A lone trip to Moscow, Russia, in 2010 was, unbeknownst to me at the time, the first step in my journey to learn about Russian imperialism, abuse of its neighbors and citizens, and the history of its aggression and dysfunction. I was followed and harassed by the FSB even though I was just an American tourist, but I also had many positive stories.
Like the time I met Dima (Dmitry Spirin), who has become instrumental (pun intended) in my punk music and philosophical journey.
Dmitry Spirin is the founding member and frontman of the legendary Russian punk band Tarakany! (Cockroach!), and he is, by now, a punk legend in Russia.
As I mentioned, I first met Dima in 2010 during my only trip to Russia, where I filmed him and his band during rehearsal (video of the interview below).
We’ve stayed in touch and even collaborated on an English-language release titled Russian Democrazy through my Punk Outlaw Records label. But this was only the beginning of our friendship.
Little did I know when I met up with Dima in a Moscow train station in 2010 that 15 years later, we’d be on the same side of an explosive world event, even if from completely different angles.
We’ve both made sacrifices to do the right thing and stand on the right side of history, people, and freedom. But when it comes to standing by Ukraine, my sacrifice is next to nothing compared to Dima’s extraordinary story.
When Russia first invaded Crimea and Eastern Ukraine in 2014, Dima became a vocal critic of his country’s trampling on Ukrainian sovereignty and an unwavering supporter of Ukrainian identity, culture and right to exist. While, like many Americans in their bubbles, I was just trying to figure out what all the hullabaloo about Crimea was, Dima was taking action.
His songs have always had a theme of the socially consciousness, and contained biting criticism of modern society like “Eye for Eye” (below re-edited by us for the Trump era during the 2020 election) but after Russia’s invasion in 2014, much of his music turned into even more vocal protest anthems and pleas for peace.
In late 2021, as the ruzzian government’s repression against internal dissenters intensified, Dima paid a heavy price for his outspokenness. Viewed as a threat by ruzzia’s government, he was forced into exile. With a bit of help from me, he and his wife Tania resettled in Argentina, leaving everything familiar behind to escape where exiles for the past century have gone… to the edge of the world in South America.
I caught up with Dima and Tania last March in Buenos Aires. and met other Russians forced to flee when their outspokenness against ruzzia’s aggression triggered poor little vladdy pootin’s fear reflex (such a thin skin on such a small, little man).
Just before my trip to Argentina, the kremlin officially labeled Dima a “foreign agent.” Returning to his homeland is now unthinkable — the risk of imprisonment looms very real. Indeed, even touring some countries in ruzzia’s orbit could be risky (Georgia, Serbia, etc) but he did anyway.
While no longer a part of Tarakany! (apparently at least one member is at least pretending to be a putin puppet now), Dima’s voice has not been silenced.
It’s clear to me that Dmitry Spirin was 100% the driving force behind Tarakany! and his solo career is showing why that band was so successful in the first place.
A Punk Anthem of Resistance
Last month, Dmitry (Dima) launched his first European tour since going into exile. The name of the tour was Songs Not Bombs — a title that says it all.
I caught his show at Bardzo Bar in Warsaw, Poland as I was en route to Ukraine where I’m typing this.
The show was a powerful, emotional experience for me, but for his fans, many exiles themselves, it was almost religious like in it’s fervor. The collective release of their collective trauma was palpable.
The crowd was a mosaic of political exiles: Belarusians who fled lukashenko’s brutal crackdown in 2020, Russians who refused to stay silent, and Ukrainians bearing both visible and invisible wounds of war.
One young Ukrainian man in the crowd was missing an arm. I didn’t ask how; I didn’t wish to make him uncomfortable.
Among the audience, a father in a “Punk’s Not Dead” t-shirt held his young son on his shoulders. There were chants of “F— Putin” in both Russian and Belarusian. Shouts of “Slava Ukraini!” (“Glory to Ukraine!”) and “Heroyam Slava!” (“Glory to the Heroes!”) filled the air. It was more than a concert — it was a collective act of resistance and more powerful than any religious experience I’ve ever had.
