Lyapis Trubetskoy, formed in Belarus in 1990, is one of the strangest bands… Read Full Bio ↴Lyapis Trubetskoy, formed in Belarus in 1990, is one of the strangest bands of the post-soviet show business. In 1998-1999 their songs could be heard on any major radio station, their videos were shown on every top TV channel both in Russia and CIS countries. Until now their legendary hits like “Au”, “Ti kinula” (“You Gave Me Up”), “Zelenolazoye taksi” (“Green-eyed Taxi”), “V plat’ye belom” (“In A White Dress”) and “Yabloni” (“Apple-trees”) are still popular among all Russian karaoke singers. Isn’t it the obvious sign of public acknowledgement? So, for “Lyapis Trubetskoy” the way towards stadium concerts seemed to be open, but…

“We came from the underground and became popular with our pop-culture parodies. One day to my horror I realized that our group has become similar to the objects of our parodies and mockery. We were starting to merge with all those pop-star crowd, but I’m not one of them and never wanted to be,” - Sergey Mikhalok, the band’s leader says. He admits that it wasn’t so easy to give up the show business game and become independent once again.

According to him, “it was very difficult to get our true essence back on top. And the thing wasn’t about any contracts. We had to overcome public opinion and, most importantly, set our own minds free. At first, my internal discomfort from the gap between the authentic “Lyapis Trubetskoy” and its public image was relieved by hard drinking and other stuff, but when my weight peaked at 110 kilograms and my mind was about to collapse, I gave up everything, lost 25 kilograms and started to play the music I like.”

“Capital” is the second independent album by “Lyapis Trubetskoy” after the “Zoloty’ye yaytsy” (“Golden Balls”) created in 2004 under heavy reggae and ska influence. “While working on “Zoloty’ye yaytsy” we didn’t understand what to do with our independence. As a result there were some reflex attempts to score a radio hit with “Rain’ka” or “Pochtal’iony” (“Postmen”), - Sergey Mikhalok says. – But this wasn’t the biggest problem. The whole album was overproduced, we tried to mix too many styles, musical instruments and sounds in it. So, we paid too much attention to the form instead of the essence. We were in need of a real professional who could tell us what was good and what was too much.”

That is why searching for a sound producer was one of the main tasks while working on “Capital”. At some point the band wanted to record their album in London, in the hometown the legendary British ska-band “Madness” (one of Mihalok’s favourites). When almost everything was ready for that, a chance interfered. At a concert in Kiev “Lyapis Trubetskoy” met a famous Ukrainian sound producer Vitaliy Telezin. He worked with “Okean El’zi”, “Brat’ia Grim” and other top Ukrainian/Russian artists. But it wasn’t the thing that attracted Mikhalok and his friends.

“We are from the same generation with him, we had common world outlook, we liked the same music. And it was the music we wanted to record on our new album. I don’t want to offend anyone, but, roughly speaking, for our band he is the first studio guy who didn’t need explanations about what is California wave or how “Green Day” and “Offspring” make their sound,” - Mikhalok says.

And this combination has worked perfectly well. Now it’s already clear that the new album will mean to the band and its fans no less than the legendary “Ty kinula” (“You Gave Me Up”) in 1998 and will give a rise to the new popularity wave for “Lyapis Trubetskoy”. Still, according to Sergey Mikhalok, the ideology of both the new album and the present group is different from what used to be in the years between these two landmarks. He says: “When I started my career I used to write songs that changed me and the world around me, but later I began to create stuff, that didn’t have influence either on me or the world around. At best those songs could be a soundtrack for some wedding or birthday. And what is horrible at some point I even used to be proud of that. But now I have come back to what everything started from – to a mix of biting satire and powerful chords.”

Video clips have played an important role in the album presentation. The first clip for the song “Hare” (“Enough”), a cheerful wedding trash-video, was filmed by a famous actor and new wave director Vladimir Epifantsev. The second clip, animation video “Capital”, which has become a real Internet sensation, was made by Aleksey Terekhov, co-author of the legendary “Au” (1998) and “Rozochka” (1999) videos. "Capital" has hardly appeared on TV, but has already won several prizes and got a lot of nominations on the different video & music festivals in Russia, Belarus, Portugal and so on.

