Amidst The War, Kyivs Leading Techno Club Reopens For One Night: ‘The Crowd Today Is Different
kyiv, Ukraine - "Respect my borders," states a large entry stamp, in bold under paragraph.
Here, a large courtyard is flanked by century-old dilapidated brick buildings on one side and yellow-painted stainless steel additions on the other. Techno knocks on the open door of the building - the leading techno club in kyiv, Ukraine.
The place has no official name. Located on the edge of an old brewery in kyiv, the club logo and certification mark are used in high-level calculations to show the meaning of the infinite formula. It also reflects the club's need for self-promotion: none. With pronunciation and phonetic references, the kyiv tech community knows a nickname that combines a street name and a building number in the form "K41".
And based on the meaning of the symbol, club team members don't want to be involved in the bigger club story; they prefer to remain anonymous and stand for the place and the community. "Instead, we are all part of the group ", several group members told Billboard .
While originally meant to remind guests that there is a possible world within the club where personal boundaries must be respected and maintained, the incoming mandate took on new meaning following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February. . It reminds us that Ukraine is waging an existential struggle for its existence.
The Ongoing Invasion ended the final season, Dance.Delivery, two days before it was scheduled to premiere last February. But on October 15, after nearly eight months of war, it opened its doors in kyiv for the first time, resuming the canceled season, demonstrating Ukraine's resilience during the war.
Hundreds of clubbers took to the dance floor at the event on October 15, most dressed in black. For many, going to a club for the first time in eight months offers an outlet for the excitement and relaxation that comes from dancing together. "Today's crowd is different," said one Team member. Sensitive light fills the space. "Less naked," he said. “Maybe because it's the first event, or maybe because of today's music; It's more stable," he said.
Most of the original structure of the building has been preserved. The dance floor and sound system is located in the brewery complex, part of a building that comprises nine different dance areas and can accommodate a total of over 15,000 customers. Original logo tiles from the 1870s with sparkling glass and DJ booths and the hole where the once large copper brewing tank has been converted into a large pool-like lounging area.
The battlefield is hundreds of kilometers from the Ukrainian capital. And with the city gradually removing checkpoints made of concrete and sandbags, as well as metal car barriers that have been in place since the Russian occupation began, the decision to go ahead and resume the interrupted season will not be easy.
On October 10, just days before the planned reopening, explosions rocked the Ukrainian capital in the early hours of the morning as Russian missiles and rockets hit civilian targets in Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities. At least eight people were killed and many injured in the terror attack in kyiv. The band struggles with the desire to revive techno in kyiv. Can you restart the canceled Dance.Delivery season? Should they continue the show?
Ukraine is now under martial law, which provides the necessary legal framework to contain wartime movements in response to the Russian invasion. Men of military age are barred from leaving the country and large gatherings such as sporting events are banned.
Determined to move on, Team members decide to complete their first dance class. Delivery With several hundred attendees, they decided to keep the event open, only opening one venue to keep the event intimate and jeopardize the safety of the guests. . And instead of hosting the usual evening events, the venue opens in the afternoon and closes until 10pm to avoid a city-wide curfew in Kyiv.
It must also overcome practical barriers. In the early days of the Russian occupation, the team used the concrete and thick brick architecture of an old brewery and turned the building into an Erstez bomb shelter and temporary housing for refugees. Audio equipment and DJ booths have been moved to make room for bunk beds and sofas.
One sound engineer expressed concern that audio equipment might fail due to exposure to moisture if stored for nearly eight months. "We have a backup generator, citing a small but real possibility of an explosion somewhere in the city in case of a power outage or some other reason," he said. We'll be fine. "
The first Dance.Delivery was far from normal, but it was a huge and overwhelming success. As evening turned to night, dancers gradually filled the crowd, fresh young faces mingling with the crowd of veterans, all making their way to the stage by Ukrainian artists Cantrust and Human Margareeta. He won three types of clothing: black and white, leather and mesh, and not too much.
A small but growing scene.
