FLASH
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The carnage began on Friday night at the Crocus City Hall concert center in Moscow, an hour before the rock band Piknik took the stage. Was this the purpose of the attack after all?
The whole world is in solidarity with Russia, which experienced a brutal terrorist attack a few days ago, where 139 people lost their lives in a concert hall.
Four suspects from Tajikistan have been arrested, accused of participating in a terrorist attack and face life in prison. The carnage began on Friday night at the Crocus City Hall concert center in Moscow, an hour before the rock band Piknik took the stage. Was this the purpose of the attack after all?
"Wash your face with your blood"
"Fear nothing, no flame, no shadow. You are not a little boy anymore. Wash your face every morning with your blood." This is how some lyrics from Piknik's latest hit, which was uploaded to YouTube on March 7, are translated. Piknik group is considered by the veterans of the Russian rock scene. They appeared for the first time in 1978 in St. Petersburg, then still called Leningrad. In 1981 they were named "Piknik". It was a common tactic for Soviet-era rock bands to choose names that were reminiscent of the West but could not be easily banned.
In the 80s Piknik could hardly find large halls for their concerts. They started playing smaller rock stages, sometimes on the fringes of the art scene. They stayed true to their lifelong idols, such as the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin and the big names of progressive rock music. The leader of the group since 1982 is the singer and composer Edmund Skliarski, the son of a prominent scientist and a pianist. He attaches great importance to his Polish origins and his Catholic faith. Sources of inspiration for Sklyarski are not only the Rolling Stones, but also Russian poetry of the early 20th century.
In May 2023, the group was praised by Russian nationalist writer Zakhar Prilepin for its stance on the Ukraine issue. In particular, Prilepin said that Sklyarsky actively supported the "special operation" in Ukraine, including donations, which according to him is "a normal condition for every person, for every musician in Russia."
The group did not deny these claims. An appearance in the grand Crocus City Hall can be interpreted as a sign of loyalty to the political leadership.
At the same time, other big names of the Russian rock scene – such as Boris Grebeshnikov of the band Aquarium, Yuri Shevchuk of DDT and Zemfira – were forced to flee the country, cutting short their successful careers.
Before the Russian occupation began, Piknik was put on the list of "unwanted artists" in Ukraine, as they had already performed several concerts in the Russian-occupied Crimean peninsula. The day after the terrorist attack, the group responded to several interview requests (including DÜ) expressing sadness and grief.
On March 24, Edmund Skliarski appeared in a video message on Telegram to express his condolences to the relatives of the victims of "this terrible and senseless tragedy."
Any speculation as to whether the attackers targeted Piknicks remains uncertain. However, Crocus City Hall has already established itself as one of the most important concert venues in Russia.
It is only 20 km from the Kremlin and is located near the privileged western suburbs of Moscow, where security measures are somewhat more relaxed than in the center of the Russian capital.
Perhaps all this played a role for the terrorists. The building belongs to the business group of oligarch Araz Agalarov, who is partly from Azerbaijan and a major player in the Russian real estate market.
Big names of foreign pop and rock music have appeared on its stage, such as Scorpions, Nazareth, Sting, Elton John, Pet Shop Boys and others. In 2013, Donald Trump was also at Crocus City Hall as a "special guest" for the Miss Universe beauty pageant.
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