There are no right or wrong songs in Rock music, only feelings and stories hidden behind the lyrics.
Every song, after all, is a story … Some of them with deep political and social messages.
In humanity there is something that remains “stable” over the years and that is the… War.
The strong want to exterminate the weak without counting the losses.
And all this out of greed!
By claiming lands and “valuable” economic resources, human lives of all ages are leveled.
Morals, customs, cultures are destroyed.
War leaves behind countless destruction and images that any thinking person could feel … Only Anger!
A shocking image was the occasion for Nikos Giakoumakis to capture the tragic moments that Palestine has been going through for years.
Only Rage…
The image gives the impetus to Nikos to describe injustice and destruction.
“A Palestinian father holds his dead child in his arms, breaks down, and refuses to leave him.”
This is exactly what Nikos describes to us, talking to us about the song “Mono Orgi” from the album “O Taxidiotis”.
It was such a shocking moment and being a young father myself, I immediately felt like it could have happened to me.
The thought, of course, was so intense that for a few days I could not sleep, while almost the whole day was passed thinking about this fact”.
The history of Palestine does not fit in a few words, it wants volumes of books and the images that accompany it are outrageous.
However, a few verses accompanied by a melody are enough to get a first idea of what is happening in Palestine.
As we often say in R1 Vibes, every song should be an occasion for further search.
And this song is a social-political song, from what Nikos often writes (a visit to his music channel is enough to understand).
“It is a song dedicated to Palestine and consequently to all those who are outraged and outraged by injustice and pain.”
A World Solidarity Day is not enough to wake people up, as few people really understand what it is all about.
As action aid typically states: “In the Occupied Palestinian Territories, the Palestinians are not protected by law.
Every day, every hour, every moment they experience constant violations of their rights.
The Israeli authorities provocatively ignore all International Treaties, International Law, UN Resolutions.
The violations are so many that the list is huge.
Palestinian children and young people, in particular, are growing up in an environment that is systematically trying to steal their future.”
The lyrics
The lyrics, as I mention above, are a way to convey to us the feeling that Nikos felt seeing that father holding the lifeless body of his child …
“Like a lie for the heart when its tears up and smash against a wall of fear.
Stopping to hope is lethal.
Only the pain comes to it, laughing.
White from Birth lies now polluted, Hubris is what this is.
And only painted blood red from innocents, it makes no sense.
As I breathe in the air of freedom, as I cry against injustice which rules, |rage only| I will think of that father, who lost his child too soon.
The Palestinian dance is for the cowards.
The insane thinking that they are small Gods.
Can’t they feel that People seek just a pretext for vengeance?
It is the last straw for the People, and don’t you think they are serene observers
Horror will do you no favors and will be rendered to hate.”
The melody …
Musicians do not just write a few lyrics; they also want to convey their feelings to the audience through melodies.
And that is the magic of this art.
As Nikos describes us: “During the recordings, I wanted to capture, exactly, the feeling of anger and pain.
But at the same time to have a touch of hope and strength.
So, building the track, I dressed it with many vocals and different vocal lines.
The result was to do, if I remember correctly, about 20 different tones – melodic lines and which are added during the song, while at the end, they all blend harmoniously together, like an …
Outburst!”
The live presentation…
Nikos describes a shocking moment during a live performance.
“In a live, I performed an acoustic version of the song, with 2 guitars.
So, I made an introduction about what the audience is going to hear and what the lyrics have to do with it.
When I announced the title, one of the audiences jumped in and said, “No rage, just love.”
The answer I gave was immediate, telling him that injustice, death, and irrationality are only anger.
And I started the song as everyone started applauding, including this man.”
The song is 5 years old and almost 3 years old of official release and yet similar images are still coming.
Inanimate bodies of children, young people, women, the elderly, an endless cycle of death…