Metal in Central and Eastern Europe: Evolution, transfers, challenges, controversies

Conference programme

4 FEBRUARY

Conference opening

Miroslav Vrzal (Masaryk University): MSCEE network: Evolution, direction, challenges

Abstract will be provided soon

Keynote lecture

PETER PICHLER

 

Metal Studies in Central and Eastern Europe: The Crucial Questions of a Field of Research Under the Magnifying Glass

The field of metal studies has undergone enormous change in recent years. At present, it can be understood as a multidisciplinary and transnational project that addresses metal in an increasingly globalised yet localised and multi-layered way. One can speak of a complexly dynamic ‘mosaic’ (Anna-Katharina Höpflinger) of approaches.

Hence, the central programmatic task of the metal studies project is currently to structure and creatively link the many different lines of inquiry, in order to truly realise a multidisciplinary dialogue in the field.

Due to its specific historical development since the 1970s, the Central and Eastern European region – on both sides of the (former) Iron Curtain – has become a transfer space for reciprocal pop-cultural and subcultural streams. This development encompasses all the essential ‘ingredients’ of metal history: ‘evolution, transfers, challenges, controversies’, as the title of the conference puts it. In this transfer space, many of the key questions of metal studies can first be formulated and then examined as if under a magnifying glass.

Using examples from the CEE region, the lecture will present a transfer-oriented and canon-critical ‘diasporic’ perspective that aims to initiate a conceptual structuring of the research agenda.

Peter Pichler, Dr. phil., studied contemporary history, philosophy, and journalism in Graz and Mainz. He received his doctorate from the University of Graz with a thesis on the cultural history of European identity. His work focuses on the cultural history of metal as a popular and subculture, the cultural history of European integration and the theory of history. Recent books: Metal Music, Sonic Knowledge, and the Cultural Ear in Europe since 1970: A Historiographic Exploration, Stuttgart 2020; Breaking the Law? Recht, Moral und Klang in der steirischen Heavy Metal-Szene seit 1980, Stuttgart 2024.

 

Lunch break

Jakub Kosek (University of the National Education Commission in Krakow): "Necrographies in Metal Music Culture. The Case of Lemmy Kilmister"

The deaths in recent years of artists who have made significant contributions to metal culture, such as Ronnie James Dio, Ian Lemmy Kilmister, and John Ozzy Osbourne, have prompted scholarly attention not only to their biographies but also to necrographies in the history of metal music. The aim of this paper is to attempt a characterization of the principal areas and elements of the media necrography of Lemmy Kilmister during the ten-year period following the artist’s death (2015-2025). The analysis will address issues such as fan thanatourism, selected commemorative forms and places of memory associated with the leader of Motörhead (including statues, artistic events, musical works, and the activities of cover bands), as well as the modes of influence exerted by the ‘necropersona’ of Lemmy Kilmister. Furthermore, the category of death present in song lyrics authored by Kilmister will also be examined. Necrographies may prove to be a significant area of research within metal music studies.

Lea Schönberger and Miriam Maja Brost (Ruhr University Bochum): "Performing the Cold: Winter Landscapes as Aesthetic Crisis Responses in Contemporary German Black Metal"

Since the release of Immortal’s At the Heart of Winter in 1999 (and even before, as apparent, e.g., in Darkthrone’s A Blaze in the Northern Sky), it is evident that winter plays an important role in the textual and visual imagery of black metal. Although it is plausible that winter and its phenomena are addressed by Norwegian musicians experiencing coldness and frost as part of their everyday lives, these motifs have also been adopted far beyond Scandinavia. One possible explanation for this is the genre’s tradition of self-reference, i.e., the allusion to events with respect to, among others, protagonists from Mayhem and Burzum in the 1990s as well as to the oeuvre of prior bands. Apart from traditions and conventions of the genre, however, the question remains: What makes winter landscapes particularly attractive for bands from regions where arctic conditions are uncommon?

