Kino (band)

Kino
Кино
Background information
OriginLeningrad, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Genres
Years active
  • 1981–1990
  • 2012
  • 2019–present
Labels
Members
Past members
Websitekino.band Edit this at Wikidata

Kino (Russian: Кино, lit.'cinema, film', pronounced [kʲɪˈno]) is a Russian rock band formed in Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg) in 1981. The band was co-founded and headed by Viktor Tsoi, who wrote the music and lyrics for almost all of the band's songs, until his death in 1990. Over the course of eight years, Kino released over 90 songs spanning over seven studio albums, as well as releasing a few compilations and live albums. The band's music was also widely circulated in the form of bootleg recordings through the underground magnitizdat distribution scene. Viktor Tsoi died in a car accident in 1990. Shortly after his death, the band broke up after releasing their final album, consisting of songs that Tsoi and the group were working on in the months before his death.

In 2019, the band announced a reunion with concerts planned in the fall of 2020 for the first time in 30 years; however, they were later postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The band has been active since 2019, releasing two studio albums.