Mad Heads XL
Encyclopedia
History
Band called Mad HeadsMad Heads
Mad Heads was a Ukrainian psychobilly band from Kiev, Ukraine well-known at Western Europe psychobilly scene.- History :It was back in 1991 when Vadym Krasnooky started the first neo-rockabilly/psychobilly band of Ukraine. The style was completely unknown there, so the guys felt like aliens with...
was formed in Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
, Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
by Vadym Krasnooky. In Ukraine they enjoyed the status of a rock legend for many years, with 4 studio albums, good press, frequent TV appearances and constant live touring. They have also been acknowledged internationally, as a well-known band in the psychobilly
Psychobilly
Psychobilly is a fusion genre of rock music that mixes elements of punk rock, rockabilly, and other genres. It is one of several subgenres of rockabilly which also include thrashabilly, trashabilly, punkabilly, surfabilly and gothabilly...
scene across the world and #1 of the genre in the whole Eastern Europe.
In the beginning of 2004, the new project Mad Heads XL was born. The line up was doubled with the powerful brass section (trumpet, trombone, saxophone) and the music drifted in the direction of ska
Ska
Ska |Jamaican]] ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s, and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. Ska combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues...
with a touch of swing and Ukrainian folk, becoming something that might come out of Manu Chao
Manu Chao
Manu Chao , is a French singer of Spanish roots . He sings in French, Spanish, English, Italian, Galician, Arabic and Portuguese and occasionally in other languages...
, Brian Setzer
Brian Setzer
Brian Setzer is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. He first found widespread success in the early 1980s with the 1950s-style rockabilly revival group The Stray Cats, and revitalized his career in the late 1990s with a jazz-oriented big band.-Career:Setzer was born in Massapequa, New York...
and Emir Kusturica
Emir Kusturica
Emir Nemanja Kusturica , is a Serbian filmmaker, actor and musician, recognized for several internationally acclaimed feature films...
jam session.
In March 2004 it was tested in the best live music clubs of Kiev, in April it appeared on top Ukrainian TV channels and in May the band came up the stage of the main Ukrainian music festival Tavria Games to perform for some 75 000 people (there was also a live broadcast on M1 – the main Ukrainian music TV channel).
That show brought the band to 9 more big open air stages in the next few months, with the audience varied from 5 000 to 100 000 (Day of Youth on the main Kiev's square, Maidan Nezalezhnosti
Maidan Nezalezhnosti
Maidan Nezalezhnosti is the central square of Kiev, the capital city of Ukraine. One of the main city squares, it is located on the Khreschatyk Street...
), proving that Mad Heads XL could really entertain a huge audience. In September 2004 the band was invited to take part in Djuice-Drive tour (sport palaces in the 6 biggest cities of Ukraine). They were the only Ukrainian act on the bill with artists from Western Europe. They also got busy playing in the clubs.
They were among the first bands to support the people of Ukraine in the protest action, when the Orange Revolution
Orange Revolution
The Orange Revolution was a series of protests and political events that took place in Ukraine from late November 2004 to January 2005, in the immediate aftermath of the run-off vote of the 2004 Ukrainian presidential election which was claimed to be marred by massive corruption, voter...
started. They canceled any commercial gigs and performed for the people on now famous central square of Kiev Maidan Nezalezhnosti, giving away their new song for the compilation "Orange Songs of Ukrainian Revolution" which featured some of the best Ukrainian acts and artists, and the profit of which had been transferred to the inhabitants of the protest camping. The band never thought of any promotion back then, but there probably was: their performance on Maidan was seen on CNN as well as on several European news channels.
In 2005 the band was on the road again and played plenty open air stages all over Ukraine. Mad Heads XL also appeared abroad, with a lot of success, at Rock for People 2005 festival in Czech Republic, not to mention a club tour of Russia.
In September 2005 ZYX Music released maxi-CD “Nadiya Yea” in Germany, but the main events with this song were happening in the homeland. The album “Nadiya Yea” was released in the end of October on Comp Music/EMI, so far in Ukraine only, soon proving to be among the bestselling local releases of the year 2005.During 2004–2005 years the band had several line-up changes.
Current members
- Vadym Krasnooky - vocal, guitar, songwriting (1991–present)
- Maxym Krasnooky - bass (1996–present)
- Vadym Nikitan - trumpet (2004–present)
- Valeriy Chesnokov - trombone (2005–present)
- Bohdan Humenyuk - saxophone, flute (2006–present)
- Volodymyr Zyumchenko - drums (2005–present)
Former members
- Bohdan Ocheretyany - drums (1994–2004)
- Maksym Kochetov – saxophone (2004–2006)
- Anton Buryko – trumpet (2004–2005)
- Volodymyr Pushkar – trombone (2004–2005)
Albums
Mad HeadsMad Heads
Mad Heads was a Ukrainian psychobilly band from Kiev, Ukraine well-known at Western Europe psychobilly scene.- History :It was back in 1991 when Vadym Krasnooky started the first neo-rockabilly/psychobilly band of Ukraine. The style was completely unknown there, so the guys felt like aliens with...
- 1996 - PsycholulaPsycholulaPsycholula is the first album from the rockabilly band Mad Heads. It was released in Germany and was very successful. The most famous song from this album was "Mad Heads Boogie".This album has been released in the Germany and tn the Ukraine in...
- 1998 - Mad In UkraineMad in UkraineMad In Ukraine is the second album from the neo-rockabilly band Mad Heads. It was released in Ukraine and in Russia.The tracks, "Sharks", "Corrida", "Black Cat" and "Treat Me Bad" appeared on Ukraine-released compilation album Naykrascha Myt....
- 2002 - Naked FlameNaked FlameNaked Flame is the third album from the Ukrainian psychobilly band Mad Heads. It was released in Ukraine and in Germany.Song "Полетаем" written by A.Ukupnik and Zaluzhnaya ....
- 2003 - ContactContact (Mad Heads album)Contact is the fourth album from the Ukrainian psychobilly band Mad Heads. It was released in Ukraine and in Germany and it was the first album consisting only of Ukrainian and Russian language songs....
(Контакт)
Mad Heads XL
- 2005 - Nadiya YeaNadiya YeaNadiya yea is the first album from the Ukrainian ska-punk band Mad Heads XL after the former band Mad Heads was complemented with a three piece brass section...
(Надія Є/The Hope Is Here) - 2007 - Naykrascha MytNaykrascha MytNaykrascha Myt is the compilation album from the Ukrainian ska-punk band Mad Heads XL . This release was dedicated to 15 years history of Mad Heads and Mad Heads XL bands...
- compilation (Найкраща Мить/The Best Moment) - 2008 - Forever