A Closer Listen
How does one make music when the power keeps going out? This is the challenge felt by Ukrainian musicians, as well as all musicians in times of war. Blackout Tape is the first release from Kyiv’s 20ft Records, familiar with air raid sirens, falling bombs, explosions and blackouts. Ten artists were invited to make music without using electronic instruments, a restriction close to home. Fittingly, proceeds go to Kosmos Tabir, an NGO working tirelessly to install solar energy systems in affected areas.
Perhaps it is the lo-fi nature of the release, but while listening, one imagines fallout shelters, underground tunnels, a near-apocalyptic scene. The tape begins with hissing and creaking, as if maryana klochko is recording in a rocking chair in an irradiated subway. Her piano is forlorn and deserted, and no one else seems to be around. native outsider invites in the sounds of birds and children, setting them in spooky atmospheres, as if the outdoor playtime is brief, a break between bombs. When one realizes these recordings are a loop, the tone grows even more somber. Rain begins to fall in tofudj‘s “vechirniy kyiv” and the booms that seem like distant thunder are revealed to be the devastation of nearby artillery. As a car alarm begins to sound, the danger is brought to the doorstep of the recording session.
The rain continues to fall in bryozone‘s “nonticifaction,” the very title connoting loss of life. The artist plays percussion, dueting with precipitation. Toward the end, the percussion is reduced to wind chimes. Snippets of song decorate undo despot‘s “sea spirits,” which feels like a parade, the drumming increasingly ebullient, a reminder of happier times. tongi joi‘s “vohni suvoyu” sounds like spring, and is a reminder that people continue to fall in love, even in times of war.
Cold reality soon returns. acid jordan‘s “rassle!” is a dark drone piece, followed by an untitled track from noorj, who returns listeners to the piano of the opener, adding melancholic violin and (very) subdued percussion. The ironically titled radiant futur returns the rain on “life induction,” and the respite of the middle tracks begins to feel like a dream. Cavernous echoes communicate the feeling of being trapped underground, waiting for the all-clear. As the track ends, planes pass overhead: threatening or benign? Finally, polje offers “six ways of looking at walls,” the very title claustrophobic, implying four walls, a ceiling and a floor.
There’s not much to do when the power goes out and the local infrastructure has been destroyed. These ten musicians find a way to make beauty in the midst of rubble, never knowing if each day will be their last. Blackout Tape puts listeners in the heart of their dilemma: under siege, making do, taking little triumphs where they can. (Richard Allen)
Sat Jun 14 00:01:15 GMT 2025