Frontman Siarhei Mikhalok anounced mid-March 2014 that the group would ceased to exist the next 1 September.

offical website
www.lyapis.com
myspace page
www.myspace.com/lyapis

Зевс
Ляпис Трубецкой Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Убьём друг друга, друзья
Время решительной битвы,
В живых оставаться нельзя,
По кругу опасную бритву,
Возьмём топоры и ножи,
Возьмём кирпичи и кастеты,
В небо летят малыши,
Красивые люди-ракеты.

Зевса сверкают громы,
Весит на скале Прометей,
Руду пожирают гномы,
Люди жуют людей,
Титаны куют железо,
Драконы воруют детей,
Ждать перемен бесполезно,
А люди жуют людей.

Да здравствует быстрая смерть!
Вперёд, каннибалы, шахиды,
Звёзды будут смотреть
Финал сатанинской корриды.

Зевса сверкают громы,
Весит на скале Прометей,
Руду пожирают гномы,
А Люди жуют людей,
Титаны куют железо,
Драконы воруют детей,
Ждать перемен бесполезно,
Люди жуют людей.

Праздник, праздник, карнавал,
Фредди Крюгер, каннибал,
Чикатило, Парфюмер,
картер Брунер, Бизнес Блэр.
Праздник, праздник, опер-фест,
Васька слушает и ест,
I’m hungry, sorry, miss,
Я король голодных крыс.

Зевса сверкают громы,
Весит на скале Прометей,
Руду пожирают гномы,
Люди жуют людей,
Титаны куют железо,
Драконы воруют детей,

Ждать перемен бесполезно,
А люди жуют людей.

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Ляпис Трубецкой's song "Зевс" depict a chaotic and violent scene where people are consumed by their own primal instincts. The opening lines set the stage for a decisive battle among friends where survival is uncertain. The reference to a dangerous razor in a circle symbolizes the cyclical nature of violence and conflict. The lyrics then proceed to paint a picture of a world where people are armed with axes, knives, bricks, and brass knuckles. The image of beautiful rocket people flying in the sky adds a touch of irony to the brutality of the scene.

The chorus brings in the Greek god Zeus, whose thunderbolts crackle, as he is weighed down by Prometheus on a rock. This imagery symbolizes the burden of human progress and the consequences that come with it. The mention of gnomes devouring ores and humans consuming each other highlights the dark and cannibalistic nature of society.

The second verse continues with the theme of human destruction. Titans forge iron, dragons steal children, and the hope for change seems futile amidst the devouring nature of humans. The lyrics mockingly celebrate a swift death, urging cannibals and suicide bombers to move forward. The final line of the verse suggests that even stars will witness the satanic spectacle of human cruelty.

The last verse takes a more playful and satirical tone, referring to a carnival-like atmosphere. The names of famous serial killers and murderers, like Freddie Krueger, Andrei Chikatilo, and Charles Manson, are mentioned along with the fictional character Hannibal Lecter, creating a macabre celebration. The singer, claiming to be the king of hungry rats, revels in this grotesque feast.

Overall, "Зевс" presents a bleak and cynical commentary on the violent tendencies of humanity and the destructive power of our primal desires.

Line by Line Meaning

Убьём друг друга, друзья
Let's kill each other, friends

Время решительной битвы
It's time for a decisive battle

В живых оставаться нельзя
We can't stay alive

По кругу опасную бритву
Around a dangerous razor blade

Возьмём топоры и ножи
Let's take axes and knives

Возьмём кирпичи и кастеты
Let's take bricks and brass knuckles

В небо летят малыши
Babies are flying into the sky

Красивые люди-ракеты
Beautiful rocket people

Зевса сверкают громы
Zeus's thunders are shining

Весит на скале Прометей
Prometheus hangs on a rock