DJ Hamdam Zakirov

Everyone looking for some dancefloor action are welcome to the KuKu Club on 27 May at 22.00, when the local pop phenomenon Lonitseera is followed by a dance set. The turntables are taken over by a fascinating figure, poet, journalist and musician Hamdam Zakirov, who is from Uzbekistan and is currently living in Helsinki. Friends of translated poetry may have come across the Estonian translation of his collection of poems Vahimardus kaugel merest (A Deck Watch Far From the Sea, 2004, translated by Katrin Väli). As the title indicates, the colours and smells of Zakirov’s native Uzbekistan, especially the Fergana Valley, feature prominently in his work – quite a far cry from Estonian landscapes. Yet the collection also describes the feelings of someone who has left the steppe winds and desert air for the Nordic frost. While Zakirov’s poetry can be heard on the Saturday poetry reading Can You See Yourself? at the Estonian Writers’ Union, his performance at the KuKu Club is that of an experienced music connoisseur and DJ. You can look forward to a selection of Soviet disco sounds and Uzbek pop music.