ZGA

Russian experimental/industrial/avant-garde group formed in March 1984 in Riga, Latvia (ex-USSR) by Nick Soudnick and Valeri Dudkin. More musicians joined soon after the first home-taped session, most notably Alexander Zhilin, who became the core member and Nick's closest collaborator.

The band's name in Russian, ЗГА, means "anything" but solely in the context of "non-visibility," i.e., "can't see anything." The word "зга" has no inherent meaning, and Russian linguists still debate its etymology.

ZGA Members:

Original line-up(1984–1994)
Nick Soudnick — vocals, "zgamoniums," horns, reeds, accordion, sound objects, misc
Alexander Zhilin ✝ (1959–1994) — bass, metal springs, "zgamoniums"
Michail Yudenich — drums, percussion
Valeri Dudkin ✝ (1965–2004) — guitar, backing vocals/whistles
Vadim Petrenko — guitar

Current line-up:
Nick Soudnick — vocals, "zgamoniums," misc
[url=https://discogs.com/artist/1241651]Ekaterina Fedorova[/url] — drums
[url=https://discogs.com/artist/634868]Ramil Shamsudinov[/url] — trombone
[url=https://discogs.com/artist/9070459]Valeria Kildeeva[/url] — violin

Past members:
Emily Loseva — vocals, keyboards (1984–87)
Eva Molchanova — vocals (1989)
Jon Dobie — guitar, reeds (1994 European tour)
[url=https://discogs.com/artist/1718619]German Podstanitsky[/url] — bass (1997~98)
[url=https://discogs.com/artist/3781084]Polina Runovskaya[/url] — vocals (1997~98)

Guests:
[url=https://discogs.com/artist/3523505]Marina Kaverzina[/url] — artworks, paintings
[url=https://discogs.com/artist/2188720]Vera Ogareva[/url] — lead vocals, "shulamiha" (washboard)
[url=https://discogs.com/artist/1241653]Inna Lishenkevich[/url] — vocals, "yurmanka" & "otshturkha" (washboards)
Alexander Mrakov — bass