LOST IN TRANSLATION?
/04.09.2011

Share on facebook

Last week after one of our best live performances – an acoustic gig in the south of Poland – someone asked why we don’t perform any songs in Polish. The argument ran as follows: most people who listen to our music generally like the melodies, feel that there is emotion in the playing and singing, however, the significance of the words is lost on those who speak no English. Consequently, we cannot possibly imagine rivalling the great songsmiths and modern-day Polish poets such as Kasia Cerewicka or Piotr Kupicha in terms of popularity in Poland. It’s a strong argument, but for anyone who has had the misfortune to hear me brutally murder Polish words such as “rabarbar” or “traktor”, a three-minute composition of me singing in Polish would resemble the average English karaoke night where drunk, tone-deaf car mechanics decide to entertain other closet Freddie Mercurys with Bohemian Rhapsody – a form of torture last seen in Guantanamo Bay! We’re also hoping that with our lyrics readily available on the internet, more and more people will be curious about the meaning of the songs and will share their translations into Polish. Therefore, we’ll leave singing in Polish to the Bards of the Polish music scene, continue to perform with perfect articulation and pronunciation in English and spare audiences the misfortune of hearing me callously destroy their proud language!