A bunch of St Petersburg egoists are fighting back against the waves of meaningless sludge that go under the name of pop music.
Local tunesmiths Oedipus Complex released their debut album "Egoism" on CD this month through Moscow firm Triarios.
Russian pop music in my experience is just loud, tacky and repetitive noise that must be put up with in taxis, cafes and trains.
Hitting St Petersburg's nightspots in search for an alternative is often a deafening and boring dead end. In fact, before seeing Oedipus Complex playing live, I was starting to wonder if any credible Russian bands existed at all.
"Pop music in Russia is so awful that we have to call ourselves a rock group," says bassist Misha Khait.
Oedipus Complex have a sharp, guitar-driven sound fueled by a surprisingly catchy collection of tunes.
English vocals also make this band considerably more appealing to the foreign listener. Lead singer Ian Nickolenko claims that Russian words "wouldn't fit the music," and the foreign language enables him to be more "abstract" in his writing.
Despite their obvious talent, it comes as no surprise that this fledgling band's path to fame is never going to be an easy one.
"It's almost impossible to become famous here," Nickolenko said.
"There is no show business system and no market for us. Also record companies simply won't take a risk on a group that sounds so different to the existing, terrible Russian pop music."
Nickolenko insists that "Egoism" shows that the group is in touch with real people in a way Russian pop is not.
"It ["Egoism"] deals with young people's problems; including the struggle against pretentiousness. I mean, for example, one person believing they are totally right about something important," he said.
"We're not Queen singing, `we are the champions' -- we're not making it too obvious."
As for the album title, apparently it is because the group themselves are a bunch of egotists, "especially the guitarist."
"Also the conflict within myself, with my ego, is what makes me write the songs," added Nickolenko.
Nickolenko was unable to provide a definite answer to the inevitable question about the band's name, merely saying, "Well it's a name that suits all egotists."
* "Egoism" by Oedipus Complex is due to hit St Petersburg streets and music stores this month.