{"id":195324,"date":"2025-06-18T20:46:12","date_gmt":"2025-06-18T20:46:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/195324\/"},"modified":"2025-06-18T20:46:12","modified_gmt":"2025-06-18T20:46:12","slug":"not-even-war-can-stifle-ukraines-punk-rock-spirit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/195324\/","title":{"rendered":"Not Even War Can Stifle Ukraine\u2019s Punk Rock Spirit"},"content":{"rendered":"

SCENE REPORT<\/a><\/p>\n

Not Even War Can Stifle Ukraine\u2019s Punk Rock Spirit<\/p>\n

By <\/p>\n

Joseph Gentile<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00b7
\n Illustration by <\/p>\n

Maria Contreras<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00b7
\n June 18, 2025<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\u201cSince February 24, 2022, the life of every Ukrainian has changed completely,\u201d says Dee Lav<\/a>, a punk musician living in Kyiv. \u201cEvery morning, we start by reading the news and asking about the condition of our friends and relatives. In addition to the fact that war brings physical injuries, it also brings psychological pressure, and whether you want it or not, it all settles in the subcortex of your brain. Daily atrocities from the Russian side\u2014photos of corpses, murders of children, threats of nuclear weapons\u2014these things do not allow us to live our \u2018best lives\u2019 because, looking at this, we understand that this could happen to any of us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dee Lav is just one of the many punk musicians continuing to make music in the war-torn country of Ukraine. For those outside of the battle zones, the fighting can seem like abstract soundbites on the six o\u2019clock news or maybe a 30-second read in the newspaper. For those living in Ukraine, however, the war means actual bombs being dropped on buildings, tanks rumbling down the street, surprise attack drones, and people being shot\u2014that is, they are feeling the effects of the war right now and every day.<\/p>\n

For example, Dee Lav\u2019s old pop-punk band, Cardinal Birds<\/a>, went on hiatus when their guitarist joined the Ukrainian armed forces. Meanwhile, Dee Lav\u2019s father joined the Voluntary Formation of the Territorial Community of the City of Kyiv in the first days of the full-scale war. He also later joined the Armed Forces and was sent to the Donetsk region, where he engaged in direct combat. The B-side to Dee Lav\u2019s first single<\/a> features recordings from the actual battlefield. (More on that later).<\/p>\n

Yet despite inner-city battles, a number of bands are finding music and punk more meaningful than ever. One of them is street-punk outfit Cios<\/a>. \u201cPunk is always relevant,\u201d they say in a collective statement. \u201cRight now, punk should be tearing into the madness around us. If Russian missiles don\u2019t wipe us out, we\u2019ll end up enslaved by American mining giants or global agri-corporations. Either way, someone\u2019s lining up to chew us up.\u201d<\/p>\n

To that end, Cios has addressed the war directly with their song \u201c24.02.22,<\/a>\u201d which offers a mix of anger and hopelessness. They say: \u201cThe morning of February 24, Russia launched its first massive missile strike across Ukraine. Their troops crossed the border in several places, military convoys rolled in, sirens started blaring, people were legging it from border towns, self-defense groups were forming, block posts were popping up, and paranoia about Russian agents was through the roof. Our song expresses a chaotic mess of emotions, snapshots, and impressions from those first few days. Back then, everything was chaos. No one had a clue what was coming next, but we all knew things would never go back to how they were.\u201d<\/p>\n

Noise-synth-punkers ZzuppamanN<\/a> share a similar perspective. Founder Hryhorii Vashchenkov says, \u201cWe are based in Sumy, a city located about 30 kilometers from the front line. Everything is felt intensely and vividly: air raid alerts can last more than a day; there are constant drone, missile, and aerial bomb attacks; civilian deaths, including children; overcrowded hospitals. Funerals of friends and relatives have become a terrifying routine. So if you really want to understand what\u2019s happening here, we invite you to visit us.\u201d<\/p>\n

The impact of Russia\u2019s invasion has made its way into Vashchenkov\u2019s music in similar fashion to how Cios and the other Ukrainian bands have found their art to be affected by the war: \u201cThe nuclear threat has been an inseparable part of Ukrainian life since Chernobyl,\u201d Vashchenkov says. \u201cWith Russia\u2019s invasion, we now live in a state of permanent expectation of new Hiroshimas and Nagasakis. This anxiety found expression in music.\u201d<\/p>\n

