I\'ve written a rather lengthy list of arguments, and pressed the \"back\" button by accident. Instead of writing them again, let me post a few ideas about the state of music in Romania and the world:
-\"Touch my body\", written by a pair of Romanian girls, was declared to be the single worst song in history; It also was a record hit in England.
-\"Dragostea din tei\" was (and still is, apparently) a groundbreaking, ear-shattering hit in Spain and Italy
-The lyrics for \"Dragostea din Tei\" are:
Hello,
Yo,
It\'s me,
A rogue,
And please, my love,
Receive happiness.
Hello, Hello,
It\'s me, Picasso,
I gave you a beep,
And I\'m a badass,
But, I want you to know,
I won\'t ask for anything.
You wanna go, but you won\'t take me with you,
No, you won\'t take me with you, you won\'t take me with you,
Your face and the love we had among the Linden trees
Remind me of your eyes.
I\'m calling to tell you
How I feel right now,
Hello, my love, I
t\'s me, happiness.
Hello, Hello,
It\'s me again, Picasso,
I gave you a beep,
And I\'m a badass,
But, I want you to know,
I won\'t ask for anything.
[note: this is an almost flawless translation - the meaning of every verse is left intact. If it sounds like gibberish, it probably is. I attribute stupidity, on both sides of the microphone, to its astounding success.]
As a person who knows Romanian music first-hand, let me give you a few real suggestions.
Phoenix - definitely something you should have. It\'s a mix of rock and jazz, with a violin thrown in for good measure and a traditional spirit. The band is a lot older than most of its members, but regardless of line-up changes, they\'ve still managed to keep the flame alive.
Iris - another old band, combining traditional rock with high-pitched vocals.
Luna(u) Amara(u) - While relatively young, this \"soft\" rock band has already proven itself with its heart-gripping lyrics and dark, tempered instrumentals.
Timpuri Noi - Strange band, whose style includes a little bit of rock, a little bit of orchestra music and a lot of goofing off. They\'re singing in Hungary right now, but they still have plenty of Romanian hits worth looking at. Also, some of its members are still around in a band called Partizan.
Vit(z)a de vie - A superb combination of \"light\" rock and rap... A shame it needs a translation, as well as understanding of the romanian music scene, for the full effect.
Spitalul de urgent(z)a(u) - A fantastic, humorous mix of accordeon and soft rock music. Their style could best be described as \"nutty\".
Implant pentru refuz - doom/heavy metal with a bit of rap thrown in.
Omu cu s(h)obolani - alternative rock, with extremely powerful lyrics that, while plain in appearance, possess a subtle and ironic meaning.
Holograf - T(z)i-am dat un inel is perhaps the greatest love Romanian song created in recent history. Get it.
Vama Veche - some pretty good love songs; one of their albums is a kind of \"love-music opera\", and their hit \"Hotel Cis(h)migiu\" is a perfect parody of the Eagles\' old \"Hotel California\".
Moromet(z)ii - hip-hop band. Their recent hit, \"Morometzii se intoarce\", is one of the only reasons I feel lucky to know Romanian.
Parazit(z)ii - another hip-hop band, whose lyrics are, unfortunately, off-limits to non-Romanian speakers.
Capuccino - a wonderful pop band... And by wonderful, I truly mean \"made of wonders\".
3 sud est - sometimes called \"3rei sud est\", they\'re considered the country\'s premiere boy band.
Class - some pretty decent pop music. Enjoy their hits, avoid the rest.
K-risma - for the hit \"Noaptea este ziua mea\"
Note that where I write t(z) or s(h), it\'s actually a single letter that produces the sound - the letter is a normal t or s with a comma underneath it. Also, a particular Romanian letter produces the sound \"ugh\" or \"um\", a rather soft form of \"a\" - I\'ll call that a(u), since the letter is a normal a with a little u-shaped curve over it. I suppose this is a rather long list, but hey, if you don\'t have the willpower to read through it, you probably don\'t have the willpower to search for these bands yourself...
I\'m actually curious if anyone else would like to stash a list of their country\'s greatest. Maybe I\'ll start a \"local bands\" thread, if one hasn\'t already been started.
