vocal parts have become tougher. Old songs got a new sound, in some places the lyrics changed slightly. The album was approved by both new and old fans of the group. ^[one]

In the same year, the group turned 10 years old. A new keyboard player Dmitry Ivanov appears in the team. Soon the group left the bassist Ilya Knyazev, who was replaced by a young talented musician Ivan Izotov .

At the beginning of 2006, the official Epidemic mp3-album was released with releases from 1998 to 2005. And already at the very end of the year there was a double concert DVD “ The Chronicles of Twilight: 10 Years of Travel ” (part one) and “ The Chronicles of Twilight: Elven Manuscript ” (part two) from the 2005 concert dedicated to the 10th anniversary groups.

The Legend of All Time (2007-2008)

In December 2007, the group recorded the continuation of their metal opera: " Elven Manuscript: A Legend for All Time ." The recording was again attended by Arthur Berkut , Andrei Lobashev , Dmitry Borisenkov and Kirill Nemolyaev , as well as new members: Konstantin Rumyantsev, vocalist of the Troll oppressive fir folk group, Mikhail Seryshev , ex-vocalist of the Wizard, ex-vocalist of the Coliseum Egorov and the vocalist of The Teachers, as well as vocal teacher Ekaterina Belobrova. The presentation of the album took place in Luzhniki on December 3, 2007.

In the fall of 2008, the epidemic announced a partnership with Yamaha with a one-year contract. For the first time in Russia, the entire group became the official endorser of a separate music company, working directly with the brand. The group received new and better Yamaha tools.

Way home. The saga of two worlds. (2009—2010)

On April 9, 2009, the first single of the Twilight Angel group saw the light, consisting of two new songs, one of them was performed live before, and two new versions of the song “Go Your Way” from the album “Elven Manuscript”. The single was uploaded for free download from the official website of the group, and also came out in a limited edition on CD.

On April 1, 2010, the album “ The Road Home ” was released, recorded in Finland at the Sonic Pump studio and in Russia at the Dreamport studio. Also, two old songs written back in 1994 - “Phoenix” and “Come Back” were included as a bonus track on the album.

On September 29, 2010, the group announced that Ivan Izotov was leaving the Epidemic, and Ilya Mamontov, who had previously taken the place of the guitarist of the Epidemic, was taking his place. The place of the session guitarist is occupied by Andrei Smirnov ( Everlost ), before the announcement of the new guitarist of the group. ^[9]

On October 25, 2010, Maxim Samosvat, who sang in the group for 10 years, leaves the group. He performed for the last time with the Epidemic, like Ivan Izotov, at concerts on December 10 and 11, 2010, dedicated to the 15th anniversary of the group.

On December 14, 2010, the group announced that the new vocalist was Yevgeny Yegorov , who for three years sang in the Coliseum group, and also participated in the recording of the metal opera Elven Manuscript: A Tale for All Times, where he played the role of the golden dragon Giltias . ^[10]

December 16, 2010 The Epidemic releases the DVD "Elven Manuscript: A Saga of Two Worlds." The video included both productions of the metal opera Elven Manuscript and Elven Manuscript: A Legend for All Times , as well as interviews with musicians and other project participants, which tells the story of the creation of the metal opera.

On December 20, 2010, Dmitry Protsko , one of the founders and guitarist of the Arda band, joined the group as the second guitarist for 8 years. ^[eleven]

New way. Fifteenth Anniversary (2010–2013)

February 26, 2011 the group went on a big tour dedicated to the 15th anniversary of the group. This tour was the first with Evgeny Egorov. On May 29, 2011, an acoustic concert of the group took place, on which DVD was shot. Acoustic Concert - DVD Shooting (Russian)

September 1, 2011 The Epidemic announced the upcoming remix album-collection "The Horseman of the Ice ."

On December 24, 2011 in Muz-Torg an autograph session was held to coincide with the release of the “Horseman from Ice” album, you could also buy this album. December 25, 2011 the presentation of the new album at the Moscow club "Milk Moscow". Arthur Berkut and Dmitry Borisenkov, colleagues from the Elven Manuscript, were supposed to take the stage with the Epidemic group. However, the Golden Eagle did not appear at the event.

On May 25, 2012, in the city of Oryol, the release of the new DVD “In the Triads of Ballads ...”, which contains two discs, took place: the first is a video version of an acoustic concert that took place on May 29, 2011, the second, respectively, is an audio version. A feature of this disc is the arrangement of songs - the group performed their famous compositions in various styles of world music. So, for example, the song "Life at Dusk" was performed in the style of Latin rock , and the song "Hour of Test" in the style of jazz .

Yuri Melisov announced the recording of a new metal opera based on “Elven Manuscript” - “Treasure of Enia”, the release of which is scheduled for the first half of 2014.

In November 2013, in connection with the participation of Ilya Mamontov as a guitarist in the farewell tour of ex-vocalists of the legendary band Iron Maiden PAUL DIANNO and BLAZE BAYLEY, Ivan Izotov again performed at concerts of the Epidemic.

Treasure of Enia (2014)

In April 2014, the presentation of the group's new album, “ Treasure of Enia, ” the plot of which takes place in a common universe with the “Elven Manuscript,” took place.

April 26, 2014 on the stage of the Moscow concert venue Stadium Live staged live show "Treasure of Enia."

Among the project participants were noted Alexei Gorshenyov ( Kukryniksy ), Helavisa ( Mill ), Arthur Berkut (ex- Aria ), Peter Elfimov , Mikhail Seryshev (ex- Master ), Konstantin Troll Rumyantsev ( Troll Bends Spruce "), Maria" Scream "Arkhipova (" Arkona ") and Andrei Lobashev (" Arida Vortex "," Olva ").