Tuuli Põhjakas (Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre): "Name Three Songs: Gatekeeping and Superficial Sexism in the Estonian Metal Scene"

In my presentation, I will analyze the phenomenon of gendered gatekeeping in metal scenes through the example of Estonia. My objective is to deconstruct the contradiction between a generally inclusive and pro-minority genre by understanding how gender biases influence the experiences of musicians and contribute to both obvious and subtle forms of exclusion.
The metal music scene has long been associated with a strong, often exclusive community. Metal, in general, known for its intense sound and rebellious spirit, has also garnered a reputation for being a male-dominated genre despite its outward embrace of individualism and resistance to mainstream norms. While metal is perceived as a genre that challenges conventional norms, it often enforces also its own set of exclusions and biases which are then manifested through gatekeeping and claims for authenticity.
I will present the outcomes of semi-structured in-depth interviews with a selected group of Estonian female musicians from different metal genres. I will concentrate on the thematic analysis of specific incidents, strategies of exclusion, and the impact of these experiences on their involvement of musicians in the metal scene. By focusing on personal accounts and opinions, I will analyze the impact of gatekeeping and superficial sexism on women’s careers and involvement in the metal scene, which will also provide valuable perspectives on the inclusivity and diversity within the genre.

Coffee break

Márk Dávid Takáts (Eötvös Loránd University): "“Heavy Metal Is Life Itself”: Polemics and Sensibilities in Hungary after the Fall of the Soviet Union"

This paper starts by examining a short but revealing polemic published in the Hungarian cultural weekly Élet és Irodalom (Life and Literature) on December 7, 1990, which illuminates broader tensions surrounding the cultural evaluation of heavy metal in the immediate post-socialist period. In the readers’ letters section, a rhetorically charged response appears from an author identifying herself as a “rocker girl,” reacting to a critical article by Marcell Murányi. Murányi’s piece offered a harsh assessment of Rockkalapács (Rockhammer), a radio program devoted to rock and metal music, which he characterized as vulgar, philistine, and aesthetically deficient, criticizing both its performative style and thematic content. 

The letter writer counters this critique by articulating a defense of rock and metal as autonomous subcultural formations governed by their own internal norms, values, and sensibilities. From this perspective, she implicitly rejects the legitimacy of external—particularly high-cultural—critical frameworks, arguing instead for the incommensurability of subcultural meaning and mainstream aesthetic judgment. Although the exchange remained one-sided and elicited no further response from the critic, the episode foregrounds a key structural problem in post-1989 Hungarian cultural discourse: the absence of a shared critical language through which metal could be evaluated across cultural boundaries.

By analyzing the rhetoric, evaluative strategies, and underlying assumptions present in contemporary Hungarian press discourse, this paper aims to map the principal points of contention between cultural critics and metal audiences in the early post-socialist era. In doing so, it situates heavy metal not merely as a musical genre, but as a contested site of cultural legitimacy, identity formation, and post-authoritarian renegotiation of taste.

Milan Ducháček (Technical University of Liberec): "Headbanger´s Ball Re-socialised: Representation of Metalheads in late 1980´s European movies Verlierer and Horká kaše. An attempt at a Comparison"

This contribution aims at the shared thematic elements present in two seminal films that introduced the image of the metal fan as a distinct subculture during the late 1980s. In the context of former West Germany, this portrayal was captured in the film Verlierer (Losers, dir. B. Schadewald, 1987). Concurrently (and somewhat unintentionally), for former communist Czechoslovakia, the film Hot Porridge (officially A Hot Problem, Horká kaše, dir. R. Urban, 1988) served a similar purpose. Notably, directors in both productions incorporated actual members of metal fan clubs as actors, specifically the Heavy Metal Fan Club Velbert and Fan Club Vitacit, lending an air of authenticity to their cinematic representations.
However, the primary objective of this analysis is not to establish evidence of Western influence on Czechoslovak cinema. Instead, the focus will be on exploring paradoxes inherent in the portrayal and ideological positioning of metal fans within both films. Particular attention will be paid to their processes of 'socialisation' and how musical subcultures were situated within the social fabric of both social orders: the case of excluded "capitalist" German areas stricken with unemployment, represented here by Essen/Ruhrpott (the 'western case'/Verlierer), and as a paradoxical opposite to this the lives of a socialist middle-class in the prefabricated housing estate of Jižní město/Southern City in Prague (the 'eastern/socialist case'/Hot Porridge). The Czechoslovak cinematic depiction also highlights the generational clash of values within the broader context of 'perestroika' society. The research underpinning this contribution is grounded in a detailed analysis of both films, with a particular emphasis on the less-explored Czechoslovak case, enriched here by primary archival and oral history research.

