The Ukrainians (the rock band, that is) arrive in Canada (09/29/96)

The Ukrainians (the rock band, that is) arrive in Canada

by Nestor Gula

TORONTO - There are Ukrainians sleeping in my house. Not just any Ukrainians, but the U.K. rock band The Ukrainians.

The Ukrainians were in Toronto promoting their latest CD "Kultura" (Culture), released in Canada under True North Records. They played in Toronto at the reggae/world music club the Bamboo on August 7 to a packed house. Other dates on their first tour outside Europe were in Calgary at the Calgary Folk-Festival, in Edmonton at the Sidetrack Cafe, Saskatoon at Amigos and Ottawa/Hull playing at the Museum of Civilization.

What is a band, from the U.K., with a name of an Eastern European nation, doing playing adaptations of that nation's folk music? They answer that they play music they enjoy. The Ukrainians play a highly intense and original mixture of Ukrainian folk music and rock music. They chose to call themselves The Ukrainians because it is easily recognizable and immediately identifiable what the music is like.

A comparison could be made between The Ukrainians and the Pogues. Both bands play a "too the wall" version of traditional folk melodies. The Pogues play an Irish/Celtic mix, while The Ukrainians play an inspired Ukrainian. The difference between the two bands would be that The Ukrainians sing in Ukrainian while the Pogues sing the greater majority of their songs in English instead of Gaelic.

The Ukrainians say they appreciate the comparison to the legendary Pogues but would rather fans appreciate them on their own merit.

The highly charged nature of the group's music was evident in the one-and-a-half hour set at the Bamboo. There was no rest in their driving rhythm and melodies. A prominent British music magazine, Melody Maker, called The Ukrainians a "seriously excellent dance band" and that was in evidence at the Bamboo. Even though it was the hottest day of this rather miserable summer, and humid to boot, the dance floor was packed with gyrating and sweat-covered humans.

The most remarkable fact about The Ukrainians is that few of its members have Ukrainian roots. Roman Rewkniw, the mandolinist, is the only member of the band who boasts both parents being of Ukrainian origin. Peter Solowka, the guitarist, is half Ukrainian, and Len Liggins, the lead singer and violinist, is of Irish and English ancestry.

Of the rhythm section (the ones in my basement), only accordionist Stefan Tymruk has Ukrainian roots. Bassist Alan Dawson is Irish-English, while drummer Steven Wood ("Woody") is Scottish-English.

Mr. Liggins says that although he has no Ukrainian roots he feels Ukrainian because of the music he plays.

Most of the people in the crowd at the Bamboo also were not of Ukrainian ethnic descent. Mr. Solowka said "most of the crowds we play to are not at all Ukrainian. In Canada there were more Ukrainians at our show than usual." Their biggest fan bases outside England are in Austria, Germany and Switzerland. There they play to predominantly non-Ukrainian audiences at festivals and at solo concerts.

In Canada The Ukrainians received a great reception wherever they played.

The genesis of the band came when legendary British disc-jockey John Peel invited the alternative rock band Wedding Present to record a session for him. Mr. Solowka, the guitarist for Wedding Present and now The Ukrainians, suggested recording some traditional Ukrainian folk melodies. He invited Messrs. Liggins and Rewkniw to these sessions. The album "Vesilny Podarunok" (Wedding Present) was released in March 1990. It met with widespread acclaim and quickly sold out.

Mr. Solowka left Wedding Present and formed The Ukrainians, which released a self-titled album in 1991. In 1993 they released "Vorony" (Crows), which garnered them the VOX Album of the Month in Britain and the World Music Album of the Year in Germany. They also recorded an EP "Pisni iz The Smiths" (Songs from The Smiths) featuring four Ukrainian-language versions of The Smiths' songs. "Kultura", which has these four songs, has again won critical praise in Europe.

Now back in England, The Ukrainians feel the tour has been an unqualified success. For the limited scope of the tour, playing only five Canadian cities, they feel they received a measure of exposure: they appeared on Canada's equivalent of MTV, "Much Music," and have won a number of new fans.