‘Dance like there is no tomorrow’: Ukraine’s wartime music scene
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Lviv and Kiev, Ukraine – Boghdan Sulanov, the fast-talking singer of a heavy metal rock band called YAD, traverses a packed backstage area. He passes a guitarist who has just finished a high-octane, adrenaline-fueled set, drenching him in sweat, and reaches a small table full of audio equipment, tea, and biscuits. From under the table he fishes out a backpack with the clothes he will soon wear on stage.
The concert hall, an intimate venue in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv, is lined with music posters and one evening in early February is packed with hundreds of rock fans eagerly awaiting the next performance. The atmosphere is electric and Sulanov is excited.
“Young people didn’t value music in the same way before the war,” says the 33-year-old, referring to Russia’s large-scale invasion of his native Ukraine on February 24, 2022.
“Our band is always singing about our problems, and right now we want to survive,” says Sulanov, taking in the frenetic backstage atmosphere.
During the week, Sulanov works as a software developer, but in his spare time he is a rock star. “We all have to work, but we also need energy, and it can come from music!” he says, before politely apologizing to prepare for his set.
On stage, Bohdana Nykyforchyn, a 35-year-old singer with shoulder-length dyed red hair, yells into a microphone as her bandmate pounds on a drum kit.
Nykyforchyn takes the room through a range of emotions, alternating soft melodic tones and more aggressive, fast-paced vocals. At one point her voice breaks and it looks like she’s going to cry. After her set she explains why. “I’m eight months pregnant and it was my dream to climb this podium,” she says. “When the second song came on, I felt all my emotions bubbling up. My hormones are everywhere!”
Backstage, Sulanov has transitioned into his onstage persona, dressed all in white. His eyes peer through a balaclava with the words “not nice” on it.
The members of YAD run onto the stage and the audience, ranging from fresh-faced teens to middle-aged gray-haired rockers, erupts with excitement. The people in the front row scream the words to their songs, including a young boy who appears to be about 10 years old. The guitarist pauses from parading around the stage when he sees the boy and gives him a big thumbs up.
Marichka Chichkova, the event organizer who helps out at the bar, admits that although heavy metal is not her favorite genre of music, she is happy to see everyone enjoying themselves. She looks at the stage and notes: “It’s also a release for musicians; this is also very important”.