Ondřej Daniel (Charles University): ""Stupid and primitive music by principle": Shaming of Metal Fans in the Czech Postsocialism in the Czech Postsocialism"

This paper examines how late socialist and early post-socialist Czech music criticism constructed and contested the alleged specificity of metal audiences, tracing a debate that entwined aesthetics, morality, class, and regional identity. Building on Josef Vlček’s 1989 Melodie roundtable with four metal protagonists—where Arakain’s frontman Aleš Brichta rebuked majority intolerance by framing metal’s “abnormal” aesthetics as a principled departure from cultural average—we unpack a durable double standard that normalized excess and disorder in mainstream genres (notably folk-pop music - lidovka and dechovka) while pathologizing analogous behaviors at metal concerts. I analyze Poledňák and Cafourek’s early‑1990s polemics, which cast metal as rigid, humorless, and anti‑intellectual, and justified their own intolerance by imputing intolerance to the scene itself. Their essentializing claims are set against the empirical hybridity of the period: metal’s traffic with punk’s situationist playfulness, comic-book hyperbole, horror’s camp, and 1990s fusions with electronic body music (EBM), exemplified by (and complicated through) Ministry’s reception in Czech music journalism.
I further interrogate the moral panic that linked metal to fascism, machismo, and militarism—anxieties amplified by media demonization (e.g., Ladislav Urban’s coverage of Törr) and partly grounded in the politicization of segments of the scene and overlaps with skinhead and football hooligan subcultures. Situating these discourses alongside the stigmatization of folk-pop listeners as non-progressive, we show how both publics were folded into a broader semantic register policing taste and social legitimacy under late socialism and its aftermath.
Finally, I trace audience agency through the creation of semi-autonomous media infrastructures: metal fanzines, dedicated radio/TV shows, and niche magazines, locally organized festivals, targeted broadcasting, and curated compilations. These formations both resisted mainstream misrecognition and enabled market cooptation in an emergent, diversified music economy. The paper thus reframes “metal audience specificity” as a contested object produced at the intersection of aesthetic hybridization, moral regulation, and the evolving media ecology of Czech popular music.

Coffee break

Round table

5 FEBRUARY

Richard Hochrun (Masaryk University): "The image of Christian metal in the film Electric Jesus: depicting an alternative form of Christianity and its adaptation to the metal subculture in the 1980s"

The film Electric Jesus is one of the few examples of a film that addresses the phenomenon of Christian metal and its interaction with Christian and non-Christian milieus through the story of a fictional band, 316, during their tour in the summer of 1986. This article analyzes how the film constructs Christian metal as a specific adaptation of Christian (Protestant) religiosity to the processes of secularization and subjectivization of religion in Western culture. The film presents the search for a new form of self-presentation of religious identity through alternative subcultural visuals as a dialogue between traditional religiosity and the redefined boundaries of the sacred and the profane as a consequence of this adaptation. The contribution focuses on the presentation of religious rhetoric and its connection with metal aesthetics, the tension between evangelical enthusiasm and the strongly anti-Christian discourse of the metal milieu, and the depiction of the tension between traditional Christianity and its alternative presentation and form.

