Ukraine Rave Culture

 

The rave culture in Ukraine is massive and has visitors from all around the world. In May 2021 Die Dada Welt went to an amazing warehouse rave arranged by Povitrya // @povitrya_od in Odessa. Curious about the background of the Ukraine rave movement we had a chat with the Povitrya team.

“Initially, the rave movement in Ukraine originated in the late nineties. Specifically in Odessa, the rave movement was in high demand in 2004-2007. In 2010, the entire electronic scene in Ukraine fell into decay, sponsors left and large festivals disappeared. After the Revolution of Dignity and the Maidan protests, which took place in 2014-2015, people felt depressed and tried to look for new ways of self-expression. This is how a new era of the Ukrainian electronic scene was born, which quickly spread across the region.”

Povitrya started in 2017 with friendship and shared musical interests.

“In Odessa, nothing like the rave movement of today existed back then. We acted on the principle: if you want a cool rave, then take it and make it.”

In general, Povitrya have no problems with the authorities, since their events have a legal status. However, arranging large events in Ukraine, especially under Covid-19 is not without difficulties.

“Covid-19 seriously affected our plans for 2020. We suffered certain financial losses associated with the cancellation of our 3rd-anniversary event in April 2020. And our next event in late August 2020 was insanely difficult in terms of organization, but we did quite well. We are constantly consulting with the local authorities, so we understand the full degree of responsibility during the Covid-19.”

Today the rave scene in Ukraine is going through a renaissance having visitors from all over Europa.

“This is a fantastic time, everything happens with an insane speed and energy, which we celebrated together with all our foreign visitors. In our opinion, the potential of the rave scene in Ukraine is still huge. We must show our country to the whole world.”

 

Video: Bahadir Onder
Text: Steen Andersen

 

 

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