VILNIUS - Abba comes from Sweden, U2 comes from Ireland, Rammstein comes from Germany, A-ha is Norwegian 's but who comes from Lithuania that is known the world over?
Young musicians in Lithuania aren't getting the leg up they need to become well known. They don't tour Europe or make albums because the industry is geared towards pop music only, musicians told The Baltic Times.
Flicking on the TV set on any weekend evening would reveal a painful marathon of pop song renditions by famous duos or celebrities 's the shows are some of the country's most popular programs and have become one of the top ways for Lithuanians to listen to music.
Bands working to get famous in the country aren't getting anywhere because they only play small gigs for their friends or family in their garages, even if they do have talent. The best they could hope for in most cases is to play a few large concerts each summer to earn a crust.
Musicians and music industry professionals alike say that there aren't any well beaten paths in the country that youngsters can follow to find an audience who love their music: there is a lack of a live music culture in bars, a general lack of radio stations that would play new or experimental music and a public that is generally not willing to try new things.
Justas Jarutis, a vocalist with the young band Freaks on Floor, said people don't care about trying new things.
"I think the music industry for Lithuanian musicians is very bad because in Lithuania people like music that crowds like 's everyone wants to be the same. There aren't many opportunities to perform for young bands."
"Most of the record companies just release pop albums. If you release an album from a pop singer, it is better than a young band that just came from somewhere," Jarutis said.
He also said music labels don't offer good enough contracts to allow musicians to practice their trade full time.
"Nobody offers record deals in Lithuania 's we had one opportunity, but the contracts aren't good for musicians. If you want to play and get some money from that 's the contract I read was shitty because all the [benefits] were going to the company 's then it's not worth signing a record deal in Lithuania. Young people who can write can then go abroad and get better deals than here."
"From our side, we are happy that we are free 's we have opportunities and we can do what we want to do. We can do without a company."
FLYING THE NEST
One band that has all but abandoned its home country is Flamingo 's it aims to become internationally famous, its manager said.
The band has been doing local concerts for over three years and has a strong following now, but has since given up on working their way into anything more than a local following in the country.
Flamingo manager Tomas Ivanauskas said Lithuania is a good place to practice, but you have to make your own way if you want to make it big.
"For Flamingo, we don't want to be famous here because the music they play here is pop. We could have a maximum of 100,000 fans and that's it. The goal is to be noticed abroad. We are trying to break through step by step using different ways. Of course it's not easy, but as a manager [I] trust in my band and I know that we can become famous abroad. Lithuania is a place for rehearsals," he said.
Flamingo has yet to release a studio album, but has released a single and a live album online. It uses alternative methods to get fans 's recently the band gave a free concert in a prominent bar in the center of Vilnius for fans that were registered on its Web site. The concert was used to distribute copies of the band's latest single.
"We did a live show last year and now you can download it. In April we want to release it with a CD and DVD 's we don't want to sell it 's we want some sponsors to cover expenses and then we will give it out for free. We know we won't sell it. It's a bit selfish to take money for the first album. You have to prove to people that you are good 's they have to believe in your music," Ivanauskas said.
RADIOSTARS
One of the only ways for young bands to get an audience outside of their immediate reach is by the government sponsored radio station Opus 3, which is geared toward new music, especially by locals.
Opus 3 manager Darius Uzkuraitis said that their mission is to encourage young musicians and bring the good ones to light.
"We play Lithuanian music and we want to play today's music, not yesterday's 's it is a bit different than other radio stations. We want to show creative young musicians from our country 's of course not only Lithuania, but from all countries. If they create something good, then we play it," he said.
Among other special programs, the station has a program for Lithuanian music only.
"If musicians bring their music to M1 or Radio Centras they will be told that it's not the [right] format. So we created Opus 3 and we accept them and it is their radio station that plays their format. We aren't thinking styles 's we are thinking good quality music 's it doesn't matter what language 's or if it's instrumental. These young guys know that if they make something good, it will be played on the air," Uzkuraitis said.
More work bringing young musicians to the forefront of the scene needs to be done, said a vocalist from the band Sweetsalt, which recently recorded its first music video.
"There are so many bands who aren't as famous as us, many of them, but they are playing very good music and I want to know, why don't I know them?" Rokas Dobuzinskas, the band's lead singer said about the countless bands that play in obscurity in the country.
Jarutis wants others to follow the lead of Opus 3.
"We need more stations in TV, radio and media and more people who could give young kids who play music well the opportunity to get further. The media and radio stations have to pay attention to those playing alternative music," he said.
Sweetsalt said Opus 3 and MTV were among those who helped them become popular.
"We had one live show on Opus 3 Acoustic 's we played and did an interview with them. Now they have this thing called Opus 3 Talent 's we will have three shows in Vilnius, Kaunas and Klaipeda. They are helping us too 's this is one of the best radio stations for new music and not just pop music 's they are looking for interesting music," Dobuzinskas said.
"MTV is helping us a lot because they have news all the time and they ask us if we have something good for them. That's a good thing for us to make advertising to music people," he added.
Aside from the small radio station, which has comparatively small market share, musicians don't have anywhere to go, which is frustrating for many bands.
"I think it depends on the public and it actually depends on the music society, which in my opinion is not very developed, but I think there is a bright future," Dobuzinsaks said.
"We don't want to have other jobs. We want to live with music," Ivanauskas said.
Opus 3 's 98.3 FM in Vilnius, 98.0 FM in Kaunas, 91.9 FM in Klaipeda
