Jinjer ( "ginger") is a Ukrainian heavy metal band from

Donetsk Donetsk ( , ; ; ), formerly known as Aleksandrovka, Yuzivka (or Hughesovka), Stalin, and Stalino, is an industrial city in eastern Ukraine located on the Kalmius River in Donetsk Oblast, which is currently occupied by Russia as the capita ...

, formed in 2008. None of the founding members remain with the band. The current lineup considers 2009 as its official year of formation, with the arrival of singer Tatiana Shmayluk and guitarist Roman Ibramkhalilov. The band has since added bassist Eugene Abdukhanov and drummer Vladislav Ulasevich. Their fifth studio album, '' Duél'', was released in February 2025.

History

Jinjer was formed in 2008 by singer Maksym Fatullaiev, guitarist Dmitriy Oksen, bassist Oleksiy Svynar, and drummer Vyacheslav Okhrimenko. This lineup released the four-song EP ''Objects in Mirror Are Closer than They Appear''. In 2009, Fatullaiev was replaced by Tatiana Shmayluk, and Roman Ibramkhalilov joined on second guitar. In 2011, Oleksiy Svynar was replaced by Eugene Abdukhanov, while Okhrimenko was replaced by Oleksandr Koziychuk. This lineup self-released the EP ''Inhale, Do Not Breathe'' in 2012 and Jinjer began relentlessly touring on their own funds. They were noticed by the Leaders Records in late 2012, and ''Inhale, Don't Breathe'' was officially re-released in 2013 in an extended format, with three live tracks. The band won the Best Ukrainian Metal Act award held by Kyiv's InshaMuzyka label in 2013 (they would win that award again in 2016). Jinjer self-released their first full-length album, ''Cloud Factory'', in 2014; the record featured another new drummer, Yevhen Mantulin. It would later be picked up and re-released by their current record label,

Napalm Napalm is an incendiary mixture of a gelling agent and a volatile petrochemical (usually gasoline or diesel fuel). The name is a portmanteau of two of the constituents of the original thickening and gelling agents: coprecipitated aluminium ...

. Jinjer began touring internationally and personally booked their own shows. The final remaining founding member, Dmitriy Oksen, departed in 2015 and was not replaced, leaving Ibramkhalilov as sole guitarist. While the band was on tour in 2014, Mantulin fell out of a third-story window and suffered severe injuries, severing his spine and rupturing his spleen and thus being unable to continue playing drums. He was replaced by Dmitriy Kim. After several world tours, Jinjer released their second full-length album, '' King of Everything'', in 2016, which was preceded by the single "Pisces". In 2021, ''

Metal Hammer ''Metal Hammer'' is a heavy metal music magazine and website founded in 1983, published in the United Kingdom by Future, with other language editions published by different companies available in numerous other countries. ''Metal Hammer'' featu ...

'' placed "Pisces" at No. 74 in their list of "The 100 Greatest Metal Songs of the 21st Century". Shortly after the release of ''King of Everything'', drummer Vladislav Ulasevich joined and the band's lineup has remained stable since. In 2017, Jinjer committed to two tours across Europe in support of

Arch Enemy Arch Enemy is a Swedish melodic death metal band, originally a Supergroup (music), supergroup from Halmstad, formed in 1995. Its members were in bands such as Carcass (band), Carcass, Armageddon (Swedish band), Armageddon, Carnage (band), Carna ...

, followed by their first tour of North America, alongside

Cradle of Filth Cradle of Filth are an English extreme metal band formed in Suffolk in 1991. The band's musical style evolved originally from black metal to a cleaner and more "produced" amalgam of gothic metal, symphonic metal and other metal genres. Their ly ...

, in 2018. The band also reissued their 2014 album, ''Cloud Factory'', on Napalm Records in February 2018. In September of that year, Jinjer landed on the ''Billboard'' Next Big Sound chart. They released the five-track EP ''Micro'' in January 2019, followed by tours with

Amorphis Amorphis is a Finnish progressive metal band founded by Jan Rechberger, Tomi Koivusaari, and Esa Holopainen in 1990. Initially, the band was a death metal act, but on later albums they evolved into playing other genres, including progressive meta ...

Soilwork Soilwork is a Swedish melodic death metal band from Helsingborg. They have released twelve studio albums. Formed in late 1995 by Björn Strid and Peter Wichers, the band was originally known as ''Inferior Breed''. In late 1996, they changed t ...

, and Nailed to Obscurity. Their third full-length album, ''Macro'', was released in October 2019 and featured experiments in

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

and

progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog) is a broad genre of rock music that primarily developed in the United Kingdom through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early-to-mid-1970s. Initially termed " progressive pop", the ...

. ''

Loudwire ''Loudwire'' is an American online media magazine that covers news of hard rock and heavy metal artists. It is owned by media and entertainment business Townsquare Media. Since its launch in August 2011, ''Loudwire'' has secured exclusive i ...

'' named it one of the fifty best metal albums of 2019. Jinjer was forced to cancel several tours, including their first in

Latin America Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...

