Orpheus in Exile: Songs of Vadim Kozin

Following the interest in and success of his collection of Russian songs, Heart On Snow, Marc Almond recorded a follow-up focusing on one of the artists he’d featured there — Vadim Kozim, a striking singer and songwriter who’d achieved massive success in Stalin’s time, but whose open homosexuality resulted in official disapproval and internal banishment. Orpheus in Exile’s title alone gives a sense of the stakes and little surprise Almond found his story of deep interest, as striking performances of songs like “Brave Boy,” “My Fire” and “Letter From Magadan” show.