{"id":3742,"date":"2025-12-28T09:25:11","date_gmt":"2025-12-28T06:25:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nottoday.media\/en\/?p=3742"},"modified":"2025-12-28T09:25:13","modified_gmt":"2025-12-28T06:25:13","slug":"so-much-grief-and-suffering-have-built-up-now-that-theres-no-dilemma-if-i-can-go-and-it-lifts-my-spirits-that-will-already-be-a-victory-conversation-with","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nottoday.media\/en\/activism\/so-much-grief-and-suffering-have-built-up-now-that-theres-no-dilemma-if-i-can-go-and-it-lifts-my-spirits-that-will-already-be-a-victory-conversation-with","title":{"rendered":"\u201cSo much grief and suffering have built up now that there\u2019s no dilemma \u2014 if I can go and it lifts my spirits, that will already be a victory\u2026\u201d Conversation with Khrystyna and Siarhei. Part II"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>In the second part of our conversation about techno during the war, we talked about what the rave scene in Ukraine looks like today: where new clubs are appearing, how international artists support the community, and whether night-time underground parties continue to exist. We also learned how the culture copes with loss and exhaustion\u2014and whether the sound of Ukrainian techno has changed under war conditions. And, of course, we continue to listen to contemporary Ukrainian DJs.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Which spaces are operating now? Where do parties take place\u2014clubs, squats, alternative venues?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Serhiy:<\/strong> New locations have appeared on the scene\u2014the so-called &#8220;Kudriavka.&#8221; This is a former industrial zone where more and more clubs have been opening recently\u2014including BRUKXT and others. The place came alive after the start of the full-scale war and became a new center for parties. Previously, everyone gathered at Nyzhniourivska\u2014the classic locations. But now more and more people are choosing Kudriavka. Although Yurivska is still holding on, especially among the youth. Also, during the great war, the festival of independent music and culture &#8220;Brudnyi Pes&#8221; (Dirty Dog) emerged in Kyiv.<\/p>\n<p>As for the artists\u2014strong international names are visiting.<\/p>\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>For example, DJ Setaoc Macc\u2014a world-renowned artist, producer, and label owner\u2014often performs in Ukraine. Huge respect to him for the support.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Mama Snake from Amsterdam also visits. Both regularly play here even during the war.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-soundcloud wp-block-embed-soundcloud\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"PENTANE CAST #06 W\/ BADWOR7H 02\/09\/2022 by Gasoline Radio\" width=\"500\" height=\"400\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"no\" src=\"https:\/\/w.soundcloud.com\/player\/?visual=true&#038;url=https%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F1337490796&#038;show_artwork=true&#038;maxheight=750&#038;maxwidth=500\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>In which cities is the scene active now? How does the atmosphere differ, for example, in Kyiv, Lviv, Kharkiv, and Odesa?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Khrystyna:<\/strong> I haven&#8217;t been to parties outside of Kyiv since the start of the great war, but friends coming from other cities say it&#8217;s less active but more diverse there. Lviv has become very active now\u2014many people have moved there, and the city is shelled less frequently. Perhaps it&#8217;s more convenient for DJs to go there\u2014it&#8217;s closer to the border, the trip isn&#8217;t as long as to Kyiv or Odesa, and it&#8217;s safer. As clich\u00e9 as it sounds, everything is now measured by how many minutes it takes for a ballistic missile to arrive.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Serhiy:<\/strong> Yes, after Kyiv, Lviv is in second place. We haven&#8217;t been there ourselves since 2022, but we know that raves are happening there and the scene is developing.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/nottoday.media\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/000067960024_2_11zon-1024x679.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4008\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Photo &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/polyvision.film#\">polyvision.film<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><strong>Are there currently underground raves in Ukraine that take place outside of clubs?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Khrystyna:<\/strong> Illegal night raves might exist, but I don&#8217;t know about them and haven&#8217;t attended. Right now, I don&#8217;t want to violate the curfew or the law\u2014that is my social responsibility. Night shellings are heavier, and the movement ban is in effect until 5 AM, so protest raves are prohibited. Personally, I\u2019m not into it right now due to safety concerns. It&#8217;s often hard to find the mood to go even to a daytime party\u2014constant stress, bad news. Raving requires a certain mood that is often missing now, especially after horrific shellings and casualties.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Serhiy:<\/strong> We heard that in Lviv there are people organizing night raves, but we weren&#8217;t there and don&#8217;t know exactly where or who is organizing them. There are rumors that to catch a certain wave, you have to go to Lviv and develop it there. As for new places opening? For example, in Kharkiv, a new club called &#8220;Underground&#8221; appeared in a basement, despite the proximity to the border and shellings. In Odesa, the rave situation has worsened, but where something does happen\u2014it still happens.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-soundcloud wp-block-embed-soundcloud\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"BEFORE THE CURFEW \u2471 SETAOC MASS by \u2204 (K41) \/ Standard Deviation\" width=\"500\" height=\"400\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"no\" src=\"https:\/\/w.soundcloud.com\/player\/?visual=true&#038;url=https%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F1875711537&#038;show_artwork=true&#038;maxheight=750&#038;maxwidth=500\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>How are parties currently combined with volunteering, fundraising, and activism?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Khrystyna: <\/strong>I think that right now, no party happens without donations. Everyone is donating and everyone is volunteering. I really don&#8217;t know of a party where funds aren&#8217;t being raised, where QR codes for collections aren&#8217;t posted, or where something isn&#8217;t being raffled off. Everyone is actively involved because the rave scene consists of politically and socially conscious people. It couldn&#8217;t be any other way. I can&#8217;t even imagine this rave crowd if it closed its eyes to everything happening. I probably wouldn&#8217;t go there anymore. It certainly wouldn&#8217;t be the place we go to and feel a sense of belonging to.