Dima poured his soul into the performance, ending the night with the apt Silence is Death , followed by a rousing encore.
After the show, he stayed for over an hour, talking with fans and taking photos. I handed him a Mr. Z (Zelenskyy) doll — a small symbol of solidarity — to take with him on the rest of the tour. (We’ve sold Mr. Z dolls as a fundraiser for Ukrainian orphanages and children’s art and education programs here).
The next day, I met with Dima and his tour manager/guitarist (and fellow exiled musician) Max to continue documenting Dima’s remarkable journey. Their stories are filled with grief, loss, and displacement.
Though, of course, they have not have endured the same physical destruction or personal loss as so many heartbreakingly have in Ukraine, their emotional toll is undeniable — and their bravery, unmistakable.
Not all heroes are Ukrainian in this conflict and not all are fighting on the front lines of this war. There are many ways to be a hero by simply using the best of what one has to offer and in Dmitry Spirin’s case it’s his musical talent and lyrics.
And when I think of all the disappointing musicians and artists who have become Putin apologists, such as “Rabbit Hole Roger” Waters of Pink Floyd, The C-list former singer of Staind, Aaron Lewis who says we should “listen to what Putin has to say” from the confines of his safe and secure United States, or like film director Oliver Stone, who seems intent on going to his grave as a senile old man apologizing for war criminals and despots, Dmitry’s outspokenness as an actual former citizen of the country committing such outrages is more than refreshing.. it is a strong slap back to the uninformed, compromised or paid comments coming from the aforementioned and other glib apologists and false equivocators.
When Russian Allies Become Ukrainian Heroes
Dima could have chosen silence or like some of his bandmates and peers, jumped all in on the Putin-War-Crime-Train.
He could have stayed, reaping the benefits of a long standing career in Russia while turning a blind eye to war crimes like so many did.
But Dima did not.
He spoke out. He sacrificed. And he stood — and still stands — on the side of truth and justice and with Ukraine. It must be painful to take such a stand against your own country but right and wrong and truth are not partisan. They just are.
It’s perhaps a controversial truth to say, but I will say it. There are Ukrainians who’ve done less for their country than this Russian punk rocker.
Now, I am not speaking of Ukrainian men hiding from conscription. I would be a hypocrite to criticize them as I have no idea what I would do in the same situation (I’d like to think I’d fight, since I’ve gone to front line areas, risking life and limb voluntarily to report, but who knows until that situation is upon you).
I’m speaking of those who actively hurt Ukraine’s fight for freedom by supporting Trump or pretending life is normal and have cut ties with Ukraine as they pursue their life goals unimpeded in another country, putting Ukraine in the rear view mirror.
I don’t say that to provoke, but to underscore a fact. I feel we must learn to distinguish between aggressors, enablers, and allies regardless of their luck of geography, and Dmitry is an ally.
I would never tell a war survivor how to feel — that’s not my place. But hate is a poison. And to aim it at those who fight for justice, simply because of where they were born, is to let that poison spread in an iresponsible way.
Instead, let’s direct more energy towards those who deserve it… there are plenty of Russian’s to direct derision and hate and plenty of Americans as well. If you doubt me, visit my “Hall of Shame” page where I can’t even keep up the pace of plication to ruzzian propaganda is so endemic.
Dmitry Spirin and his current band mates have earned my respect and admiration.
They are, in my eyes, full fledged heroes and freedom fighters.
The fight for freedom takes many forms. And their fight — though quiet, though lyrical, though far from home — is very real.
And I could not be prouder to call them friends and allies in our freedom fight, not only for Ukraine, but for freedom everywhere.
Photos & Videos from the Warsaw Concert
Opening salvo in the war on fascism
Dima on Stage, Victorious
Dima chatting with fans after the show
Watch a clip from the concert below:
Author’s Note: This story is part of my ongoing project documenting the untold human impact of war, exile, and resistance across borders. Stay tuned for more from the front lines of truth and conscience. To find out more on Russia’s war on Ukraine and how you can help visit RawTravelUkraine.com