Svilen Noev (born September 22, 1975) is a Bulgarian singer-songwriter, best known for being the bandleader of Ostava

Ostava

Ostava are an alternative rock band from Bulgaria. They formed in 1991, but it was not until 2000 that they released a long-playing record .- Formation and early years :...

. His eclectic, deeply personal work shows the influence of various types of rock'n'roll music - the British indie rock

Indie rock

Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...

 scene, the Seattle grunge

Grunge

Grunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged during the mid-1980s in the American state of Washington, particularly in the Seattle area. Inspired by hardcore punk, heavy metal, and indie rock, grunge is generally characterized by heavily distorted electric guitars, contrasting song...

 scene, the American rockabilly

Rockabilly

Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music, dating to the early 1950s.The term rockabilly is a portmanteau of rock and hillbilly, the latter a reference to the country music that contributed strongly to the style's development...

 of the 50s, to name a few. Noev cites Elvis Presley

Elvis Presley

Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....

, Nirvana

Nirvana (band)

Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...

, R.E.M., Radiohead

Radiohead

Radiohead are an English rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke , Jonny Greenwood , Ed O'Brien , Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway .Radiohead released their debut single "Creep" in 1992...

, The Smiths

The Smiths

The Smiths were an English alternative rock band, formed in Manchester in 1982. Based on the song writing partnership of Morrissey and Johnny Marr , the band also included Andy Rourke and Mike Joyce...

 as key influences on his style. Noev joined Ostava in 1995 and since has become a key part of the band's sound. He switched places with then-lead singer Georgi Georgiev and the group began playing songs written and sung chiefly by Noev. However, Georgiev is given lead vocals on several songs.

Noev's lyrics are dominated by themes of love, sex, loneliness and social alienation

Social alienation

The term social alienation has many discipline-specific uses; Roberts notes how even within the social sciences, it “is used to refer both to a personal psychological state and to a type of social relationship”...

. A Bulgarian music magazine once labeled him an existentialist, which Noev found quite flattering.

A common practice of his is to write the lyrics to his songs in both Bulgarian and English. The studio versions of the songs are, naturally, in Bulgarian. However, when performing live, Noev often sings in English. This was particularly important when the band performed in front of an international audience during their German tours in 2005 and 2006.

Another signature characteristic of Svilen Noev is his falsetto

Falsetto

Falsetto is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ligamentous edges of the vocal folds, in whole or in part...

 singing, which distantly resembles that of Suede

Suede (band)

Suede are an English alternative rock band from London, formed in 1989. The group's most prominent early line-up featured singer Brett Anderson, guitarist Bernard Butler, bass player Mat Osman and drummer Simon Gilbert. By 1992, Suede were hailed as "The Best New Band in Britain", and attracted...

's Brett Anderson

Brett Anderson

Brett Lewis Anderson is an English singer-songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist of the band Suede. After Suede disbanded in 2003, he briefly fronted The Tears, and has released four solo albums...

, and Placebo

Placebo (band)

Placebo are a British rock band from London, England, formed in 1994 by singer and guitarist Brian Molko and bass guitarist Stefan Olsdal. The band was joined by drummer Robert Schultzberg, who was later replaced by Steve Hewitt after conflicts with Molko. Hewitt left the band in October 2007 and...

's Brian Molko

Brian Molko

Brian Molko is a songwriter, lead vocalist, and guitarist of the band Placebo. He is known in particular for his high-pitched vocals, androgynous appearance, and unique, Sonic Youth-influenced guitar style and tuning.-Early life:Born to an American father of French-Italian heritage and a Scottish...

. Irritated by such comparisons, Noev was cited saying "I can't sing in 10 different ways [...] I'm confident in what I do. No one is ever going to say "You resemble so and so" to a poor singer."

External links

• Ostava.com: The official Ostava website.