Linda Chmelařová (Masaryk University): "Czech Christian metallers: Identity construction with a focus on the tension between Christianity and metal"

The contribution examines the tension between Christianity and metal culture in the Czech Republic. It approaches this issue through personal identity construction among five Czech Christian metalheads. The study is based on semi‑structured interviews, which were analyzed using open coding. This methodological approach made it possible to identify whether the participants perceive any tension between their social identity as Christians and their social identity as metalheads, how they negotiate these potential conflicts on the level of personal identity, and what strategies they employ to reconcile them.

Gregor Horváth (Masaryk University): "Rock pod Kameňom: Metal Subculture and Community Tensions in Slovakia"

This case study examines the social and cultural tensions surrounding the Slovak rock/metal festival Rock pod Kameňom in 2024 and 2025, as part of a broader historical development of local controversies. In 2024, the festival took place at the Sninské Rybníky near Snina, where a local chaplain publicly criticized the event during a church service, labeling it as associated with “satanic rituals” and claiming the area was spiritually cursed. In 2025, the festival was relocated to Belá nad Cirochou, prompting residents and religious figures to submit a formal letter to municipal authorities requesting its cancellation due to noise, moral concerns, and potential disruption of community life. Despite these objections, the council approved the festival, which proceeded without major physical conflicts.

These recent incidents are part of a longer pattern of local resistance and debate over the festival, showing how metal subculture interacts with rural and religious norms over time. By analyzing media coverage and public responses, this study highlights the ongoing negotiation between global music subcultures and conservative community values in small Slovak municipalities.

Lunch

Karolina Karbownik (independent scholar): "Aesthetics of Suspension: Behemoth and the Blasphemous Carnival of Transgression"

In my presentation I analyse the work of the Polish metal band Behemoth through the concept of the carnivalesque, drawing on Mikhail Bakhtin’s theory of carnivalization as a framework for understanding transgression in metal culture. Positioned within the context of Central and Eastern European metal, Behemoth’s sonic, visual, and performative practices are interpreted as a temporary suspension of dominant religious and cultural hierarchies. Through grotesque imagery, ritualized performances, and the reworking of Christian symbolism in selected songs and music videos, the band creates a space in which sacred and profane meanings are inverted and renegotiated. The presentation argues that these strategies function not merely as acts of provocation or anti-religious critique, but as forms of cultural commentary shaped by the specific historical and symbolic tensions of the CEE region. By combining insights from metal studies and cultural theory, the presentation contributes to discussions on metal and religion, controversy, and cultural transfer, showing how Behemoth exemplifies the global resonance of Central and Eastern European extreme metal aesthetics.

Vojtěch Beneš (Masaryk University): "Asgardsrei: Hate, War and White Supremacy - Or how is Europe's notorious NSBM event connected to the Russo-Ukrainian war?"

Asgardsrei is a prominent neo-Nazi NSBM festival that serves as a transnational networking hub for white supremacist and extremist groups across Europe and the United States. Since its relocation to Kyiv in 2014, the event has functioned as a form of “soft power,” used to radicalize youth and attract foreign volunteers to participate in the Russo-Ukrainian war under the banner of a “global conservative revolution.” Today, key figures associated with the festival, such as Alexei Levkin and Denis Kapustin, are directly involved in militant units like the Russian Volunteer Corps (RDK), which conducts combat operations against the Russian state. This presentation examines how Ukrainian National Socialist Black Metal culture operates internally, as well as its connections to the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian war.

Oleg Depadel (Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv): "Existential Warfare and the Evolution of Ukrainian Black Metal. The Metamorphosis of Nokturnal Mortum"

