Korol i Shut, a Russian horror punk band from Saint Petersburg, was formed in 1988 by school friends Mikhail "Gorshok" Gorsheniov, Aleksandr "Balu" Balunov, and Aleksandr "Lieutenant" Shchigoliev. The band's name, which translates to "The King and the Jester," was adopted in 1992 after initially being known as Kontora. Korol i Shut began recording music in 1991 and released their first official album, Камнем по голове, in 1996 through Melodiya. Their unique blend of horror punk, folk punk, and art punk, along with lyrics inspired by Slavic mythology and horror stories, quickly gained them a following. The band's lead singer, Mikhail Gorsheniov, died of heart failure in July 2013. After a farewell tour, Korol i Shut officially disbanded in January 2014. In 2023, a TV miniseries titled Korol i Shut was released, combining the band's biography with adaptations of their folk horror stories, leading to a resurgence in their popularity.