Psychobilly rockers Outer Space<\/a> concur. While Outer Space has a swinging, perhaps more lighthearted sound compared to their countrymates, their lives and music are equally affected by the battles. Vocalist Valerii Piskun says, \u201cEvery night, missiles and drones fly over us. We hear sirens, explosions, and machine gun fire. It\u2019s in Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, where about four million people now live, and this is happening all over the country. Cities where fighting is taking place are simply completely destroyed from the face of the earth.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yet Outer Space also feels that, in the wake of Russia\u2019s mounting threats, music and art are more relevant than ever. \u201cWe can only listen to music now,\u201d Valerii says. \u201cBooks, movies, work, nature, friends\u2026and music! These are the things that keep us from going crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Here are a few of the Ukrainian punk bands living through\u2014and making music in\u2014the middle of war.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Dee Lav started his solo project by releasing a single on the third anniversary of the Russian invasion. While his long-running band, Cardinal Birds, leaned more into radio-friendly pop punk, his solo project is directly political and more chaotic. A-side \u201cMy Russomisia is Stored in my Tits\u201d has direct, literal lyrics that read like an anarchic news report, contrasted with the GISM-esque vocal abstractions. Meanwhile, B-side \u201cThe Sounds of War\u201d is directly out of the Crass<\/a> playbook and samples a field recording of Russian bombs being dropped on Ukrainian soil, recorded by Dee Lav\u2019s father on the front lines. Whoa. Dee Lav says, \u201cFrom May 2022 to May 2023, my Dad and his comrades defended the territory of Ukraine from the Russian occupiers. Now my dad is demobilized, and now he is well known for creating FPV drones in his kitchen under the nickname \u2018Sergeant Kit.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

If you couldn\u2019t tell by the band name (or the logo or their most recent album cover) Subscum is HEAVILY influenced by early Napalm Death<\/a>\u2014and it rules. Grounded in grindcore, the band flips between super-fast punk-metal and simple noise destruction. This year\u2019s Massgrave Summit<\/a> is one of the band\u2019s most focused and ripping releases\u2014it\u2019s too bad the inspiration for the record is what it is as Subscum dwells on the carnage inflicted by Russia upon the Ukrainian population. Indeed, as the band states, \u201cAll proceeds from this album will be donated to the victims of the Russian imperialist war against Ukraine.\u201d<\/p>\n

The band\u2019s Vlad says of the release, \u201cThis album is shaped entirely by the world we live in today\u2014a world defined by war, loss, anxiety, and disbelief. It\u2019s about injustice, the collapse of shared values, inequality, and the constant feeling of screaming into a void. We\u2019re channeling the daily emotional burden of living in a country under attack. Every day brings new tragedies\u2014bombed hospitals, destroyed schools, entire families killed in their sleep by long-range missiles. Over time, even this horror starts to feel like routine.\u201d<\/p>\n

Vlad also reflects on how grindcore itself\u2014traditionally a radical and anti-war metal subgenre\u2014has become more relevant than ever: \u201cMany people in the Ukrainian punk scene\u2014some of whom used to play in the bands, organize shows or run DIY labels\u2014are now on the frontlines. They hate war, but they also understand the necessity of defending their homes and communities. At the same time, it\u2019s frustrating to hear people outside Ukraine repeat narratives that suggest we should surrender in order to stop the war. That\u2019s not pacifism; that\u2019s erasure. We need support, weapons, and solidarity to preserve freedom and the possibility of any kind of future here. It\u2019s also important to acknowledge how damaging it is when people romanticize the Soviet Union simply because it\u2019s anti-capitalist. For us, as people whose families and culture suffered under that regime, its symbols are no different than those of fascism.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The influence of NYHC and the mid-\u201980s hardcore scene has spread far and wide in the past few decades, eventually making its way to Ukraine\u2019s HOMESICK. After 15 years as a band, HOMESICK make no bones about being influenced by CBGB\u2019s matinees. Their Concreto\u00a0<\/a>EP is packed with rumbling riffs and barked vocals, and it even has a song called \u201cShelter.\u201d Yet, quite interestingly, after Russia\u2019s invasion, they released a folk punk track called \u201cUnder the Sirens.\u201d<\/a> That track calls for resilience and unity in the face of an advancing enemy and, quite importantly, ends with a note of optimism.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Given Devo\u2019s status as the pioneers of egg punk, and the Midwest\u2019s central role in the lo-fi synth scene, it\u2019s kind of shocking to hear a primitive-synth band come from the place that used to be the home base of the Cossacks. It\u2019s even more shocking how good they are, especially on 2024\u2019s BIG MESS,<\/a> a barbed, bouncy, and hilarious EP. The lead track just completely tears into the modern A.I. hell: \u201cYou are just a sick son of a bitch\/ I hope you fucking die\/ A.I. fuck you!\u201d The remainder of the EP is just as fun and sardonic as they stack vitriolic contemplation on top of some really catchy tunes.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Do you enjoy the new wave of spooky-ish punk-ish bands like Devil Master<\/a>, Zorn<\/a>, Spiter<\/a>, and Poison Ru\u00efn<\/a>? Then you will love \u041f\u043e\u0433\u0430\u043d\u044c (\u201cBad\u201d)\u2014their new EP, \u0412\u043e\u0440\u043e\u0436\u0431\u0430 (Divination)<\/a> is completely coated in lo-fi black metal echo and bleakness, riding a clanging hardcore punk undertow; their lyrics are all about witches and spells and vampires and curses. Between the deadpan growling and John Carpenter synths, it\u2019s not clear if the band is having fun or if they are deadly serious, which is probably the point.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

