Truthfully, I’m not sure what to do or how to help. Is it hurtful to share good news and talk about “enjoying the gig” right now? Or are those ideals more important than ever? The best I could come up with was this: a list of Ukrainian musicians for us to listen to and support directly via Bandcamp. I’m confident they’ll best know how to use the money. If nothing else, their incredible music made my day a bit brighter. Other than asserting this is a tragedy and Putin is a monster, I won’t analyze the situation because I am nowhere near informed on the geo-political history. Fortunately my friend Matthew Waterman is and wrote this insightful piece.
Note: the following band descriptions are pulled directly from the artists’ websites.
DZ’OB
DZ’OB is an electroacoustic band from Dnipro, Ukraine striving to combine classical music tradition with contemporary electronic approach. DZ’OB not only synthesizes genres like classics, IDM, techno, dubstep, but also comes up with unique, eclectic sounds that blur the lines within ages, and traditions.
DakhaBrakha
DakhaBrakha — is world-music quartet from Kyiv, Ukraine. Reflecting fundamental elements of sound and soul, Ukrainian «ethnic chaos» band DakhaBrakha, create a world of unexpected new music.
The name DakhaBrakha is original, outstanding and authentic at the same time. It means «give/take» in the old Ukrainian language.
DakhaBrakha was created in 2004 at the Kyiv Center of Contemporary Art «DAKH» by the avant-garde theatre director — Vladyslav Troitskyi. Theatre work has left its mark on the band performances — their shows have never been staged without the scenic effects.
Valentin Silvestrov
Valentin Silvestrov (1937) is a Ukrainian composer of contemporary classical music, increasingly regarded as one of the finest composers of his generation.
Using traditional tonal and modal techniques, Silvestrov creates a unique and delicate tapestry of dramatic and emotional textures, qualities which Silvestrov suggests are otherwise sacrificed in much of contemporary music.
Dakh Daughters
Already well known to the public as actresses of the DAKH Theatre in Kyiv, Ukraine band members ended up on the neutral ground in between musical genre and dramatic art, in the right experimentally-creative space. Song lyrics of these semi-fairytale fairies are based on classical Ukrainian poetry, Nobel-prize winners, their own works and fragments of popular hits of the past.
Panivalkova
Сute female trio from the heart of Ukraine.
Sasha Boole
Sasha Boole – folk-singer, songwriter and performer of the blues, country, folk and ragtimes. Plays the guitar, harmonica and banjo. Intended to sell his soul to the devil in exchange for a tremendous success and global domination, but it didn’t work out quite well. That is why he was obliged to achieve everything by himself.