专辑简介

When I first sat down to listen to Alex Bogoluboff’s “Collectors” I expected a compilation of songs from his previous albums: had that been the case, I would not have been disappointed, because the best of this singer/songwriter’s work is filled with energy, variety and life. Bogoluboff’s brand of Slavic excitement and sensitivity, his innate ability to “mix it up”, juxtaposing rich ballads with hopping dance numbers, is unmatched on any continent.

But “Collectors” is no sampler or greatest hits CD. Instead it is an album of 14 completely new songs, and some of Bogoluboff’s finest work to date. Most of the tracks display a confidence and a maturity that allow him to play within the confines of the recording medium. He opens with “I Was Looking at You All My Life”, an infectious Euro-beat track deftly straddling vocal octaves with singer Nadejda Kovtun. Continuing the feminine element in what appears to be a subversive song replete with a rousing soap-box speech, Bogoluboff employs the talented Natalia Rizhova in “What Do You Collect?”

Throughout the album, Bogoluboff allows himself certain freedoms that he hinted at on earlier CDs. “Spies”, a combination of techno, power, metal, is suitable material for a film. Here his sturdy baritone soars over a blend of dark atmosphere and sound effects. But as with the rest of “Collectors” the music always comes through, leaving you with melodies that return and remind you of his talent with a tune. “New Way” has a sound compelling and rich enough to establish Bogoluboff as a Mosco Manilow, sensitive enough to breach the language barrier and to break the hearts of listeners anywhere in the world.

“Collectors” answers whatever remaining questions that might exist about Alex Bogoluboff’s creative powers. Now only one question remains-- Why isn’t he a household name in Russia and in America? Perhaps time and this album will answer that question.