Small Depo

Year founded – 2014
City – Kyiv (Ukraine)
Language – Ukrainian, English
Genre – post-punk

Small Depo is a Ukrainian music band from Kyiv that works in the post-punk genre, combining the melancholic aesthetics of the 1980s with contemporary musical trends in its sound. Small Depo tracks can be heard in the video game «S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl» and in the film «Episodes: The Shadow of Chornobyl».

Band members:

Maksym Ishchenko – vocals, guitar, lyrics;
Bohdan Kalyniuk – bass, music producer;
Oleksii Dergachov – drums;
Vladyslav Zhyltsov – bass, music, sound producer (since 2024).

History of the Band

The history of Small Depo began in 2014, when the project essentially existed as a one-man band. It was initiated by Maksym Ishchenko – a guitarist and vocalist who also worked as a music journalist. Over time, the experimental format developed into a full-fledged band joined by representatives of the Ukrainian post-metal scene.

The permanent Small Depo lineup gradually took shape. It included vocalist and guitarist Maksym Ishchenko, Asya Makarova, who played bass guitar, and drummer Sasha Semenov. In 2015, another drummer, Viktor Kondratov, joined the lineup.

Creative Journey

The first official release was the self-titled EP small depo, released on cassette by the Ukrainian label aorte. The following year, the band took a step toward full-length material: on November 20, 2015, its debut album Brodyaga was released on the MOON RECORDS label.

The record did not remain merely a local story and attracted attention beyond Ukraine. Brodyaga was included in the top 20 best post-punk albums according to the American Stereo Embers Magazine. In 2016, the band also released Brodyaga on cassette.

The next major release was the second studio album DEBIL'NIY, presented in 2018. The record continued the development of Small Depo’s musical style and established the band’s reputation as a prominent representative of the Ukrainian alternative scene. In 2019, the musicians recorded the joint track «Was Spotted» with rapper Kurhan. The composition was dedicated to Kharkiv artist Oleh Mitasov.

A Change of Format

In 2022, Maksym Ishchenko decided to expand the boundaries of the previous format and began working with Vladyslav Zhyltsov under the name DEPO. The new creative stage developed further, and in May 2022 the project released the mini-album «Simple». Nitso Potvorno and Ingret also contributed to its creation.

Alongside their musical activities, the members also joined volunteer initiatives. In particular, they took part in the work of the «Music. Support. Freedom.» association.

Return to Active Creative Work as Small Depo

In 2024, Small Depo returned and continues to perform actively live, while the musicians themselves are often referred to as veterans of Ukrainian post-punk. Over the years, the band has participated in a number of well-known festivals, including Untitled Fest, Burn the Scene for Fun, Neformat Fest, Zaxidfest and Icecream Festival.

After the full-scale invasion began, Small Depo became one of the bands for whom the transition to Ukrainian marked essentially a new creative period. Since then, the group has demonstrated a high level of activity and regularly released new material.

New Achievements

During this period, the mini-albums «Carnival» and «Patience» appeared, along with a number of singles. The band has also worked on collaborative compositions with other Ukrainian artists, including Jozers, DK Enerhetyk and singer Ingret.

The EP «Patience» holds a special place in this discography. According to frontman Maksym Ishchenko, working on the release became a kind of personal music therapy for him. The final composition «Fear» acquired an additional emotional dimension through the use of an excerpt from Lesya Ukrainka’s poem «Contra spem spero».

Small Depo’s music also became part of the soundtrack to the game S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, where the dark aesthetics of post-punk naturally blend with the atmosphere of a post-apocalyptic world. In 2026, the band announced an upcoming new full-length album. Its first single was «Power Grids». Then, in March, the new composition «Limbo» was released on the AB3 Music label, associated with the Third Army Corps.

Musical Style

The musicians describe Small Depo’s own style with the term «homeless post-punk», which aptly conveys their unconventional approach to the genre.

The band’s early recordings largely gravitated toward the so-called doomer wave and post-Soviet aesthetics. However, as the project developed, its musical direction began to change: the sound became more experimental, while the transition to Ukrainian also transformed the overall emotional content of the music.

Thus, Small Depo gradually moved away from its original genre template, retaining the gloomy foundation characteristic of post-punk while filling it with new musical solutions and Ukrainian-language lyrics.

Themes in Their Music

Small Depo’s lyrics often focus on experiences that are difficult to describe in just two words. The main motifs include loneliness, social isolation, the search for one’s identity and inner conflicts. A person’s inner state is often revealed through metaphors, specially created imagery and entire narrative structures.

A telling example is the song «Carnival» from the EP of the same name. At its core is the image of a forgotten clown broken by grief, who finds himself amid someone else’s celebration of life. Through this metaphor, the composition conveys a profound sense of loneliness and alienation while a collective celebration continues all around.

The song «Power Grids» uses a completely different imagery. Its lyrics are built around the metaphor of electric current – the protagonist literally wants to «connect the body to the power grid» and send a powerful electric charge through himself. Behind this harsh and almost physically tangible image lies an attempt to mentally ease pain and support people who have experienced profound losses.

Civic Position and Social Activity

After the full-scale invasion of russia began, Small Depo closely connected its creative work with supporting Ukrainian society and the Defense Forces. One of the important steps was the band’s complete transition to a Ukrainian-language repertoire.

The band’s leader, Maksym Ishchenko, became involved in volunteer work during the first months of the full-scale war. Today, Small Depo’s charity and solo concerts are accompanied by targeted fundraising campaigns for the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, thus combining the band’s musical activity with practical assistance to the military.

Another area of work is direct cooperation with Ukrainian defenders. A notable example was the large-scale collaboration «Limbo» – a joint composition and music video recorded with the participation of soldiers from the Third Assault Brigade.