. <\/p>\n

00:10 \/ 00:58<\/p>\n

Cios are full-on street punk with a direct message. \u201cThere\u2019s no such thing as a normal life anymore,\u201d says the band. \u201cRussia is killing people every day\u2014on the frontlines and with missiles hitting cities all across Ukraine. In the east, civilians, including kids, are dying from rocket strikes every day. There\u2019s a proper meat grinder at the front. And in the rear, the Ukrainian recruitment offices are snatching men off the street to send them to the frontlines with nothing but their arses hanging out. Everyone\u2019s got mates or relatives out there fighting, and every day is just worry and fear. We\u2019ve all lost someone, either killed or seriously wounded. So, forget about stable jobs, family life, culture, or politics. The only stable thing is the constant anxiety.\u201d<\/p>\n

While some of the band\u2019s contemporaries have a more hopeful message, Cios\u2019s perspective seems to be a bit bleaker: \u201cIf the war does pause, we\u2019re looking at two crap options: Either local gang wars over business and power, or some authoritarian military-style dictatorship. Neither sounds great.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Death Pill started out as a sort of riot grrrl band, but quickly incorporated hardcore, metal, and even thrash into their music. Despite the war, they\u2019ve been working on a new LP (only one member lives in Ukraine right now, in part due to the battles). The upcoming Sologamy <\/a>doubles down on the band\u2019s metal influences. The lead single, \u201cCraterface<\/a>,\u201d twists like a thrash track while the band details personal challenges: \u201cIt\u2019s not a game\/ I\u2019ll be your self-destruction!\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

. <\/p>\n

00:10 \/ 00:58<\/p>\n

While Mauser is unashamedly based in hardcore, they pull from that genre\u2019s late \u201880s and early \u201890s forms, a callback to when bands weren\u2019t afraid to get a little weird. (They covered Bad Brains\u2019s \u201cHouse of Suffering\u201d<\/a>\u2014a left-field deep cut as opposed to one of the classic 60-second slammers\u2014not too long ago.) \u201c\u0422\u0440\u0438\u0432\u043e\u0433\u0430\u201d (Anxiety)<\/a> starts with an atmospheric rumble before shifting into an almost jazzy section, then transforming into a \u201860s-rock-god guitar solo. The band\u2019s sound constantly morphs, but their political rage is consistent, as illustrated by the lyrics to the aforementioned song: \u201cWhy do you conquer other people\u2019s borders?\/ Bringing about the death of millions\/ This is a dictator\u2019s game with a historical context\/ Outside the text, a typical tactic of imperial growth!\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

. <\/p>\n

00:10 \/ 00:58<\/p>\n

If you couldn\u2019t tell by the name, ZzuppamanN is pure noise and chaos. Their new EP, Tliiem<\/a>, is one of their more challenging releases. According to the band, the release follows the five stages of grief as detailed in the Kubler-Ross model. Lead track \u201cYoutubu\u201d has traces of the Screamers\u2019 synth-punk destruction, but it also has a robotic big band section and a portion that could be an \u201880s dance hit\u2014if there weren\u2019t grinding gears wreaking havoc in the background.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Who knew that Ukraine had a vibrant psychobilly scene? Well, they did. The genre took off in the \u201890s with foundational bands Freno De Pedales<\/a>, Shakin\u2019 Guts<\/a>, OT VINTA<\/a>, and Mad Heads<\/a>; it was solidified in 2005 with the advent of the Ukrabilly BANG festival,<\/a> which attracted psychobilly bands and fans from all over Ukraine and abroad. Outer Space keep that tradition going strong with their fast-rockin\u2019, hard-clackin\u2019 bounce, showcased most recently on 2024\u2019s Nightwork<\/a>. As a result of the war, the band is on indefinite hiatus; vocalist and double bassist Valerii Piskun is currently in the Ukrainian army defending the country.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe understand that the world is tired of this war. Everyone just wants to live their lives, have fun, go to concerts, and drink beer. And we are tired too,\u201d Piskun says. \u201cThis is a very terrible and unjust war, the only goal of which is to ensure that there is no more such a country as Ukraine, to destroy everything Ukrainian. But thanks to the help of world countries and the courage of our soldiers, we have been holding the blow for the fourth year. So, we call on the world not to stop this support, because only force can stop Putin. Ukraine is a free and democratic country on its hard way from the Russian Empire to the European Union, but we will overcome this path. We paid too big a price for our freedom to lose. Ukraine cannot lose.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"SCENE REPORT Not Even War Can Stifle Ukraine\u2019s Punk Rock Spirit By Joseph Gentile \u00b7 Illustration by Maria…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":195325,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7654],"tags":[2000,299,657],"class_list":{"0":"post-195324","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-ukraine","8":"tag-eu","9":"tag-europe","10":"tag-ukraine"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114706329422384772","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/195324","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=195324"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/195324\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/195325"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=195324"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=195324"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=195324"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}