Waking up with a Dead Rooster

Dead Rooster (Mertvy Piven)

Date of foundation – 1989

City – Lviv

Language – Ukrainian

First line-up (1989—1992):

• Lubomyr "Lubko", "Futor" Futorsky - vocalist, founder of the band;
• Roman "Romko Sigal" Chaika - guitar;
• Misko Barbara – vocals;
• Roman "Romko" Ros – violin;
• Yaryna Yakub'yak – vocals;
• Yuriy Chopyk – guitar;
• Taras Banakh – sopilka (in 1989—1991).

Band lineup 2023 – present:

• Yurko Roketsky – vocals;
• Svitlana Kyrylchuk – vocals;
• Oleg "John" Suk – bass guitar;
• Roman Chaika – guitar;
• Oles Slobodyan – drums;
• Mykola Yerega – guitar;
• Lubko Radomsky – flute;
• Yuriy Chopyk – guitar;
• Andriy Alfavitskyi – percussion.

Genre – rock.

The history of the band Dead Rooster

Dead Rooster is a Ukrainian rock band formed in 1989 by young musicians studying at the Ivan Franko University of Lviv. The band's first vocalist, Lyubko Futorsky, became its leader. The name of the band was not chosen by chance: an iron figurine of a rooster adorned the "Stary Lviv" coffee shop, where the members of the future legend of the domestic rock scene often gathered. Since the 70s, the "Stary Lviv" establishment has been a center for Lviv's "flower children". That is why the band members began to introduce themselves as "the fourth generation of hippies."

During the first performances of the young band, exclusively acoustic instruments were used, and the compositions symbolized the musical experiments of the "Pivni". The first recognition of critics and the audience came. Starting as pioneers of Ukrainian alternative music, the band Mertvyi Piven gradually gained cult status. The main feature of the team's creativity was distinguished, which is creating songs based on poems by prominent Ukrainian poets - Taras Shevchenko, Viktor Neborak, Oleksandr Irvanets, Yuriy Andrukhovych, Serhiy Zhadan and others.

Over the three decades of its creative history, the band's lineup has undergone many changes. After Lyubko Futorsky left for another band, the co-founder of the band, Misko Barbara, became the vocalist of "Pivniv", who was also an actor at the Kharkiv theater "Arabesque". Leading several projects in various fields of culture and art was a characteristic feature of many members of the band.

Creative path

The first live performance of the group can be considered a victorious performance at the Lviv festival "VyVyh" in 1990. The following year, the group appeared on the stage of the festival "Chervona Ruta". The first release under the name "ETO" took place in 1992. Given that Mertvyi Piven never tried to single out certain genre bindings for their own work, each album was distinguished by its own characteristics: sound, semantic nuances. Thus, bard rock prevailed in the debut album. 18 songs that entered the Golden Treasury of Ukrainian rock and roll were recorded without the use of drums and bass guitar.

The band's active tours take place in the 90s. The music of the Dead Rooster is heard in Ukraine and abroad: in Poland, Germany, Slovakia, Austria, France. Experiments with sound continue, new instruments are added, including electric guitars and a rhythm section. The Dead Rooster participates in the recording of the compilation album "Choir of Mongolian Militiamen" based on poems by Serhiy Zhadan. The album was released in 2007.

2011 actually became the moment of cessation of the creative activity of "Pivni". But in the spring of 2023, a loud revival of the team took place. Yuriy Roketsky became the new vocalist of the group. The band gathered again, literally piece by piece. There were movements in different genre directions. Notes of blues, hard rock, elements of psychedelics appeared in the compositions. The musicians continued to create in the key that was interesting to them.

Awards and distinctions, social activity

The active creative activity of the original team was marked by the affection of a huge army of fans and festival awards. Among them:

• "VyVyh" (Lviv, 1990);
• "Chervona Ruta" (Zaporizhzhia, 1991) - first prize in the "Acoustic Music" category.

The group's members have always been active in public life, appearing at various protests and other events aimed at supporting human rights and freedoms.

Iconic hits of Ukrainian rock stars:

• "Beautiful Carpathians";
• "I'm going to die of a cold";
• "Francois";
• "Coldly";
• "We will not die in Paris";
• "Without You" (Kurva Radio);
• "Cigarette";
• "Advantages of the occupation regime" and others.