All titles written by Boris Bardash exept Bonfires are... (Bardash & Frol) and Pussy-Willow (Russian trad.) All music arranged by Ole Lukkoye

The history of Ole Lukkoye goes back to the peak times of the soviet underground at the end of the 80ies. For the first time after the political changes, numerous bands were able to reach a broader public. Ole Lukkoye was founded by Boris Bardash and Andrej Lavrinenko in 1989, who knew each other from their collaboration with the successful art rock and improvisation group Rainy Season.

In 1993 their debut album Zapara was released, which was also appreciated by critics and insiders abroad. In response to the positive reception, the band was invited to Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and Hungary.

In 1996 the Band s second album Toomze was released, that distinctively demonstrated the band' s ambitious approach. It was that brew of British art rock, various musical influences from all parts of the former Soviet empire (for instance the musical heritage of Tuva a region in Southern Siberia) and finally of the modern and rhythmic elements of Ambient and Trance, that also attracted a growing number of younger people.

1997 saw the production of the album Doo Doo Doo, which helped them to establish their undeniable position as a major Eastern European act. In 1999 , still being a welcomer to the broader public, the band performed at the widely recognized Festival Burg Herzberg. Their show was exceptionally well recieved by the audience, at that time about 20,000 people!

Their fourth album to be released on June, 26th was produced by H.J.Irmler one of the founding members of the legendary avant-garde rock outfit Faust. The first encounter of the unlike artists took place at the said Herzberg Festival. Ole Lukoye knew Faust from the cult albums of the band, dating back to the 70ies, that seemed to have found their way to the relevant circles in the Soviet Union, like the records of Can and Ash Ra Tempel. The musicians agreed on the collaboration of the Christal Crowbar album to be produced in the Faust studio in Southern Swabia in the spring of 2000. . For four weeks the musicians worked on the mystic-psychedelic song and sound visions. And this is the result...
Henning Kupper