Brittany Roberts, an assistant professor in the App State English department, recently delivered a presentation examining the horror-themed visuals employed by the Russian electronic music duo IC3PEAK to critique their government. This talk was part of the Music Humanities Community Conversation Series, coordinated by Jacob Kopcienski, assistant professor of musicology at the Hayes School of Music.
Roberts argued that IC3PEAK’s use of horror concepts in their music videos serves to highlight and weaponize the specific oppressions faced by the Russian populace under the current regime. “I want to argue that the group’s use of horror tropes and imagery not only invokes the living death imposed by the Russian state, which many young Russians today have experienced, but also weaponizes it, offering a unique site of resistance to Putin-era necropolitics in Russia,” she stated during her presentation.
Necropolitics, a term coined by Cameroonian political theorist Achille Mbembe, addresses how sociopolitical power dictates who may live and who must endure conditions tantamount to metaphorical or literal death. This notion is central to understanding the group’s artistic expression.
IC3PEAK embodies this “living dead” imagery through their distinctive pale face paint and dark clothing. In the 2022 music video for “Dead But Pretty,” the duo is seen emerging from a grave, a visual Roberts emphasized to illustrate their themes. The video also features the pair transforming their arresting masked police into fans, dancing with them, and sharing intimate moments, actions that directly challenge the views upheld by Putin’s authoritarian government.
Other music videos by IC3PEAK further delve into horror aesthetics to address the fears and challenges faced by their generation. In the 2018 single “Fairytale,” lead singer Anastasia Kreslina raps, “I’m not afraid of daylight, there is enough darkness here,” amidst animated representations of a zombified grandmother. Roberts connected this portrayal to the widening generational divide, as Kreslina and fellow member Nikolay Kostilev were both born during tumultuous economic times in Russia.
Roberts remarked, “Coming of age amidst several economic recessions and increasing social and political oppression negatively impacted the financial future of their generation,” after screening the “Fairytale” music video for attendees.
IC3PEAK’s critique of the government extends beyond their symbolic visuals. Since being blacklisted by Russian authorities in 2018, the band has faced police detentions, canceled performances, and bans from the social media platform VKontakte. Some of their songs have also been removed from streaming services due to their political content.
This presentation marked the beginning of the Music Humanities Community Conversation Series, where Roberts analyzed the political implications of the horror symbols in IC3PEAK’s work as a form of protest against the Russian government.