The Ukrainian techno scene is smaller than other European cities, but growing, and with less enthusiasm. Although relatively new, it offers a kind of relaxed atmosphere for those who enjoy Berlin or London's techno community. In an old kyiv brewery, clubbers and dancers enjoy the freedom of music, dance and community, limited only by the restrictions that other diners have set, boundaries that are strictly guarded.
For Vlad Shasta, a 20-year-old drag queen and one of the biggest club ensembles, is a place with deep meaning — and not just for music. “Before opening K41, I never felt like I belonged where I belonged,” Shasta explains in between moments on the dance floor. Shast in 2010 When it opened in 2019, it would become and will be closely related to , a word that translates to "lust" and the name of a series of regular queer parties the club held prior to the Russian invasion.
“I can show my inner creator and be fully accepted by the people around me. I can totally be myself," she said of , twisting the hem of the open mesh dress she made in February before the Russian invasion, especially when she was ejected for the first dance. After the war started [the club] I didn't realize how much it meant to me," added Shasta, removing his homemade black tie headdress.
But, he admits, at first, after the missile strike, he couldn't imagine returning to . "I thought I was dancing in people's graves," he said.
After lengthy discussions with organizers and friends, Schast concluded that recovery was a top priority. After the missile attack on the capital, "the focus is on the dead," said Shasta. And while this is understandable for a society that has been confronted head-on with the challenges of war, he said, "We have to focus on life."
Shasta applauds the decision to continue with the work. "It was in the middle of the party that I fully felt what Russia had taken from me," said Shchas. The attack then took away "my ability to share my art, my ability to connect with my people, my ability to connect with my community."
To her, tonight on the dance floor was a celebration of life, not a memorial of death.
Equivalent to Berghain and German ravers.
This place has deep ties to Germany. The founders inspired the team that designed the world's technology capital, Berghain Berlin, for the space. In 2020 and 2021, Berliners flocked to kyiv over the weekend to escape Germany's strict lockdown and shut down Berlin's techno clubs.
Thanks to the unique nature of the techno scene and the international audience that drew it into orbit (international artists have performed there, including LSDXOXO, Ben UFO and DJ Stingray), the club distributed flyers in Ukrainian and English to Party attendees. It explains how different drugs interact when taken together, how to prevent overdose and hangovers, and how to navigate binge sexuality. Another fact sheet explains in detail what to do if you are stopped by the police, civil rights, and how Ukrainian police interact with people on the street.
Some members of the group sought refuge in Berlin during the first days of the Russian occupation. And while Germany is grateful for its initial support for Ukrainians fleeing the war, many Ukrainians who come to Germany describe their stay as disappointing, even disappointed.
“I thought Europeans were very special before the Russian invasion,” explains one of the group over a beer at a bar. "Affordable health insurance and a high standard of living" is definitely something to admire, he said as he sipped his beer and placed it on the table. But now I know that Ukraine has privileges.
When I asked why, he looked at me. In this war, "Ukraine knows that pacifism is not an option," he said, expressing disillusionment in some European countries, especially Germany, which is often heard in Ukraine.
In particular, there is much frustration with demands for arms deployments and calls for immediate peace: many say members of the group are increasingly losing touch with the realities of the battlefield in Ukraine. War crimes are on the rise in recently liberated cities.
Although some of the team's roughly 130 members are still abroad, many have returned to Ukraine, an internal journey that has taken them to the warring country. There were many reasons for his return, but a member of the group at the bar said some of his security personnel had enlisted in the Ukrainian army and were now fighting on the front lines.
Throw away everything you have to put your friends and family first. This first Dance.Deliver event eventually raised 150,855 Ukrainian hryvnia (approximately $4,100) in donations. The money was donated to the Ukrainian volunteer paramedical organization Hospitals Paramedic Group.
Two days after the opening of the first part of the dance performance, another series of explosions rocked central Kyiv, destroying important cultural sites, the city's main power plant and other non-military infrastructure. The attack left at least four people dead and dozens injured, a sign that, while seemingly normal over the weekend, the country's conflict is not over.
"Our building survived two world wars," said one Team member. "I hope he survives this war." But despite the alarms and explosions, for one night good and kyiv was alive and dancing.
