It’s great to be back in the live music scene. I would say I took it for granted prior to the pandemic, but… I’ll be honest. I didn’t go to shows as often before COVID-19 shut things down.

Sure, I caught a few favorites. But I always have a gnawing feeling- before, during, and after every show- that I’m running behind. My first concerts were all Ukrainian artists making their debut in the US. I don’t think I saw an English-speaking artist until I was 18. Peers in college tallied up their show totals like a pride of honor. I had none of that pride to display, at least yet. I didn’t think that your average American concert attendee gave a damn about performers that didn’t sing in their language.

It’s a shame that I ever thought that way. A lot of those concerts were incredible. Like Mad Heads XL, a ska punk band from Kyiv:

Decades later, a part of me still wants to own those half yellow/half blue plaid pants.

My tally for live Ukrainian artists still beats English-speaking singers by a good lead. I’m not ashamed to admit that anymore. In fact, I want to see more of them. Here’s the issue: many of them don’t tour in North America. It’s a massive financial risk. They’re catering to an audience of mostly Ukrainians and Eastern Europeans, who live in pockets of communities across the country. The largest of those are along the East Coast. It’s hard to determine if there’s any interest for any given performer in those communities. As for the West Coast, flights are absurdly expensive from Kyiv to Seattle. I didn’t have a lot of hope for seeing some of my favorite Ukrainians perform out here.

That is, until I saw an event pop up while scrolling through social media. Then another, followed by a third, and then a fourth. All well-known Ukrainian bands, artists, and groups. All of whom are raising funds to help their neighbors in Ukraine. All of whom are coming to Seattle this fall.

They are (in order of performance date):

Kalush Orchestra- Thursday, October 20th at Club SUR

If the name sounds familiar, you’ve been paying very close attention to the entertainment world at large (well done!). Kalush won this year’s Eurovision contest, and what better way to celebrate a win than to embark on a North American tour?

The band combines the traditional ethnic sounds of Ukrainian instruments with vibrant hip-hop beats and rapped lyrics. Most popular artists don’t touch the rap scene in Ukraine, but those that do are masters of their own realm. It’s no surprise, then, that their music has gained a solid appreciation in the US.

That said… they’ve only been performing as Kalush Orchestra since 2021. They’ve got about an album’s worth of material available online. I wouldn’t be surprised if they pulled some surprises of their own during their show. It’s certainly worth finding out.

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KAZKA- Friday, November 11th at Club SUR

I’ve been listening to a healthy amount of KAZKA recently. Their name translates to “story” or “fairy tale,” and many of their tracks elicit feelings of being lost in a fantasy realm. Maybe with fewer dungeons and dragons, more enchanted forests and mythical woodland spirits, if you get my drift.

KAZKA has been in full force since 2017. They appeared on the Ukrainian version of “X Factor,” auditioned for Eurovision in 2018 and 2019, and have released three full-length albums. This tour won’t be their first in the US. But having their music grace a live venue once again is an opportunity you wouldn’t want to miss.

I should probably mention that at the start of the war in Ukraine, they collaborated on two songs with our next artist:

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Gogol Bordello- Monday, November 14th at Neptune Theater

This man’s (real name: Eugene Hütz) a legend. He DJ’ed a club on the Lower East Side of Manhattan in the late 90’s. He was in a Liev Schreiber movie with Elijah Wood. He wrote a song for Coca-Cola during the 2012 Euro Cup. He starred in his own documentary that traced his Ukrainian roots. What can’t this man do?

Gogol Bordello, in a nutshell, combines underground NYC punk with Romani and other Eastern European influences to create their trademark inimitable sound. I was first introduced to them- how else?- via mix CD. It blew my mind that my own friends, the ones who “needed a minute” to digest modern Ukrainian music, offered this band’s music to me as “the coolest thing you’ll ever hear! And he’s Ukrainian!”

Prior to that moment, the terms “cool” and “being Ukrainian” were two separate schools of thought. You were either a normal American kid or you were weird with a weird culture, probably. It took years to determine what all that meant for me personally. But if you want to feel like a “cool Ukrainian” or whatever those kids tried to imply, this is your show.

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alyona alyona, Jerry Heil, KOLA- Friday, November 18th at Club SUR

Years ago, I got a text from my best friend asking if I had ever heard of some rapper named alyona alyona. “She raps about normal stuff,” I was told. I listened to the handful of songs she posted on her YouTube. This girl’s got bars!

Add Jerry Heil to the mix- she’s a Ukrainian YouTuber and singer- and you’ve got a power duo. They’ve been releasing a slow stream of collaborations over the past few months, so to see them tour together is a no-brainer. It was meant to be.

As for KOLA? I’ll be honest, I don’t know a thing about her. There’s not a lot of info online about her, other than she’s going on tour with alyona alyona and Jerry Heil. Want to know what she sounds like, too? Head to the show.

I’ll see you there.