In Western musicology, Heavy Metal - particularly Black Metal - is often analyzed through the lens of transgressive escapism. This model suggests that fixations on war and violence are cathartic aesthetic exercises, hermetically sealed from material political realities. This autonomy of art allows Western audiences to consume radical symbols as shock value, insulated by geopolitical stability.
However, for Central-Eastern Europe (CEE), and specifically Ukraine, this model collapsed following the 2014 annexation of Crimea and the 2022 full-scale invasion. In an existential war, where the aggressor explicitly denies the victim's right to cultural distinctiveness, neutrality is reinterpreted as passive collaboration. The threat of annihilation forces a reconfiguration of the artist’s social responsibility. For Ukrainian metal, the grey zone"of ambiguity was obliterated; the genre transitioned from a soundtrack for leisure to an instrument of state-building and national preservation.
To understand this metamorphosis, one must examine the trajectory of Kharkiv’s Nokturnal Mortum. Formed in the early 1990s, the band was a pioneer of the Ukrainian scene but was deeply entrenched in the National Socialist Black Metal (NSBM) movement. Their early ideology was defined by an abstract, racial, and metaphysical enemy, utilizing symbols that alienated them from the mainstream.
The turning point occurred in 2014. The aggression of the Russian Federation forced a shift from abstract "White Power" to concrete national defense. Lead member Knjaz Varggoth stated that the band had severed ties with NSBM, moving toward statist metal and deep folklorism. The enemy was no longer a racial "other," but a militarized neighbor shelling their hometown. This evolution represents a transition from ideological radicalism to defensive, indigenous nationalism.
The artistic realization of this shift is most evident in Verity (Istyna, 2017). The album integrates traditional Ukrainian instruments-sopilka, bandura, and drymba-not as atmospheric textures, but as lead melodic drivers.
"Molfa": References Hutsul/Carpathian sorcery, grounding the band’s spirituality in specific Ukrainian soil rather than generic Norse paganism.
"Lira": By covering the legendary industrial band Komu Vnyz, Nokturnal Mortum aligned themselves with the canon of intellectual Ukrainian resistance, moving from the subcultural ghetto toward the national pantheon.
Symbolism: The "Tryzub" (Trident) became the dominant visual motif. In the 2016 split The Spirit Never Dies, the band utilized the red and black colors of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), linking their music to the historical tradition of armed resistance. The Trident here is not just a pagan sigil but the state coat of arms-a pledge of allegiance to the political entity of Ukraine.
In a total war, creative activity becomes indistinguishable from social activity. Nokturnal Mortum has actively converted its cultural capital into material support for the war effort. In 2022, they released a Donation Edition of "The Taste of Victory", with proceeds financing the artistic community and charities in Kharkiv.
The transition from symbolic war to actual war reached its peak with the death of Mykola "Amorth" Sostin. A former drummer for Nokturnal Mortum and Drudkh, Sostin was killed in action in November 2024 while defending Ukraine. His death serves as a grim validation of the existential war thesis: the neutrality of the artist is a fiction when the artist is dying in a trench.
A profound dissonance exists between the Ukrainian perception of the band and the Western "Antifa" or festival circuit. Western promoters often demand the total sanitization of an artist’s history, frequently canceling Nokturnal Mortum due to their past associations.
This Western perspective often fails to distinguish between imperialist fascism (aggression) and anti-colonial nationalism (defense). While Western activists view the use of nationalist symbols through a generalized lens of right-wing extremism, the Ukrainian scene views these same figures as soldiers and volunteers physically defending their homes. By demanding pure art stripped of political baggage, Western critics inadvertently align with Kremlin narratives that seek to delegitimize Ukrainian national identity.
The evolution of Nokturnal Mortum demonstrates that in conditions of total war, metal transcends subculture to become a vital component of the "Cultural Front". The music serves two functions: mobilization (providing a psychological soundtrack for resistance) and archiving (preserving cultural codes the invader seeks to erase). The journey from the radicalism of the 90s to the statism of the 2020s mirrors the maturation of the Ukrainian state itself-forged in fire and moving from a post-Soviet identity crisis to a solidified nationhood. Nokturnal Mortum has proven that when a war is existential, neutrality is a vacuum. They have filled that vacuum with the "Voice of Steel", proving that the most extreme metal is that which confronts the most extreme reality: the survival of a nation.

