The Types is a Russian rock band that plays American rock in English. I cannot reveal the exact recipe of their music, but some components are evident. The majority of the songs are garage rock (the music played by MC5 and The Stooges in the late sixties). Other components are the glam rock elements of Sweet, T-Rex, and Bowie; the classic punk of the Dead Kennedy’s and The Ramones; a little of Elvis; and some disco. As a whole, it’s proletarian glam and bourgeois punk at its best.

Only a few can transform such a mix into art and The Types are among them. The Types live are a combination of rock-music and fashion – the initial idea of true rock ‘n roll. The Types shining suits and tidy ties offset the grungy punk that the band plays. These guys know how to rock. Be sure to keep an eye out for The Types’ nearest gig. Following is an interview with the lead vocalist of The Types, Dmitry Astakhov.

Why does the Russian band sing in English? Why did you stop singing songs in Russian?

We think the English language fits the music we play more harmoniously. This music was born in the English language and the phonetics of this language mean a lot for rock. For us, the vocals are the also an instrument, like, for example, a guitar. It’s strange that nobody questions why we don’t use a balalaika instead of a guitar, but everybody gets excited over the language. We use the English language as one of the paints in the musical palette. We like this shade, that's all.

We had a period of Russian-speaking creativity, now we sing in English. By the way, there is a song in Spanish on our last album. So the choice of the language is just a question of our mood.

What music creatively inspires you?

The heart of our creativity is the garage rock of the 1960s with surf elements. It is The Kinks, The Stooges, The Sonics, The Milkshakes, and other bands who comprised the 1960s fare - wild, primitive, but melodic and mad rock.

Is Russian and American rock different? What is American rock for you?

Rock is a wide concept. It does not matter to us if it is Russian, American or somewhere else. It’s still rock. There are bands whose creativity is pleasant to us…and we don’t care about their nationality. But, at the same time, there are great Americans whose contributions to the development and birth of rock music are invaluable - like Chuck Berry, Bill Haley, Elvis Presley, etc. Unfortunately, there are no similar figures in Russian rock.

How do the Russian public and people from other countries react to your music?

Great! It does not depend on the place of our performance or the social status of the listener. All people have a party at our concert. Everyone cares about our music. We play in absolutely different places – in underground rock clubs, in posh restaurants for oligarchs, in the largest Russian stadiums where absolutely different people gather together. We play fairly, professionally, with love. People love it.

The European and Russian public are a little different. People in Europe are less zombie-like because of the mass media; they make their own choices, have their own tastes, and don't listen to the crowd's opinion. There are few such people in Russia.

During our last European tour, people sang with us and it was extremely difficult to leave the scene – we had six encores. So we had a real success there.

Do you think The Types would be popular in America?

I'm sure they would. We know that there are a lot of cool domestic rock bands in America. But a true rock musician is impossible without ambitions and we are sure our music is awesome. Americans were the first who offered us help, shot a photo session for us, and recorded the first video. Our album got awards for good design in Chicago in 2008. We wrote music for Russian movie "Syndrome" and it won The Hollywood News Award in July 2009. Americans chose us several times to be an opening band in their concerts in Moscow. Iggy Pop is among them. And we trust his taste.

How did you become an opening band in Iggy Pop's and The Offspring's concerts? Did you enjoy talking with the musicians?

Everything happened absolutely unexpectedly. Stars usually listen to several bands for the opening of their concerts. Iggy listened and chose us. The same happened with The Offspring.

Our communication was very natural, despite that he is extremely popular – Iggy Pop is the legend, the father. There were no problems in conversing with any of the musicians. It was like a dialogue with any of our musician friends – we discussed sound, instruments, impressions after the concert. We were just colleagues, and for us it was a great occasion.

Can Russian rock be popular in America?

Like a mass phenomenon? I think not. At the same time, there were and there are great musicians in Russia who can be popular all over the world. This culture was forbidden in the Soviet Union, and such a band could not have been famous. Now we live in another country and I think we will see Russian rock’s introduction into worldwide culture. If it was possible for a lot of Russian classical music performers, it could be possible for such gallant guys as us.  ;)

How do you see the future of rock music in Russia?

It is difficult to tell. I do not reflect on the future of the phenomena, even of rock music. The future of my family and friends is much more important to me.