With gritty poetry and a punk ethos, Alexander Bashlachev built bridges between very different worlds—marking a bridge between the sounds of famed chansonnier Jacques Brel and punk anarchists the Sex Pistols. His songs distil the speak-singing of rockers Zoopark, the sparse anti-war balladry of Aleksandr Galitch and the protest tracks of country legend Johnny Cash, with a dash of The Doors' prophetic psychedelic rock.