Kyiv, Ukraine - The phrase "Respect my boundaries" is a large stamp on my forehead in large black letters.
Here, a large terrace is flanked by a crumbling, centuries-old brick building on one side and a new yellow stainless steel extension on the other. Knock on the open doors of Techno-Kyiv building, the leading art club in Ukraine.
The place has no official name. Located in a former brewery on the outskirts of Kyiv, the club emblem and certification mark are used in high-level arithmetic operations to indicate the value of the formula without the mathematical symbol ∄. It also reflects the club's desire to promote itself, it doesn't exist. For pronunciation and reference, the Kiev techno ∄ community knows it as "K41", which is a nickname for the street name and house number.
As the Code implies, members of the club team do not wish to become involved in the club's larger story—they prefer to remain anonymous and secondary to its founder and its community. "Instead," several members of the group explained to Billboard , "we're all members of the crew."
Although originally intended to remind guests that personal boundaries must be respected and honored regardless of opportunities within the club, my entry order has taken on new meaning since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February. It's a reminder that Ukraine is fighting for survival.
The ongoing campaign ended the dance's final season two days before its February opening date. But on October 15, after nearly eight months of war, he demonstrated Ukraine's wartime resilience, reviving the aborted season and opening its doors to Kyiv for the first time.
At the October 15 event, hundreds of clubgoers, mostly dressed in black, danced on the dance floor. For many, the first visit to the club after eight months is fun and freedom from dancing together. ∄ A team member said, "Today's crowd is different. The feeling of light fills the void." Less naked body, "joke". Maybe it's the first time, maybe because of today's song; Very good. "
A large part of the original structure of the building has been preserved. The ballroom and sound systems are divided into nine different dance floors, accommodating over 15,000 guests in the building's brewery. The original 1870s logo mosaic sits alongside gleaming glass and sleek DJ booths, where huge brass fermentation tanks have been converted into pool-like seating areas.
The front is hundreds of kilometers from the capital of Ukraine. As the city slowly removed the concrete roads, sandbags, and metal walkways it built at the beginning of the Russian occupation, the decision to reopen and revitalize the season was not an easy one.
On October 10, just days before the scheduled opening, explosions rocked the Ukrainian capital early in the morning as Russian rockets and missiles hit civilian targets in Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities. At least eight people were killed and dozens injured in the terrorist attack in Kyiv. The group struggled with the desire to revive techno in Kyiv. Can you resume the canceled dance delivery season? Will they continue the event?
All of Ukraine is currently under martial law in response to Russian aggression, providing the necessary legal framework to restrict movement during the war. Men of military age are not allowed to leave the country, and large gatherings such as sporting events are prohibited.
After deciding to continue ∄ The team members decided to crown the first part of the dance. You decide to open only one room for the presentation of several hundred visitors so that the event is closed and you don't have to worry about the safety of the guests. Possibly the face of a Russian grenade. . Rather than hosting a typical nighttime event, the venue will be open during the day and closed until 10pm to avoid violating Kiev's citywide nighttime restrictions.
There are also practical hurdles to be overcome. At the start of the Russian invasion, the group took advantage of the former brewery's concrete and brick architecture, turning the building into a makeshift bomb shelter and temporary housing for the displaced. The sound system and DJ booth have been moved to make room for bunk beds and bunk beds.
An audio engineer worried that audio equipment might not work because it had been exposed to moisture for about eight months. "We have backup generators," he said, referring to the real and small possibility of an explosion somewhere in the city, "if the power goes out because of a blackout or something." We'll be fine."
So, the first part of the dance. The delivery was certainly exceptional, but it was an unmistakable and impressive success. As day turned into night, the dancers gradually filled with a host of "new young faces" via veteran Ukrainian artist Contrast and Human Margarita. Three outfits won: black and white, leather and mesh, and very little.
Small but growing scene.
