Rave culture as resistance in Ukraine and beyond

By Tommy Hodgson

Rave culture has always been about resistance to societal norms and cultural oppression. However, since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia, Kyiv’s rave resistance has morphed into an even more profound struggle.

“Like many others, when the war broke out, at first I couldn’t create music at all. There was only complete shock, a desire to survive and help others in any way I could. I eventually decided to put some unfinished projects on SoundCloud and Bandcamp, because I thought that I might not survive, and a huge amount of my music would never be heard." - DJ Radiant Futur

“Shum.Rave started as a series of parties in the Donbas, which became a protest against the lack of nightlife and culture, including a curfew at 11pm. We realised that we wanted to make our party with our own rules. So the noise was born. We are a team now and for me, the Shum is a second home.” - JMDasha

“So we came up with an idea, that in order to repair Ukraine after the war, we need volunteering to become the lifestyle of our generation. To make it real, volunteering must be not only physical work but also joyful, social and attractive to people. Since we loved parties so much in the past we decided to combine it.” - The Repair Together Collective

Rave culture as resistance in Ukraine and beyond

By Tommy Hodgson