Coffee break

Oksana Smorzhevska (Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv): "Military neo-archaic and historical allusions in the work of the band "Shyrokyi Lan""

The band "Shyrokyi Lan" is a prime example of how the modern Ukrainian heavy scene transforms national trauma and historical continuity into a cultural manifesto.
Neo-archaic is manifested not only in the lyrics, but also in the symbolism and sound of the band's name and its melodies. "Shyrokyi Lan" is a direct allusion to Taras Shevchenko's poem "The Testament", which appeals to the archetype of the native land and the steppe as a sacred space. Folkloric intonations are traced in the use of melodies characteristic of the Ukrainian epic (duma, Cossack songs), integrated into driving metal riffs. This creates the effect of modern archaic. The image of the modern defender of Ukraine in the band's songs acquires the features of an epic hero, which is characteristic of the neo-archaic worldview (mythologizing the hero).
In the work of "Shyrokyi Lan", history appears not as a frozen exposition, but as a living process. The group draws parallels between the Cossacks, the liberation struggle of Ukrainians in the 20th century. and the modern War of Ukraine for Independence (Russian-Ukrainian war 2014-202…). This creates the effect of a "time spiral", where the listener feels like a part of a centuries-old chain of warriors. Knowledge of one's history is presented as an intellectual and spiritual weapon.
The band adapts Western metal canons to a purely local context, creating a product that is globally understandable (due to the energy of the genre), but deeply authentic in content. For example, the song "Valkyrie" is not just a borrowing from Scandinavian mythology, but an adaptation of the image to Ukrainian realities. This is not a decorative character, but an active force. In the text, she appears as a guide, granting strength and fearlessness in the face of death. And is a relevant marker of struggle and military metaphysics. The use of Scandinavian mythologeme is not a copy of Viking metal. Valkyrie here is a metaphor of the angel of death and victory, which becomes relevant for the Ukrainian warrior. This is a combination of archaic European epic with modern Ukrainian existential experience. The use of Scandinavian mythologeme is not a copy of "Viking metal". Valkyrie here is a metaphor of the "angel of death and victory", which becomes relevant for the Ukrainian soldier. This is a combination of archaic European epic with modern Ukrainian existential experience. The female image of the Valkyrie is a departure from the image of a suffering mother to the image of a militant force.
The creativity of the band "Shyrokyi Lan" and the civic position of its members demonstrate a specific type of metal - "Resistance Metal". "Shyrokyi Lan" uses neo-archaic and history as a tool for survival and identification (mobilization). Historical allusions in "Shyrokyi Lan" serve to create the image of a "warrior through time". This is not only a reflection on the past, but its actualization for the modern Ukrainian defender.
The works "Song of the Brave" and "I Am Alive" can be considered as manifestos of a heroic ethos based on the archaic perception of time and the immortality of a warrior. The composition "To the Sky, Dad," which illustrates the transformation of a personal tragedy into a part of a grand historical narrative, combining a mystical vertical (connection with the sky) with the real history of struggle, has a special emotional content. This song demonstrates the flip side of military heroism. It is about personal loss, which, thanks to the artistic form, is integrated into the national historical narrative, transforming private pain into a part of the sacred history of resistance. A special place in the band's work is occupied by the composition "DShV" (Airborne Assault Forces), which represents the ethos of the modern military elite. Through the harsh aesthetics of metal, the band legitimizes the Warrior Cult in its modern manifestation. Here, military neo-archaic manifests itself in the transition from an individual hero to a collective brotherhood, where the combat unit becomes a sacred community united by a common ritual of righteous combat.
Conclusion: In the work of the band "Shyrokyi Lan", the combination of historical allusions with neo-archaic images allows the band to create a modern heroic epic that serves as a psychological and ideological support for society. This makes their music not just a subcultural phenomenon, but an important element of modern Ukrainian culture in the context of the fight against Russian aggression.

