It was in last winter. A tree growing near the road caught my attention as I was returning to the city. The photo was taken with a smartphone, [in this place.](https://www.google.ru/maps/@55.2732422,60.8877279,3a,75y,274.76h,91.94t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sgUbJRoylaflPbt1a-NJbmw!2e0!7i13312!8i6656)<br>
<center>[![atree-100.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmbSLyP3roLxqzxpb1dKMvu7PaArPbn9A5eYb4hReNgAMm/atree-100.jpg)](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmbSLyP3roLxqzxpb1dKMvu7PaArPbn9A5eYb4hReNgAMm/atree-100.jpg)</center>
[The Southern Ural,](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Ural) Russia.
Febraury, 2018.
...
<center><h6>@alexanderfluke's pics
for the #monomad contest hosted by @monochromes
click on the photo to open in full size</h6></center>
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<center><h6>music bonus:<br>
«A tree»
written and performed by [The Grus](http://thegrus.com/)
[(«Harvest» 2016)](https://thegrus.bandcamp.com/album/harvest)<br>
<center>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIt8RDmLb54</center>
<center><h6>In another life
I wanna be a tree
That will grow so high 
With the root so deep
With the root so deep
...<br>
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<h6>[The Grus](http://thegrus.com/) is a Russian trip-hop duo consisting of singer Alexandra (Shura) Zhuravleva and multi-instrumentalist musician Sergey Semenov [(Simon Gendor).](https://www.discogs.com/artist/4455626-Simon-Gendor) They live in [a village near Tver](https://www.google.com/maps/@56.7372166,36.0456942,1238m/data=!3m1!1e3) and create experimental electronic music using old instruments, analog synthesizers, as well as the sounds of nature and the voices of birds living next door to their home. The song «А Tree» which I used as a musical accompaniment to the post, is the seventh song of the second album of The Grus, [«Harvest» (2016).](https://thegrus.bandcamp.com/album/harvest)<br><br>
<blockquote><sup>«We tried to give the songs a chamber sound, to create the feeling that this album sounds exactly for you. It's like you're listening to it on an old tape recorder, it's raining outside and you're feeling really good».</sup></blockquote><br>
Why are they called The Grus? It's simple. The surname of the singer is Zhuravleva, the Russian root of this word is «zhuravl», in English translation is «crane» which means <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grus_(genus)">«grus»</a> (apparently, in Latin).<br><br>
Anyone who likes trip-hop, I strongly recommend listening to The Grus. The melancholy sound of their songs is sometimes exactly what you need.<br><br>
Yours, <a href="https://steemit.com/introduceyourself/@alexanderfluke/alexander-fluke-traveller-introduce">Alexander F.</a><br>...</h6>
https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmZSWAio5mNoVDvj8Tt13EmXTU37d1devfjZDDzuqd4VJg/afdiv2.png</center>