vakula

konotop / odessa

A dance is almost a declaration of love

Танец – это ведь почти объяснение в любви

Fyodor Dostoevsky (1821-1881)

The Ukrainian producer known as Vakula comes from the small town of Konotop on the country’s northern border. He tends to self-promote with confidence, declaring himself the nation’s primary exponent of electronic music. Inclined to define his own output as psychedelic house and/or techno, Vakula shows a marked interest in kindred chemical experiments throughout Western popular music. This leads to a related enthusiasm for early twentieth-century science fiction or fantasy, which in turn begs a particular soundtrack: “ambient, dub, experimental disco, tropical jazz, psychedelic or Krautrock, and sci-fi instrumentals.” All at once.

The upshot of these intersecting genres is Vakula’s increasingly frequent self-definition as “musical storyteller.” He views himself as somebody who––despite his manifest interest in narrative or mythic universals––links his output concretely to the “Eastern Bloc.” A specific location gives rise to equally specific musings on universal experience. In even simpler terms, there’s something about post-Soviet experience in Eastern Europe that leads to thoughts about the absence of physical existence altogether.

Vakula’s most recent release is called “Sem’ Ya,” which translates roughly to “Me, Sevenwise” or “My Seven Identities.” The recordings, embedded here, are introduced without any reference to geography at all. “First of all, I would like to thank all those who’ve remained with me throughout. Thank you for supporting this music, created by the Great Creator through my vessel––which observes both past and present processes on my musical life-path.”

The retreat from anywhere specific continues. “I am going on a journey to various spiritual centers. This means I won’t have any opportunity to make sound recordings from the [usual] confines of my studio. This new album is dedicated to the unification of humanity––to those people who’ve begun to wake up and ask questions about what’s really going on around us. We are making the difficult transition from humanity into new ‘life illusions.’” That closing phrase is offered in English. It remains unclear whether it is intended as positive or negative. In either case, more––and more enlightened––music is expected from distant locales.

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