The Ukrainians: Taking Kyiv to the Kosmos: In conversation & musical treats

The Ukrainians: Taking Kyiv to the Kosmos

The Ukrainians are the band from Leeds whose music has been played on the International Space Station. The Ukrainians: Taking Kyiv to the Kosmos celebrates the 35-year career of the Cossack folk-punk pioneers.

Written and compiled by founder members Peter Solowka and Len Liggins, The Ukrainians: Taking Kyiv to the Kosmos tells the story of the band who brought Ukrainian music and culture to the attention of the West and took it to people of Ukrainian heritage across the globe.

The Ukrainians were founded in 1991. Performing only in the Ukrainian language and bringing a Western rock attitude to Ukrainian-influenced arrangements, they have covered songs by The Smiths, The Sex Pistols and The Velvet Underground as well as reinterpretations of traditional Ukrainian folk songs. More importantly they write their own songs in Ukrainian, some of which are now included in the repertoires of bands, choirs and folk musicians in Ukraine itself. The band also has strong fan bases in the United Kingdom, Poland, Germany and Ukraine as well as in the USA and Canada.

Len Liggins said, ‘We’re very excited about this book as it gives us the opportunity to look back at how our music has influenced so many others. We’ve taken our music to North America and across Europe and even had two of our songs played by a NASA astronaut on the International Space Station. We truly have taken Kyiv to the cosmos!’

Peter Solowka said, ‘When I first started learning the folk tunes of my father’s homeland on a guitar, sitting in a back bedroom in Leeds 6, I could never have envisaged it would lead to being in a band and playing those songs to people with Ukrainian heritage around the world. We’ve touched so many people’s lives in different ways and the stories in the book reflect that.’

The book is packed with stories from current and former band members along with fans, friends and musical collaborators, including David Gedge (The Wedding Present), Jah Wobble (Invaders of the Heart, PiL), Andrew ‘Whitey’ White (Kaiser Chiefs) and Shaun Charman (Jetstream Pony, The Wedding Present).

We have two ticket options available: * Event Only and *Event with Discounted Book Combo deal - books will be available for collection at the Festival.

Our event will be followed by a dedicated signing event with Len and Peter. RRP books will also be available for purchase on the day.

About the authors

‘The Legendary’ Len Liggins (so christened by Radio 1 DJ John Peel) was playing in a band called The Sinister Cleaners in Leeds in the late 1980s when he met his co-author Peter Solowka, guitarist with Indie heroes The Wedding Present. Their mutual love of music, along with Len’s knowledge of Slavic languages and Peter’s passion to unearth the culture of his Ukrainian heritage, led to them combining to form The Ukrainians in 1991. Over 30 years later, Len and Peter continue to perform their music to audiences around the world with The Ukrainians.

Host or Publisher Louder Than Words Festival