Oleh Skrypka considers skipping the country if Yanukovych wins the presidency, and Speeding Lisa bass guitarist Nick Morris wants to promote young local bands by having them battle it out.
Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych win the presidency. The outspoken lead singer of group Vopli Vidoplyassova is one of a few Ukrainian musicians who have publicly discussed the election – but that’s perhaps not surprising given his status as a trustee for opposition politician Viktor Yushchenko, the PM’s main rival in this year’s presidential race.
Skrpyka said in the Nov. 3 interview that many Ukrainians are struggling with the idea of a Yanukovych government, adding that a victory by the former Donetsk governor would mean trouble for Ukrainian culture. “It’s a struggle for survival, even for the nation,” Skrpyka said of the Nov. 21 run-off election between Yanukovych and Yushchenko. “The way that people are talking these days, it would be the utter end of Ukraine.”
‘Battle of the Bands’ at 44?
It was quite the spectacle: forty-four bands playing 44-minute sets, all as part of a 44-hour birthday marathon at Art Club 44. Some of Ukraine’s most beloved bands, many of which owe their existence to Eric Aigner’s flagship club, played there over the weekend – a tribute to the place where they got their first big breaks. The party is over, but the talk continues, and one person who’s talking, and who helped lead off the 44-band assault, is Speeding Lisa bass guitarist Nick Morris. Morris is an advocate for young Ukrainian rockers, and he says Kyiv needs more live music venues for up and coming bands, and should encourage a local culture to nurture them.
To help do so, Morris is trying to organize a “Battle of the Bands” program. A “Battle of the Bands” series, Morris believes, would be a great way of providing exposure to a large number of young bands quickly and to promote the development of more live music venues in the Ukrainian capital. The most obvious venue for such shows would be 44 – Morris has said Aigner is keen on the idea – but the plan is only in its infancy and details, such as sponsorship, are still being worked out.
