As the vacation season slowly runs towards the end, and Ukrainians have to get back to serious work, concert scene comes back to life. Local promoters have already lined up at least four events which would be a shame for us to miss.
Internationally famous festival Creamfields is coming to Ukraine for the first time. On Aug. 23, Druzby Narodiv Park on Trukhaniv Island will receive such impressive guests as Groove Armada, Chicane, The Crystal Method, Deadmau5, Infected Mushroom and Ferry Corsten. Axwell, Sander Kleinenberg, Eddie Halliwell, Adam Beyer, Joachim Garraud, Dirty South, Robbie Riviera and others will also keep the party going. First Creamfields festival, a child of popular club Cream, was held in 1998 on a field in Winchester, gathering 30,000 people. Read more on Creamfields Ukraine in the next issue of the Kyiv Post.
For a while, rumors were circulating that no one other than Madonna will come to open the Donbass Arena stadium in Donetsk. However, on Aug. 1 it was revealed that U.S. pop star Beyonce Knowles will help launch the stadium of a leading Ukrainian football club Shakhtar Donetsk – the first five-star stadium in Ukraine. Beyonce, who started out as a part of Destiny’s Child trio in the late 1990s and went solo in 2003, is now at the height of her career. Her latest album “I am … Sasha Fierce” is topping the charts, and songs from it are constantly aired on TV and radio. She also starred in several movies: “Dream Girls,” “Cadillac Records” and “Obsessed.”
On September 13, Kyiv’s Palats Sportu will host Anastacia – a famous American singer who is easily recognized for her remarkably strong soulful vocals which seem overwhelming for her delicate stature. Her debut album “Not That Kind” released in 2000 reached top ten charts in eight countries of Europe, Asia and Oceania. Anastacia has also recorded the song “Boom” – the official theme for 2002 FIFA World Cup. In 2003 Anastacia was diagnosed with breast cancer but successfully fought it. However, she thinks that her voice lost some of its power, and she somewhat altered her music and style, bringing in more rock instruments. Her following self-titled album came out in 2004 and the single “Left Outside Alone” became a major hit. At the moment, Anastacia is on tour in support of her fourth album, “Heavy Rotation.”
Fans of jazz should be soon buying train tickets to Koktebel Jazz Festival on Sept. 10-13. Held since 2003 in Koktebel, Crimea (20 kilometers from Feodosia), it annually gathers famous names from the world of jazz – artists from Ukraine, Russia and other countries of the world and their fans. This year the festival lineup features Oi Va Voi and Courtney Pine from the UK, Tequilajazz, Funky Soul Band and Alissidjazz from Russia, Voo Voo from Poland, Djabe from Hungary, and Ukrainians – Haydamaky, Pur Pur, Denis Adu Quintet and 2 Sleepy among others.