Ethno-futurism is the most influential idea in 21st-century Ukrainian music. Its essence: take an authentic folk song (from a field expedition, a village grandmother, an archive) and reimagine it in a contemporary sonic space — with beats, electronics, drum machines, and alternative rock.
The pioneers: DakhaBrakha — a quartet that has performed at Glastonbury, Coachella, and WOMAD, defining the Ukrainian sound for Western listeners. Onuka — Natalka Zhyzhchenko, combining electronics with the core sound of the sopilka and bandura. Kazka, Tik Tu, Go_A (Eurovision 2021 with “Shum” — an authentic spring-calling song in trance rhythm). Ukrainian ethno-futurism is the proof that tradition can be the most modern thing in the world.
