Public Project
Jetzt.de - “Now every night could be the last”
The beats boom below, Russian drones buzz above. The club scene in Kyiv is alive and kicking. Out and about in the backyards of a city where people continue to dance despite the war.
with the help of Hlib Fishchenko.
The thumping sound of electronic music wafts quietly through Podil, one of Kyiv’s oldest neighborhoods. It is a soundscape that is an integral part of the Ukrainian capital. In front of a large brick building, Roman Kurhan puts his hand on a door handle. He opens the door. Then another one. Suddenly, he finds himself in the middle of a large backyard. What was quietly pulsing outside now echoes loudly off all the walls. “Anastasiia is playing a set right now,” says Roman, a smile flitting across his face.
It could be a normal Wednesday in Kyiv. It was well on its way to becoming one of the most important clubbing destinations in Eastern Europe, on par with Berlin and Tbilisi. But nothing has been normal in Kyiv and Ukraine since the full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022. It’s war. The people of Kyiv are still partying and dancing – or perhaps because of it.
(…) Roman Kurhan remembers exactly how he felt when he played music for the first time after the invasion began: “It was strange because we no longer have a nightlife and all parties now take place during the day because of the curfew,” he says. But that was also the first time he realized: “This is not the end. We can fight. We can make art against this situation, against this war.” He thinks the worst thing for all artists in the first months of the war was the fear that the invasion could take their lives – and their music. Part of the admission fee goes to the Ukrainian military on most evenings. Sometimes to specific units, for specific equipment, often to friends who are fighting. (..)
24
