Doom 94

The novel begins on April 5, 1994, the death of Kurt Cobain, the lead singer and guitarist of Nirvana.[2] Cobain's death influences youngsters living in Jelgava, Latvia to begin listening to heavy metal music.[4] This is also the time that Latvia has recently regained its independence from the Soviet Union, causing economic and social upheaval. The book's main character Janis turns to the alternative lifestyle offered by an emergent heavy metal scene.[5]

Since 2016 the original book ‘’Jelgava 94’’ has already been translated into 9 languages – French,[6] Slovenian,[7] Norwegian,[8] Estonian,[9] Hungarian, Lithuanian,[10] English, Bulgarian [11] and Spanish.

Work on a film adaptation of the book called "Jelgava 94" began in 2017. The film was released in September 2019.[20][21][1] Movie scenes were filmed in many locations throughout Riga and Jelgava, and at a former school in Priekuļi Municipality. The main actor was Bruno Bitenieks who was a student at Riga Teika Secondary School.[22] The film received funding from the National Film Center and is supported by Jelgava Municipality. The film was produced by Jura Podnieka studija.[23]