DEATH PILL: War and the New Age of Riot Grrrl

Sometimes, being in a band is tough. For thrash trio Death Pill, being in a band that doesn’t live near each other - not even in the same country - can make things even more complicated. This is the reality of being a heavy band from Ukraine, as for the band the ongoing war with Russia has become very real and personal. Disrupting their personal lives and sending the construction of their latest record Sologamy completely online, DEATH PILL’s existence is as fiery and unapologetic as the music they make. Touring the UK and Europe this summer, we learn how their far-flung voices embody the true spirit of punk, loud and unwavering, always with something important to say. 

For their latest release Sologamy, MARIANA NAVROTSKAYA (guitar, lead vocals), ANASTASIYA KHOMENKO (drums, backing vocals) and NATALYA SYERYAKOVA (bass, backing vocals), rehearsing for a tour and writing a new album completely online is the new standard. With two of the members moving out of the country, NATALYA explains it was a difficult experience: “The things you can quickly do when you are all together in the rehearsal room, ended up taking two to three weeks to decide. The ending of something, or deciding the backing vocals. Small things. Better ask our mixing guy, because he was receiving different opinions and wishes about how it should be, and he also has his own taste. But he was so impressed by us doing it separately.”

“Our close friends were surprised. “Oh, they live separately and don’t do rehearsals, but keep going.”, because you have bands who sit on their asses for four or five years and we are like “We are going to make a single!” ” NATALYA continues, explaining the positive reaction to the record, “I think it’s pretty good so far. There are only two options - [fans] don't tell us that it's shit, or they really like it. So it's kind of fifty-fifty. I think on the first day of the release, we were checking every hour how many vinyls were pre-ordered and how many people bought the album. After that, we stopped tracking.”

When they have been touring, the band definitely have stories from the trio's travels. A question about memorable situations could not be missed, The band surely came up with a wholesome tale from Gatwick Airport, as told by ANASTASIYA: “We were travelling from the Gatwick Airport to Warsaw and we were passing through the security, and they wanted to double-check my and MARIANA’s baggages, and the dude that was working there saw us and he was like: “Oh, you’re DEATH PILL! I was at your concert two years ago, you were fucking amazing and I wanted to see you one more time!”. Yeah, but it was very surprising, because from all the airports and all the security lines they had there, and there are a lot, we met with this guy who recognised us. And he was so happy and we were very happy. 

“After that, we were like, “Are we already celebrities? Where is our private jet?”“

At their core, DEATH PILL have been known for their blend of aggressive Riot Grrrl tendencies. “When we started playing, our idea was to show men that we can play somewhere even better, and that we cannot hear this shit like “Oh, it’s pretty good for girls.” As the time passes and we play more, we understand that we play not just to show someone something, for men especially, we understand that we play music just because we want to play music, and it’s a huge part of our life, and it doesn’t matter how men will respond to it.”.

The band agreed that there was not one song that was the most important or impactful, as the main idea of the album was to accept their differences and stay confident. Collectively, their shared perspective unites them. “Because it’s okay to be different every day. And we want to help people with this album. They can listen to it and be surprised that “Okay, you put in the same album a thrashy song and a pop song, and it fits with each other, it can be good.” Because it’s the same with you as a personality.”

The focus shifted onto the band’s tour, which was still ongoing during the interview. With their travels, the band has talked about the importance of being given the voice to speak up. As the band returned to the iconic LOUD WOMEN FESTIVAL to headline on its tenth anniversary run, they said, “The festival was good, the pictures very nice and the response from the audience too. It was also a big opportunity to represent Ukraine on the international stage. And the British Council was helping us with that. I think it’s very important for our culture, for Ukrainians to spread the word around the world, because as we can see, lots of people ask us “Is the war still going on in your country?” So besides playing music, we also have the mission to acknowledge people that yeah, the war is still going on, we are still fighting and we still need fucking help.”

ANASTASIYA adds a heavy, yet important, note to the world: “The main thing we want to say is that we are still fighting with the Russians, and we still need support. We still want to live our peaceful lives because we didn’t know we had a perfect life before the war began and right now my biggest desire is to come back home to a peaceful Kiev and to find out that my friends, who are out in the war are alive and still with hands and legs, because we already lost some friends to the war, and they were very good, good people. And it cannot hurt, it hurts every day, and I want to stop waking up and the first thing I do is to check the internet and the messages from my friends that they are alright or they are not alright.”

Ending the interview with a heartfelt message, the band thanked their fans for supporting them, as well as inviting them to play in cities across Europe and the United Kingdom. Although there are many reasons for DEATH PILL to focus on their personal lives, they do not give up on their aspirations even when separated. They still come together to support their motherland and beliefs. The courage and determination to their cause is admirable and with the finished two-week tour, as well as Sologamy, that came out on 20th June, MARIANA, ANASTASIYA and NATALYA only confirmed that they will always fight for freedom and equality.

Words: Katerina Stepanikova

Cover Photo: Kirsty Garland

Cover Artwork: Simon Arinze

Live Photos: Oz Davy

With Thanks To: For The Lost PR