“Music comes from a generational cross-pollination. The greatest thing about punk rock was that it had an unprecedented mix of people of all backgrounds and all ages striking new sparks out of each other.”
Eugene Hütz barrels through life like a street poet on fire, his voice a battle cry, his presence a whirlwind. He is, in short, a CHARACTER. Born in Ukraine, he carried punk’s raw rebellion in his bones long before landing in New York’s Lower East Side in the late ‘90s. CBGB became his proving ground, Ukrainian bars his first stage, friends’ couches his early crash pads. What began as acoustic anthems in dim-lit corners grew into Gogol Bordello: an eight-piece riot of sound, fusing Eastern, Western, and Latin traditions into a fevered frenzy.
Beyond the stage, Hütz fights for Ukraine with unrelenting force, rallying with Nova Ukraine and ArtDopomoga, orchestrating benefit shows alongside Patti Smith, The Hold Steady, and Suzanne Vega. His cinematic presence lingers in Everything Is Illuminated and Scream of My Blood: A Gogol Bordello Story.
Now the Ukrainian frontman of the international punk band Gogol Bordello announces NYContinuity Vol.1: New New York Does Old New York – a new cross-generational compilation album out April 4 on Casa Gogol Records. The album is part of Casa Gogol’s mission to preserve, perpetuate and accelerate NYC’s sonic culture – fostering generational cross-pollination, and uniting punk and hardcore artists to sustain the genre’s legacy of identity and belonging.
“Arriving in NYC in 1997, I no longer felt like a marginal freakaholic,” explains Eugene Hütz. “The city took me under its wing, picked me up, and pinned me straight into the lineage where I belonged. NYContinuity is dedicated to preserving and perpetuating NYC’s unique ability to define the blueprint the world will inevitably copy for the next 15–20 years.”
The dialogue continues between NYC’s new wave of bands and their heroes, with Puzzled Panther’s cover of Sonic Youth’s Dirty Boots (produced by Sonic Youth’s Steve Shelley and drums by Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ Brian Chase), Pons’ manic tribute to Suicide, Mary Shelley’s Bushwick rooftop version of Talking Heads’ The Great Curve (produced by David Byrne’s American Utopia music director Mauro Refosco) and more.
Original tracks are also featured, including a new one from Karen O (Yeah Yeah Yeahs) and Eugene Hütz, a Grace Bergere remix by Mr. Pharmacist a.k.a. Gregg Foreman (Alan Vega and Cat Power), and Puzzled Panther’s “Fractured,” from their upcoming EP STING OF IODINE, channeling all their favorite NYC dance punk influences while referencing Television.
The first single from the album comes from Grace Bergere and Thurston Moore: a faithful cover of The Velvet Underground’s All Tomorrow’s Parties.
Figure out what costume to wear and listen to All Tomorrow’s Parties below:
The project will culminate with a live show at Bowery Ballroom on April 5, featuring special guest Vera Farmiga and her band The Yagas.
Get your tickets here and here.
Gogol Bordello storms Europe this autumn, joined by English punk agitators Bob Vylan, ready to shake the rafters once more. “Enraged anew by world atrocities, Gogol Bordello is coming your way with new material developed in collaboration with the king of post-punk groove Nick Launay (Nick Cave, Amyl and the Sniffers, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Refused). Feels like the salvaging of a massive bell,” says Hütz.
Gogol Bordello Tour Dates:
September
- 12 Amsterdam, NL
- 13 Cologne, DE
- 14 Luxembourg, LU
- 16 Hamburg, DE
- 18 Cottbus, DE
- 19 Berlin, DE
- 20 Leipzig, DE
- 21 Prague, CZ
- 23 Wien, AT
- 25 Munich, DE
- 26 Frankfurt, DE
- 27 Stuttgart, DE
- 29 Ljubljana, SI
- 30 Zagreb, HR
October
- 2 Padova, IT
- 3 Milan, IT
- 4 Bologna, IT
- 6 Geneva, CH
- 7 Lyon, FR
- 9 Barcelona, SP
- 10 Madrid, SP
- 11 Lisbon, PT
- 12 Porto, PT
- 14 Bilbao, SP
- 16 Toulouse, FR
- 17 Nantes, FR
- 18 Paris, FR
- 19 Tilburg, NL
- 21 Liege, DE
- 22 Brussels, DE
- 24 Brighton, UK
- 25 Bristol, UK
- 26 Manchester, UK
- 28 Glasgow, UK
- 30 Nottingham, UK
- 31 London, UK
November
- 1 London, UK
Track listing for NYContinuity Vol.1: New New York Does Old New York –
SIDE A
- Grace Bergere (feat. Thurston Moore) – “All Tomorrow’s Parties” (The Velvet Underground)
- Puzzled Panther – “Fractured”
- Mary Shelley – “Bourgeois de Ville”
- Pons – “Fast Money Music” (Suicide)
- Puzzled Panther – “Dirty Boots” (Sonic Youth)
- Mary Shelley – “The Great Curve” (Talking Heads)
- Karen O & E. Hutz (Merc Yes Mix) – “Raven”
SIDE B
- Crazy & The Brains (Freak Mods and Hutz Remix) – “Punk Rocker” (Teddybears ft. Iggy Pop)
- Abazaba (feat. Eugene Hutz) – “Isolation” (Joy Division)
- Mary Shelley (Freak Mods Remix) – “Bourgeois de Ville”
- BKGD Audio – “Fun” (Murphy’s Law)
- Grace Bergere (Mr. Pharmacist aka Gregg Foreman Remix) – “A Little Blood”
- Gogol Bordello – “You Know It’s Dark When Atheist Starts to Pray” (Jesse Malin)
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