DakhaBrakha - SWX, Bristol
I saw DakhaBrakha open for Океан Ельзи’s Independence Day show at NSC Olimpiyskiy in Kyiv four years ago. Back then, they didn’t quite have the same profile in Ukraine as they had somehow managed abroad, but they were clearly more than comfortable playing to a very big crowd. Independence Days were cherished with the knowledge of what had happened with Maidan, the occupied territories, the nearly occupied territories, and the general few hundred years of being colonised from all sides. They mean a hell of a lot more now.
Anyway, last night’s gig starts with Jakabol, a Bristol-based instrumental five-piece featuring violin and harp. They are a mixture of Mahavishnu Orchestra, Tool and Krobak, and are super tight. Violinist taking solos with a wah pedal. Very pleasant surprise, and very much looking forward to hearing their record, which should be out in a few weeks.
Industrial-hurdy-gurdy-and-beats duo tAngerinecAt are on next. The first song of the night has technical problems where the sound cuts entirely a few times. An older man standing next to me openly heckles them between songs and a young woman behind him openly tells him to keep his disrespect in check. Tracks from Glass translate really well live. Was glad to meet the band pre and post-show; they’re lovely people and they’re doing something that deserves a lot of attention.
DakhaBrakha come on stage to set their instruments up before they’re in their stage clothing and it threw me a bit. They came back onstage post-dress up to a yellow and blue image of No War, Stop Putin. From the off, they are magnificent and the audience receives them rapturously throughout. Marko introduces the band “from free Ukraine” and the response is the loudest thing all night. First half of the set is fairly similar to what I saw four years ago in terms of order, and there’s quite a lot of slow jams, but there’s still a lot of energy and passion at every tempo.
Can’t remember what they played that was to a backdrop of Reuters footage of Mariupol, because I am still going to be fucked up whenever I see what the bastards did to that city and it wiped my mind for the entirety it was on screen.
(A thought - a year ago, the idea of a Ukrainian band coming on stage with footage from the war in Donetsk and Luhansk and asking to donate to help arm Ukraine through charities, or their T-shirt and CD sales, would have pushed a lot of people away. I can imagine a lot of people coming to DakhaBrakha from the hardcore WOMAD or Glastonbury hippy-style crowds and being averse to the idea that maybe some of the money spent at the merch table might end up going to bulletproof vests and army medical kits…and more besides. A year is a very long time indeed.)
Gig would have been incredible on its own outside of the events of recent history. Bittersweet, but brilliant.