NOM is an acronym for the Russian "Neformalnoe Ob'edinenie Molodezhi" - "Informal Youth Organization" in English. Such term was widely used by the official soviet press in the early 90-s to name different groups of youngsters opposed to "Komsomol" (Young Communists Union). The band NOM was formed in that time in St. Petersburg by the group of students and former classmates. The name NOM was chosen as an alternative answer to the "serious" rock movement, which started to grow in St. Petersburg in the years of “perestroika". Using this mocking-ironical approach became the main creative method for the NOM's activity. Idiotization of dramatic life aspects and dramatization of the idiotic ones was the manifest with which NOM appeared on Leningrad rock stage in 1989. The band members never cared of the definition of their music style - the less borders the better. Thus in music they experiment from classic garage-rock to german electronic minimalism or comic opera. In lyrics they follow traditions of absurdic Russian poetry - from Kosma Prutkov to OBERIU D. Kharms, A. Vvedensky etc. And the well-known critic Artemy Troitsky called NOM "the last bastion of the ruthless Russian satire" which is true, especially nowadays.

In the period 1989-2025 NOM released 19 studio albums, 4 live albums and several albums of remixes and compilations. The NOM video collection was released on five DVDs. The band is quite active in live performances - both in Russia and in Europe. The band participated in numerous international music festivals such as Les Allummees (France), Sziget, Big Ear(Hungary), Art festival under the former Stalin's monument in Prague (Czech republic), Fusion (Germany), Linzfest (Austria), SKIF (Russia) etc. NOM video "Ukrblues” won the Grand Prix as the best low-budget video at MIDEM-96 music fair (Cannes, France).