Matvii Lysenko (Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv): "The Evolution of the Ukrainian Band «1914» in the Context of the Russian-Ukrainian War"

Formed in 2014 – on the centennial of the start of the Great War and, by a tragic coincidence, the year Russian aggression against Ukraine began) – the Lviv-based band «1914» became a prophetic reflection of the region’s destiny. At the time of its founding, «1914» positioned itself as a group exploring the horrors of the First World War through the prism of «Trenchcore» – a mixture of blackened death metal and doom metal. Their creative work was based on a study of the history and material culture of the Great War of 1914–1918; however, after February 24, 2022, the boundary between historical material and the musicians’ everyday lives vanished. What was previously an aesthetic reconstruction (gas masks, trenches, artillery fire) partially became the reality of the Ukrainian landscape.
To understand «1914»’s current status as a cultural entity in Ukraine’s struggle against Russian aggression, it is necessary to analyze their foundation, which radically distinguishes them from Western bands that utilize military aesthetics in their art. The band’s geographical origin is an integral part of its identity. Lviv is a city of shifting borders: Austrian, Polish, Soviet, and Ukrainian. The band’s adoption of the Central Powers’ aesthetics, particularly the Austro-Hungarian perspective (manifested in founder Dmytro Kumar’s stage persona as an Oberleutnant of the Imperial and Royal Infantry Regiment No. 147), signals a specific cultural transfer. This links the group to a Central European heritage rather than the Soviet-Russian historiography that dominated Ukraine for decades.
In interviews, frontman Kumar has repeatedly emphasized that the Great War was effectively “erased” from Soviet history textbooks and replaced by the cult of the «Great Patriotic War», id est, World War II. By resurrecting the narrative of the First World War, «1914» performs a dual function: educational and identificational. The former consists of returning the «forgotten» Eastern Front to people’s consciousness, particularly Ukrainians’, since, as Kumar notes, the entire world fully remembers the Great War, except for post-Soviet countries where it was banned as «imperialist». The latter function concerns the formation of identity through the restoration of Ukrainian military history, which is distinct from the history of the Red Army and firmly anchors Ukraine within the European historical context.
The band’s self-definition as «Trenchcore» or «Shrapnel-metal» reflects a sonic evolution developing in parallel with the deepening of their themes. The debut «Eschatology of War» (2015) focused on the physical sensations of war – mud, gas, and claustrophobia. The subsequent release, «The Blind Leading the Blind» (2018), was marked by the introduction of more pronounced black metal elements, while the themes remained strictly historical, focusing on the futility and senselessness of war. It was this album that brought the band a contract with Napalm Records and international recognition. The turning point was the album «Where Fear and Weapons Meet» (2021), which shifted the focus from «death» to «survival». It introduced orchestral arrangements and cleaner production, emphasizing the endurance of the human spirit – a thematic shift that proved eerily prophetic just months before the full-scale invasion.
With the onset of Russia’s full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022, the aspect of «historical reconstruction» in «1914»’s work effectively ceased to exist. The war they sang about became the war they live in. The beginning of the great war halted the band’s musical activities and prompted a change in the roles of its members. Vocalist Dmytro Kumar himself took up volunteering, helping refugees and, primarily, the Ukrainian military. He described the psychological state of the first days of the invasion as a blur, where «days mixed up in heads», which echoes descriptions of shell shock in his own lyrics.
One of the most significant «challenges» and «controversies» for metal and culture in Ukraine in general is the regulation of artist mobility during wartime. The experience of «1914» highlights the friction between the Ukrainian state’s need for cultural diplomacy and the necessity of controlling those liable for military service. Under martial law, men aged 18–60 are prohibited from leaving Ukraine. Exceptions are granted by the Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications for artists who can act as “cultural ambassadors,” raising funds and increasing awareness abroad. In early 2025, «1914» was forced to cancel a large-scale European tour, the «Anthems for Doomed Youth Tour», due to the blocking of permits by the Ministry of Culture. This was a direct consequence of abuses by other artists and public figures who used these permits to flee the country and not return.
