Iskra (band)

Iskra
Origin	Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
Genres	Black metal, crust punk
Years active	2002–present
Labels	Black Raven, Mercy of Slumber
Website	iskracrust.com

Members	Wolf Danielle Cody Anatol JP

Iskra is a Canadian blackened crust band founded in Victoria, British Columbia in 2002. Their name means "spark" in Polish (iskra), Serbian (искра/iskra), Russian (искра), and Bulgarian (искра).

Iskra performs and contributes to the anarchist underground musical tradition, which emerged via anarcho-punk in the late 1970s and 1980s with bands like Crass, Amebix, Antisect, and Conflict. By blending elements of crust punk and black metal, Iskra say they have created their own subgenre: "blackened crust".^[1]

Iskra includes former members of the crust band Black Kronstadt, who in the 1990s also described their music as "blackened crust", thus coining the phrase.^[1]^[2]

Lyrically, Iskra's material generally follows in the anarchist punk tradition, with topics including criticism of government, war, economics, social issues such as homophobia, sexism, racism, and the struggles of indigenous peoples. The effects of political organization (both right and left wing) is also a common theme. Some songs discuss the global effects of capitalist institutions such as the World Trade Organization, World Bank, the Central American Free Trade Agreement, the North American Free Trade Agreement and the Independent Task Force on North America.^[3]

Discography

Demo (2003)
Iskra LP (Profane Existence, 2004)
Fucking Scum cassette (Harsh Brutal Cold Productions, 2004)
The Terrorist Act EP 7" (Unrest Records, 2005)
Iskra/Self-Rule Split 7" (Unrest Records, 2005)
Bring the War Home split CD/LP with Against Empire (Rabid Records, Rodent Popsicle Records, 2006)
Selected Works compilation of all work excluding Bring the War Home (Profane Existence, 2007)
Bureval (Black Raven Records, 2009)
Iskra LP remastered reissue (Mercy of Slumber Records, 2011)^[4]
Iskra/Doom Siren Split LP/cassette (Black Raven Records/Threat to Existence/Eat Lead Records/Anti-Corp, 2011)^[4]
European Tour Demo 2012 LP/CD (self-released, 2012)
Bureval Demo LP (Echoes From Beneath, 2013)
Iskra/Ash and Ruin Split 7" (Drop Out Records, 2013)

Members

Current members

Wolf – guitar (2002–present)^[5]
Danielle – vocals (2007–present)
Cody – drums (2007–present)
Anatol Anton – guitar (2010–present)
JP – bass (2011–present)

Previous members

Sean – vocals (2003–2004)
Scott – vocals (2002–2007)
Mel – vocals (2005)
Calvert – drums (2002)
Jasper Van Der Veen – drums (2003–2004)
Jesse – drums (2004–2006)
Nick Engwer – guitar (2002–2004)
Devin – bass (2002–2006, 2008–2009)
Chris Staples – drums (2007–2008)

References