Gogol Bordello

Gogol Bordello’s raucous Romani romps often blur the line between joyous revelry and all-out riot. The musical pioneers—who (un)officially trademarked a genre description with their third album, 2005's Gypsy Punks: Underdog World Strike—took shape in 1999 in downtown Manhattan under the lead of mustachioed frontman Eugene Hütz, who found a kinship between the rustic music of his native Ukraine and the forbidden punk, avant-garde, and experimental tapes he managed to acquire in his Soviet homeland before settling in the U.S. as a refugee. From its beginnings, Gogol Bordello—which comprises Hütz, steadfast violinist Sergey Ryabtsev, and an ever-changing international lineup of guitarists, accordionists, percussionists, and more—have defied borders and genres, jumping between the snarling, sardonic klezmer of their 1999 debut, Voi-La Intruder, the dub and flamenco of 2007’s Super Taranta!, and the honky-tonk and mariachi of 2013’s Pura Vida Conspiracy. Throughout, Hütz—who has also spread his talents to the acting world—has remained fearless in his fist-pumping and soul-searching as the band continues to embrace outsiders, underdogs, and traditional global sounds with albums like 2022’s SOLIDARITINE, a fierce punk tribute to the citizens of Ukraine.