The result is a striking contrast between the strategies and perceptions of two leading Ukrainian metal bands – «Jinjer» and «1914». Jinjer received permission to leave at the start of the war, playing over 150 concerts abroad and effectively relocating their base to the West, with the vocalist residing in the USA and musicians in Poland or Bulgaria. Although they promote the Ukrainian agenda, their physical absence from home creates a different narrative of perception within Ukraine. Conversely, the members of «1914» remained in Ukraine, where they record albums during blackouts, hide in shelters during air raids, and serve in the military or actively volunteer. Ironically, their inability to tour in early 2025 only strengthened their authenticity, as they are a direct part of the war, not merely speaking about it from a safe distance.
The festival stage for these musicians has turned into a veritable political tribune. Frontman Kumar’s rhetoric remains direct, harsh, and devoid of metaphors, and his key message on European stages sounds like «Fck war, fck imperialism, and fck Putin», which is not just a slogan but a scream of despair and rage. The band demands that the listener confront reality, and festival reports indicate that while the music is received with enthusiasm, the purely «entertainment» aspect of the event is shattered by the reminder of the ongoing genocide. Kumar draws a clear line between «1914» and other «mainstream» bands. He views his colleagues’ work as entertainment with «fire and shows», whereas «1914» represents genuine grief, despair, and filth. This distinction is fundamental, as for a German band, war is merely a stage costume, while for Ukrainians, it is a reflection of their daily reality.
Currently, the band directly links the consumption of its art to the destruction of the enemy, creating a unique phenomenon of «economic war» through culture. Direct aid from merch sales, including t-shirts, vinyl reissues, and patches, is converted directly into vehicles, helmets, armor plates, medicine, and drones. This phenomenon fits into the broader context, where fundraising in the Ukrainian diaspora and cultural sphere is often directed specifically at FPV drones and other technological means. «1914» is an active participant in this ecosystem, and according to Kumar, they play to raise money for the army; thus, proceeds from songs about a war a century ago are now used to purchase drones.
Released in November 2025, the band’s fourth album, «Viribus Unitis», serves as a central element in analyzing the group’s evolution. Critics and the band itself note a shift in emphasis from the «gloom and death» inherent in the 2018 album «The Blind Leading the Blind» to themes of «survival, brotherhood, and homecoming» in the «Viribus Unitis» record. The album’s narrative arc tells the story of a specific Ukrainian soldier in the ranks of the Austro-Hungarian Army. This image is artistically generalized but historically grounded, and his path runs through the Siege of Przemyśl, the Carpathians, the Isonzo front, and finally concludes with a return home to a Ukraine engulfed in the chaos of 1919.
This story becomes a kind of mirror of 2025, as frontman Kumar admits that the album is actually «about love» and «the will to live». This reflects his personal experiences, particularly the separation from his daughter, who was sent to Europe for safety, and the deep fatigue from constant funerals of friends. The title itself, «With United Forces» (Viribus Unitis – the motto of Franz Joseph I), although historically referring to the Dual Monarchy, serves as a transparent allegory for the unity that is critically necessary for Ukrainian society to survive the Russian onslaught.
The inclusion of the first historical recording of the anthem of Ukraine (from 1916) in the track «War Out» acts as an act of affirming the existence of the Ukrainian nation and its state symbols before the creation of the Soviet Union, which directly contradicts the Russian propaganda narrative about Ukraine being «Lenin’s creation». By using the Austro-Hungarian context, 1914 emphasizes that Ukrainians fought for their subjectivity even while being part of other empires, and that their history is an integral part of general European history, and not merely an appendage to the «Russian World» (Russkiy Mir).
Thus, an analysis of the creativity and activity of the band «1914» leads to a conclusion regarding the «Evolution» mentioned in the conference title. It is best observed in the band’s transition from Archaeology (excavating the past) to Survival (the fight for the future). Their album «Viribus Unitis» (2025) stands as a monument to this transition. It is no longer about them; it is now about us.

Coffee break

Special guest

Will be announced.

Closing words