Scheduling an interview with alternative rockers Green Grey, I was told by band manager Maks Tsyvina that I could talk to either Diesel or Murick but not both, since they never give interviews together. After meeting with Murick, I understood why.
There is simply not enough space in one interview for both of their high-spirited and frequently overbearing personalities.
Diesel (whose real name is Andry Yatsenko) and Murick (Dmytro Muravytsky) met at an amateur-band competition 15 years ago, when, coincidentally, they were both studying nursing in different Kyiv schools.
“The first time I saw Diesel, he was up on stage playing a heavy-metal arpeggio,” recalled Murick.
After going on to play with two rival bands, the pair eventually became friends. And it was from that friendship that Green Grey emerged, with a little help from producer Mikhail Churakov, better known as Michael.
In the early 1990s when Ukraine gained its independence, Michael began searching for an alternative music band to work with.
“Something like, say, the Red Hot Chili Peppers,” he explained, “but singing in a language everyone understood – in Russian.”
So, in 1994, Michael teamed up with Green Grey, which had formed two years earlier. The producer came in and made some big changes, and the resulting line-up saw Diesel in the role of guitarist-composer, Murick as vocalist-lyricist, Jean on keyboards, Peter on bass, Maly on drums and DJ Shalom rounding out the sound.
Green Grey made its public debut at the Youth Day music festival in the summer of 1994, when more than 150,000 people came together for the outdoor concert in Spivoche Pole. Green Grey was among the headliners.
“It was our first serious public concert – and what an audience!” recalled Murick. “I still didn’t know any of stage tricks, like how to capture the people’s attention, what movements to make – my knees were shaking.”
Green Grey’s performance struck a chord with the crowd, however, and the band became an overnight success.
“It was the time when Ukraine had just become independent, and Ukrainians turned their eyes toward Europe,” explained Michael. “The borders opened and Western music and fashion – grunge, techno, unisex – flooded Ukraine.
“The feeling of freedom made people dizzy, and Green Grey entered the scene on the wave of this excitement.”
Green Grey came as a shock to many. Adults smirked at Diesel’s braids and Murick’s orange-tinted sunglasses, while teenagers raved about them and imitated their style. The band’s music – a fusion of rock and hip-hop – especially appealed to the teens, as hip-hop was just becoming part of a burgeoning urban culture.
Green Grey became just as fashionable as baggy pants, break-dancing and DJs spinning discs. The band was among those who brought new, and sometimes outrageous, fashion and slang to the youth of Ukraine.
Their lyrics touched on the usual love-hate themes but were also often profane and undeniably appealing. Not as corny or shallow as the pop tunes produced by many of their contemporaries, Green Grey also came up with an assortment of beautifully arranged songs which revolved around everyday life.
One of Green Grey’s most popular hits was “Mazafaka,” a melancholy song about the onset of autumn. It features rapster-style verses, clever wordplay and a chorus comprised of a single English-language obscenity. Green Grey did not count on “Mazafaka” taking off like it did, but their fans felt differently.
“People told us it was a song ‘about life,’ almost like a Russian folk song,” explained Murick. “It’s especially meaningful for people living in the north – yesterday it was still summer and today you wake up and see the leaves falling and cold rain, and only curses come to mind.”
Green Grey gave another memorable performance in 1997 at the Sports Palace. In fact, the concert was more of a competition between funky Green Grey and the hugely popular Russian pop band Ivanushki International. The only thing the two groups had in common was that they shared the top spots in the music charts.
“Two hours before the concert it was impossible to get through the crowds in the street, recalled producer Michael. “The Sports Palace walls were shaking, and there were 16,000 people there instead of [the 10,000 capacity].
“The audience broke through the glass walls and the security guards just couldn’t stop them – the concert hall administration asked Green Grey to play quietly and not agitate the rowdy crowd.”
It’s not at all unusual for club and concert hall managers to ask Green Grey to “turn down the volume,” even when they’re already playing unplugged.
“When we get old and feeble and don’t feel like shouting anymore, then we’ll play softly like Eric Clapton,” Murick observed.
He said their ambition, like that of any self-respecting rock band, is to live long enough to achieve cult status.
“Rock ‘n’ roll is the biggest passion of my life,” he said.
The band is planning to attend practically every open-air concert in May, including the Chaika Rock Festival from May 26 to 27.
“[Chaika] organizers are promising a Ukrainian Woodstock,” said Murick. “We’ll see, but I got a feeling it’s gonna be cool.”