The tech scene in Ukraine is small compared to other European cities but growing with enthusiasm. Although relatively new, it offers a space that's easy to forget in the tech communities of Berlin or London. In a former Kyiv brewery, clubs and dancers are free to enjoy music, dance and socialize, with other guests restricted only by self-imposed, strictly enforced limits.
For Vlad Shasta, a 20-year-old drag queen and one of the club's most prominent figures, ∄ is a place with deep meaning — and not just because of the music. "Before I opened K41, I never really felt like I belonged anywhere," Shust explains between performances on the dance floor. Shast ∄ has been a constant presence since the venue opened in 2019 and is closely related to XIT ∄, a word which translates to 'lust' and is the name of a series of regular parties the club hosted before the Russian invasion.
Especially for her first dance class, she said, wearing a revealing shirt she made before the Russian invasion in February. "I didn't have time to understand what that meant," Shust said, stroking his face with a homemade faux hoodie made from black zip ties.
However, he admits that after the missile attack, he couldn't think of returning to ∄ at first. "I thought I was dancing on people's graves," he said.
∄ After extensive discussions with the organizers and friends, Shust concluded that a restart was a priority. After the rocket attack on the capital, Shast said, "The focus is on the dead." While understandable for a society facing the problems of war head-on, he says, "We need to focus on the survivors."
The decision to reopen is something Shass applauds. "I felt like the Russians controlled me until halfway through the party," says Chast. The raid then wiped out "my ability to share art, my ability to connect with people, my ability to connect with my community."
For him, that night on the dance floor was a celebration of life, not death.
Association with Berghain and German ravers
The place is closely connected to Germany. For the website, the founders of ∄ used Bergite from Berlin, the group that designed the technology capital of the world. This year 2020 and 2021 Berliners traveled together to Kyiv for the weekend to escape the strict quarantine restrictions in Germany and the closure of techno clubs in Berlin.
The eclectic nature of the art scene and the acclaim of international audiences ∄ is moving into its orbit - with international artists such as LSDXOXO, Ben UFO and DJ Stingray - the club is distributing flyers in Ukrainian and English to explain. How different medications work together, how to prevent overdose and alcohol use, and how to have sex while partying. Other maps show what to do if you are stopped by the police, civil rights and how the police in Ukraine treat people on the street.
Many members of the group fled to Berlin in the early days of the Russian occupation. While Germany was grateful to Ukrainian war refugees for first aid, many Ukrainians who came to Germany had very frustrating and even upsetting experiences during their stay.
"I thought Europeans were very privileged before the Russian invasion," said one of the team members while sipping a beer in the pub. "Affordable health insurance and a high standard of living are convincing," he says, drinks the beer and places it resolutely on the counter. But now I know that Ukrainians have special privileges.
When asked why, he looked at me. And he expressed that "Ukrainians know that peace is impossible" in war, expressing his displeasure with some European countries listening to Ukraine, especially Germany.
Fury specifically called for disarmament and immediate peace, which many members of the group believe contrasts with the reality on the battlefield in Ukraine, where civilians are regularly targeted and Russia has evidence. Atrocities and war crimes increase in newly liberated towns and villages.
Although some of the group's 130 members remain abroad, many have returned to war-torn Ukraine. Although there are many reasons for her return, a member of Barre's group said some of her security forces have joined the Ukrainian army and are now fighting on the front lines.
He drops everything he has to support his friends and family. This first Dance.Delivery event ended with a door-to-door donation of 150,855 UAH (about US$4,100). The funds were raised by the Paramedic Hospitaler Group, an organization of volunteer paramedics in Ukraine.
Two days after the release of the first issue of Dance Delivery, another series of explosions hit central Kyiv, destroying the city's electrical substation and other non-military infrastructure and damaging cultural sites. The attack left at least four dead and dozens wounded, a reminder that the conflict is far from over in other parts of the country, although it seemed normal over the weekend.
"Our building survived two world wars," said one team member. "I hope he survives this war too." But despite the air raids and explosions, Kyiv and Kyiv lived and danced for a night.
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