, due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. They released the live album ''Alive in Melbourne'' in November 2020. They then returned to Kaska Record Studios in

Kyiv Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

in March 2021, and their fourth full-length album, '' Wallflowers'', was released on 27 August. ''Loudwire'' ranked it among the best rock/metal albums of the year again, placing it at #21. In March 2022, it was reported that Jinjer had "paused" their career to focus on relief efforts in Ukraine after Russia invaded the country one month prior. In June 2022, Jinjer announced that they received permission from the Ukrainian Ministry of Culture to leave Ukraine and tour as ambassadors of the nation. In June 2024, Jinjer confirmed the completion of their fifth studio album and announced plans to debut new songs on their upcoming North American tour. The record, titled '' Duél'', was released on 7 February 2025.

Musical style and influences

Jinjer have mentioned many influences for their music, including Guano Apes,

Slayer Slayer is an American thrash metal band from Huntington Park, California, formed in 1981 by guitarists Jeff Hanneman and Kerry King, drummer Dave Lombardo and bassist/vocalist Tom Araya. Slayer's fast and aggressive musical style made them ...

Death Death is the end of life; the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain a living organism. Death eventually and inevitably occurs in all organisms. The remains of a former organism normally begin to decompose sh ...

Pantera Pantera () is an American Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in Arlington, Texas in 1981 by the Abbott brothers (guitarist Dimebag Darrell and drummer Vinnie Paul), and currently composed of vocalist Phil Anselmo, bassist Rex Brown, an ...

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Lamb of God Lamb of God (; , ) is a Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, title for Jesus that appears in the Gospel of John. It appears at wikisource:Bible (American Standard)/John#1:29, John 1:29, where John the Baptist sees Jesus and exclaims, " ...

, Gojira, and Twelve Foot Ninja. While explaining their influences, the band have noted other metal acts like

Opeth Opeth is a Swedish progressive metal band from Stockholm, formed in 1990. The band incorporates folk music, folk, blues, classical music, classical, and jazz elements into its usually lengthy compositions, as well as strong influences from deat ...

Karnivool Karnivool is an Australian progressive rock/progressive metal, metal band formed in Perth in 1998. The group consists of Ian Kenny on vocals, Drew Goddard and Mark Hosking on guitar, Jon Stockman on bass, and Steve Judd on drums. Karnivool emerg ...

, and Textures, in addition to groups across the spectrum of R&B,

soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

, and

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

, such as

Cypress Hill Cypress Hill is an American Hip hop music, hip hop group formed in South Gate, California in 1988. One of the first Latin groups to gain mainstream recognition in hip hop, they have sold over 20 million albums worldwide, and have obtained multi ...

and

House of Pain House of Pain was an American hip hop trio that released three albums in the 1990s. The group consisted of DJ Lethal, Danny Boy, and Everlast. They are best known for their 1992 hit single " Jump Around", which reached number 3 in their nati ...

. They have been noted for progressive experiments with genres such as R&B, soul, funk, jazz, reggae, and

groove metal Groove metal, sometimes also called neo-thrash or post-thrash, is a subgenre of heavy metal music that began in the early 1990s. The genre is primarily derived from thrash metal, but played in slower tempos, and making use of rhythmic guitar pa ...

. Bassist Eugene Abdukhanov has been noted for his use of a five-string bass to supplement the group's sound since Roman Ibramkhalilov became the sole guitarist. The band's more recent releases have featured lyrics addressing the

war in Donbas The war in Donbas, or the Donbas war, was a phase of the Russo-Ukrainian War in the eastern Donbas region of Ukraine. The war Timeline of the war in Donbas (2014), began in April 2014, when Russian separatist forces in Ukraine, Russian para ...

and its effects on their home region of

Band members

Current * Tatiana "Tati" Shmayluk – vocals (2009–present) * Roman Ibramkhalilov – guitars (2010–present) * Eugene Abdukhanov – bass (2011–present) * Vladislav "Vladi" Ulasevich – drums (2016–present) Past * Maksym Fatullaiev – vocals (2008–2009) * Vyacheslav Okhrimenko – drums (2008–2011) * Rostyslav Lobachov – lead guitar (2008–2010) * Oleksandr Koziychuk – drums (2011–2013) * Oleksiy Svynar – bass (2008–2011) * Yevhen Mantulin – drums (2013–2014) * Dmitriy Oksen – rhythm guitar (2008–2015) * Dmitriy Kim – drums (2014–2016) Wacken 2019"> 20190802 Wacken Wacken-Open-Air Jinjer 0306.jpg, Tatiana Shmayluk Jinjer - 2019214110249 2019-08-02 Wacken - 0005 - AK8I0827.jpg, Roman Ibramkhalilov 20190802 Wacken Wacken-Open-Air Jinjer 0243.jpg, Eugene Abdukhanov Jinjer - 2019214110502 2019-08-02 Wacken - 0019 - B70I9661.jpg, Vladislav Ulasevich Timeline

Discography

Studio albums EPs * ''Objects in Mirror Are Closer Than They Appear'' (2009) * ''Inhale, Do Not Breathe'' (2012) * ''Micro'' (2019) Live albums * '' Alive in Melbourne'' (2020) * ''Live in Los Angeles'' (2024)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jinjer 2009 establishments in Ukraine Metalcore musical groups Musical groups established in 2009 Napalm Records artists Ukrainian heavy metal musical groups Ukrainian musical quartets Progressive metal musical groups Female-fronted musical groups Djent Progressive metalcore musical groups