6TH CROWD is, in fact, Ukraine based electronic producer Dari Maksymova and this gorgeous, ethereal slice of electronica, “Соколонько (Sokolonko)” is inspired by an old Ukrainian harvest song. In fact, the lyrics are credited to “the Ukrainian people”. The track is the first offering from Dari’s new album ‘Step’ which is the Ukrainian word for Steppe, which for you fact fans out there means, “a large area of flat unforested grassland in south-eastern Europe or Siberia.” She was working on the album when Putin ordered the invasion and turned Dari’s country into a war zone. This is what Dari has to say about the song and her home. “This is a Ukrainian song from Donbas, my dear home region, which Russia is tearing apart right now. I didn’t know if I’d have a chance to do it later. In my research, as I learned more about folk Ukrainian music, I noticed that modern culture has plenty of references to music from western and central parts of my country, but nothing from the east. Nothing from my home. Culturally it simply didn’t exist. So I decided I wanted to change that balance and bring songs from East Ukraine back to life, to remind myself and everyone that Donbas is a historical part of Ukraine, no matter how badly Putin wants to destroy it. If people don’t remember their own history, someone can rewrite it for them. And then come with guns to “defend” Russian people in Ukraine, Moldova, or Serbia“
6TH CROWD emerged into the electronic music scene just a short while ago in 2020 with her debut EP ‘Avoid The Void’. The tunes on that EP address the Covid-19 situation in Ukraine and the wider world. Later in 2020 Dari released two singles, “1312” and “Не вивожу (Ne Vyvozhu)”. This was followed in 2021 by a second EP, ‘What Happened’. Dari has this to say about the Russian invasion of her country Ukraine which began on 24th February this year. “Over a week ago, Russia invaded Ukraine, shelling cities and killing hundreds of civilians. The Russian president calls it a “special operation” for “saving Russian-speaking people.” A more accurate term for it is “war”. And even more accurately is the intention behind this war: Russification and Russification is cultural genocide. It’s clear that the ancient Greeks don’t exist, but we know of them because their cultural artifacts have been preserved. In the absence of their books, literature, and artwork, we wouldn’t otherwise know anything about them as a people. Their history would simply cease to exist. That’s the goal of Russification – to remove all of the distinct and unique ethnic histories and merge them into one“. She adds “When Communists gathered different nations under the umbrella of the USSR, they desperately needed to rewrite history. They needed everyone to share the same bland fake ethnicity, they needed people to forget their roots. So people would never get second thoughts about belonging to “the great empire”, never question orders and the party line. While, in newly-built cities, their Russification program was going pretty well, people in villages continued to be a real pain in the ass. They lived and worked far from centralized sources of information and relied on the government very little and didn’t rush to become Soviet people. Yes, they lived in the Soviet Union and yes, they worked in Soviet fields, but one thing they did that drove the Russians crazy: the villagers spoke Ukrainian and sang their own songs“. She finishes by saying “Before people had Spotify, they sang to themselves – while working in fields, while fighting, getting married, they sang all the time. Those songs passed from one to another, along with very important information about people. What language they spoke, what they believed, what they hoped, who their heroes were. Songs from people are also songs about people“
Arrangement, performance, recording & mixing: Dari Arranged, performed, recorded, and mixed “Соколонько (Sokolonko)” which was mastered by Alexander Pavlenko (Sunchase). All photography for the release is by Tetiana Shlapachok and Daria Kulnina. You can support 6TH CROWD by downloading this single, available via Bandcamp and Apple Music. All proceeds will support the humanitarian work of Vostok SOS, which includes helping people evacuate and providing humanitarian aid and psychosocial support, including hotlines for affected people and a team on the ground in the region, coordinating aid. You can also add this single to your Spotify playlists. But the most important thing right now is to support Ukraine. You can donate to humanitarian missions, directly to the army, spread awareness about this ugly war, and join demonstrations in your city. There are also many other ways you can help Ukraine now and numerous options for supporting humanitarian aid efforts in the region. Look out for more Ukraine-related posts from With Just A Hint Of Mayhem soon! My thoughts are with the Ukrainian people right now!
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