The Legend of Xentaron (2018)

On February 8, 2018, a new album was released. The plot develops the plot of "Treasures of Enia." The first part is a prequel to the previous album, and the second is a sequel.

The basic composition of the group remained unchanged. The Epidemic has already collaborated with some of the guest vocalists - Dmitry Borisenkov, Kirill Nemolyaev, Pyotr Elfimov and Khelavisa reappeared, but new faces also appeared - Ivan Ozhogin , Daria "Nuki" Stavrovich (gr. "Slot" ) and Elena Minina.

On February 23, 2018, the album was presented in Moscow - a colorful Live show on the same Stadium Live site, which was shot on DVD and will be released in 2019.

Valid

• Evgeny Egorov - vocals (since 2010)
• Yuri Melisov - guitar (from the moment of foundation), vocals (until 1995)
• Dmitry Protsko - guitar (since 2010)
• Ilya Mamontov - bass guitar, acoustic guitar (since 2010) , electric guitar (2004—2010)
• Dmitry Krivenkov - drums (since 2003)

Former members

• Pavel Okunev - vocals (1996-2000)
• Maxim Samosvat - vocals (2000—2010)
• Aram Hovhannisyan - guitar (1993-1994)
• Andrey Vladimirovich Lobashev - vocals (2004, 2007, 2014)
• Andrey Manko - guitar (1995-1997)
• Roman Zakharov - guitar (1997-2001)
• Pavel Bushuev - guitar (2001-2004)
• Dmitry Shcherbakov - bass guitar (1993-1995)
• Artyom Smirnov - bass guitar (1995-1996)
• Nikolay Turunov - bass guitar (1996-1998)
• Ilya Knyazev - bass guitar (1998-2005)
• Ivan Izotov - bass guitar (2005—2010, 2013)
• Lyubov Nazarova - keyboards (1998)
• Ekaterina Usanova - keyboards (1999)
• Ekaterina Gladkova - keyboards (1999)
• Oleg Pokhvalin - keyboards (2000-2001)
• Roman Valerev - keyboards (2001-2005)
• Dmitry Ivanov - keyboards, backing vocals (2005—2015)
• Mikhail Yeltsov - drums (1993-1994)
• Andrei Laptev - drums (1995-2002)
• Evgeny Laikov - drums (2002-2003)

Composition by years

• Pavel Okunev, after leaving the Epidemic, founded the Arda group. He released 3 albums and 3 singles with her, and continues his active musical activity. Yuri Melisov took part in the recording of the band’s first album.
• Until 2006, Maxim Samosvat was the vocalist of the progressive metal band Mechanical Poet and released two albums with her. At the moment, together with Vladimir Nasonov (ex- “Mechanical Poet”, ex- “ Fear Factor ”), Arthur Bulatov, Anton Smolyanin (ex-Olvi), Timofey Shcherbakov (ex-Olvi), are engaged in the SUNBURST project, which is already In the fall of 2015, he will present a full-length album consisting of more than 15 tracks.
• Roman Valeryev, keyboard player, organized the Pilgrim band (not to be confused with the project of the same name by A. Kovalev ), and from January 1, 2007 took part in the Colosseum group, where he is also the main composer. In 2013, he became the second guitarist of the Korsika band.
• Roman Zakharov in 2006 became the guitarist of the newly recreated group " Lady Prowler ". ^[12]
• Andrey Laptev, after leaving the group, retrained as a vocalist. He created a group that initially challenged the title of the Epidemic. As a result, the Laptev group began to be referred to as the "Al epidemic." In 2006, Laptev announced that he was going to record his own continuation of the " Elven Manuscript " with his own composition. However, since he did not have rights to this name, the project was renamed “Battle of the Gods”, and the output was postponed indefinitely. There is only a demo of this album. Subsequently, Andrei Laptev still assembled a team to record his metal opera. Under the name "Laptev's Epidemia", the new collective recorded in 2018 the opera "The Lost Temple of Enia."
• Ivan Izotov played in the bands Korsika and Radio Chacha .
• Eugene Egorov before the Epidemic was the vocalist of the Coliseum . He is also an actor in the Stas Namin Theater. ^[13] At the moment, he is one of the performers of the role of Raistlin Majere in the musical The Last Test ^[14] .
• Dmitry Protsko was the guitarist and co-author of several songs of the Arda band.

Albums, singles

Cover songs

DVD

Video clips

• The official site of the Epidemic group
• The official page of the Epidemic group on the VKontakte social network
• The official page Epidemic (group) on the social network Facebook
• Epidemic Fan Club
•   - Fan Club in LiveJournal
• Official Myspace Epidemic (Group) Page
• Interview with Yuri Melisov to PiRamida Online Newspaper
• Group Interview on Icon Magazine's Website
• Epidemic (group ) on the Encyclopaedia Metallum website
• Epidemic on MusicBrainz
• Epidemic Video Channel (Group) on YouTube

Notes

• Alekseev A.S. Who is who in Russian rock music . - M .: AST: Astrel: Harvest, 2009 .-- S. 544, 545. - ISBN 978-5-17-048654-0 (AST). - ISBN 978-5-271-24160-4 (Astrel). - ISBN 978-985-16-7343-4 (Harvest).

Reviews

• DVD Review “The Twilight Chronicles: Elven Manuscript” in Rockcor Magazine No. 66, 2007