Speaker on club culture in Ukraine: “Independence of our culture”

Kiev’s club culture was just starting to make a name for itself when the war broke out. A conversation with Andrii Yankovskyi about short nights and packed dance floors.

Dancing in the HVLV club in Kiev: after the start of the war there were many parties that showed solidarity with Ukraine, but that has died down Photo: Ed Ram/Getty Images

wochentaz: Andrii Yankovskyi, you are the spokesperson of UNight, an association of the Kyiv club scene. Can you even speak about nightlife in Ukraine?

Andrei Yankovskyi: Due to the war, there is currently a midnight curfew, which makes the nights quite short. But yes, the scene is evolving and the effects after two and a half years of war are drastic. That is precisely why it is more important than ever that we support club culture.

The association was only founded last year. How would you describe your work?

After the large-scale Russian invasion in 2022, many attempts have been made to emphasize the autonomy of Ukrainian culture, from an exhibition of People’s Artist Maria Prymachenko to the rescue of ancient monuments. We believe that club culture and the electronic music scene are also part of this culture, just as it is part of many cultures around the world. And that the scene should be supported and protected accordingly. We want to raise money and awareness for this. The Berlin Club Commission was our great role model.

Before the Russian invasion in February 2022, Kiev was on its way to building an international reputation.

Absolutely. 2021 was actually the best year ever. Many in the West discovered the scene for the first time and our artists were recognized internationally for the first time. Ukraine was one of the first countries to allow public events after the Covid pandemic – and there are good clubs like “∄” and “Closer” with top sound systems and talented residents. So Kiev quickly became one Mecca for clubbers. The budget airlines from Western Europe are called Marschrutkas in our country, and the flights between Berlin and Kiev almost exclusively carried ravers. The Brave! Factory Festival that year attracted about 10,000 guests. I had a few friends in Western Europe who actually wanted to move to Kiev.

And then on February 24, 2022, Russia started attacking Ukraine, and not only the club scene stood still. What is the atmosphere in the scene two years later?

To be honest, poor. Clubs are open again and are organizing parties during the day because of the curfew. Entrance fees are usually donated to army units on the front. Because we want this war to end as soon as possible and our friends to come home safe and sound from Donbass. Some DJs are fighting in the war and unfortunately some of my acquaintances were killed.

In addition, there is the new mobilization law: men aged 25 and over must re-register with the army so that they can be mobilized if necessary. What does that do to the scene?

This leads to a lot of uncertainty: we do not yet know who will be called up and who will not. This will have consequences for many clubs. And fewer and fewer guests are coming, even though this is the case in many countries. The Mobilization Act will certainly continue this trend.

With what effects?

Big clubs like ∄ still have a full dance floor every weekend. But a club scene is like an ecosystem consisting of big and small venues. We need the smaller shops to let our artists grow organically, so that they can become headliners one day. And for that we need the guests. But now there is also a lack of managers and light show specialists, other important people who keep a scene going. That is why we now organize workshops for the next generation, for example.

You run one of these smaller stores, HVLV. How do you stay financially afloat?

We also donate access to units at the front. We can support our team and barely pay salaries, but there is no profit. We are still looking for funding, but there is no such thing for club culture in Ukraine. Instead, we have to cooperate with alcohol brands, which we did not do before.

In 2021, masked hooligans attacked your club with pepper spray and batons, chanting right-wing extremist and homophobic slogans. Other clubs were also targeted.

They broke our windows and claimed that drugs were being sold here and that our strange audience was turning children into demons, the usual far-right stories. They attacked some of our staff. This was also one of the reasons why the club scene started to network and an impetus for the creation of UNight, but the Russian invasion of 2022 got in the way of that. Whether these were really Nazis or paid thugs trying to coerce some business interests in the area remains speculation. We have no hard evidence.

How does the Ukrainian club scene deal with Russian DJs and labels?

There are activists who keep an eye on the line-ups of parties and festivals all over Europe to see if there are artists who are Russian or who continue to support Russia. They contact the promoters to invite them again. And of course, many of us want to see more Ukrainian names in international programs.

Do you think the boycott of Russian artists is justified?

I can’t speak for UNight here, only for myself.

OK.

I would prefer not to judge anyone by the color of their passport, because we can’t choose where we are born. But we didn’t choose this war either. Those who stay in Russia or travel there to DJ contribute to their militaristic economy. And that is a personal decision that must have consequences.

Have you experienced any solidarity from the electronic music scenes abroad since the Russian invasion?

Initially there were always solidarity parties for Ukraine, also in Berlin. But interest faded again. I think it is unfair if some people are bored with Ukraine now. Today, the international stage is mainly about Palestine. We live in a time when crises are only piling up. But we must not forget Ukraine.

How did the cultural sector respond?

At the beginning of the war Actually, a lot happened in the cultural field. There were new artists, new projects, new music. But that is slowly changing now. People are getting poorer because the economy is quite isolated. Many have also left the country. The situation on the front is getting more complicated and the mood is not so good at the moment.

What does the club scene in Ukraine stand for?

Of course, it is also a business. But we are united in standing up for democratic values, human rights, the queer community, feminism and peace. In this respect, the Ukrainian scene, like many other international scenes, is already political.