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Have you had internal conflicts\u2014is it okay to dance during a war? How do you resolve these moral dilemmas?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Khrystyna:<\/strong> For the first few months, there were no parties, and I couldn&#8217;t imagine how I could go and enjoy music. Later, the situation began to change: more parties appeared, and people began to accept it. But there was always a moral dilemma\u2014is it appropriate to have fun now, do I have the right? In recent years, I realized that I do. In these conditions\u2014constant night alerts, war stress, loss\u2014if I have the strength to go to a rave and feel a little bit of happiness, it is very important. I don&#8217;t judge those who go to raves, and I want to tell those who criticize from abroad: live here, and you will understand. Previously, raving for me was an expression of freedom and protest\u2014I could dress boldly, even topless. Now, so much grief and suffering have accumulated that there is no dilemma\u2014if I can go and it lifts my mood, it&#8217;s a victory. This is my position of strength.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/nottoday.media\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_9298_4_11zon-576x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4009\" style=\"width:840px;height:auto\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Photo &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/polyvision.film#\">polyvision.film<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><strong>How does the rave community cope with losses, trauma, and fatigue? What helps you hold on?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Khrystyna:<\/strong> I don&#8217;t know exactly what helps\u2014just some kind of human strength in faith. Faith in a better future, that good will triumph, in humanity and dignity. We are fighting here for freedom and dignity\u2014these are our key values. Perhaps that is what helps, although sometimes it doesn&#8217;t. There are no recipes because the situation is very complex\u2014not just psychologically.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Has the sound of Ukrainian techno changed since February 24? Which genres, approaches, or images have become dominant?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Serhiy:<\/strong> Since the start of the full-scale war, the sound has changed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>Since daytime parties have become more frequent, the focus has shifted toward more calm and everyday music.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>There was a moment when a Berlin DJ I know came to visit, and I asked why he was playing something different from what he produces\u2014house and disco instead of more energetic tracks. He replied that this is exactly the kind of music that fits the parties and the atmosphere. The music has changed; at Kyrylivska, they play more disco because this format attracts more people.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-soundcloud wp-block-embed-soundcloud\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Cxema w\/ Cantrust  091023 by NTS 2023\" width=\"500\" height=\"400\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"no\" src=\"https:\/\/w.soundcloud.com\/player\/?visual=true&#038;url=https%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F1636526157&#038;show_artwork=true&#038;maxheight=750&#038;maxwidth=500\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>How do you view the Western scene\u2014is it sufficiently solidary? Were there examples of real support?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Khrystyna:<\/strong> Honestly, I am so immersed in the existential problems of my country\u2014they are so massive that I simply lack the time and energy to follow what is happening in Europe. It\u2019s not very interesting to me and doesn\u2019t touch me. Although some things reach us\u2014for example, how events were held in Kyiv or Berlin\u2014I don&#8217;t get involved in those conflicts and dilemmas. We have enough to do here in Ukraine. Of course, there are reasonable people abroad; let them do as they see fit. For me, it\u2019s not a priority or a dilemma right now\u2014whether there is a real effect or what happens in Europe doesn&#8217;t bother me.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What does rave culture mean now for those in the scene?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Khrystyna: <\/strong>It is self-expression that is part of an identity where people can be themselves, be sincere, and freely express their homosexuality or belonging to LGBTQ+ culture, which is also very important. Of course, how could it be otherwise? This place is a kind of safe space, and that is important.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Serhiy: <\/strong>Rave is a space not only for the LGBTQ+ community and those who support it. Your identity or gender doesn&#8217;t matter here; what matters are the values you share and how you see the future.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In the second part of our conversation about techno during the war, we talked about what the rave scene in Ukraine looks like today: where new clubs are appearing, how international artists support the community, and whether night-time underground parties continue to exist. We also learned how the culture copes with loss and exhaustion\u2014and whether [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3743,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[33],"class_list":["post-3742","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-activism","tag-listening-in-emigration"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nottoday.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3742","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nottoday.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nottoday.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nottoday.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nottoday.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3742"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/nottoday.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3742\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3744,"href":"https:\/\/nottoday.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3742\/revisions\/3744"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nottoday.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3743"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nottoday.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3742"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nottoday.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3742"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nottoday.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3742"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}