After being evacuated to Western Ukraine in 1986 following the Chernobyl disaster, Hütz became enamored of the mystical, outsider qualities of gypsy music. Living as a refugee in Poland, Hungary, Austria, and Italy before moving to the United States in 1993, he experienced life as an outsider himself.
After arriving in New York, he teamed up with guitarist Vlad Solofar and squeezebox player Sasha Kazatchkoff. American Eliot Fergusen added a strong rock sound on the drums and the band was also augmented by Sergei Riabtsev on fiddle, a former theater director from Moscow whose past experience would prove helpful in the future in crafting Gogol Bordello's bizarre stage shows (like one which tells the story of super-powered immigrant Ukrainian vampires).
The group's early gigs involved playing straight gypsy music at Russian weddings, but their music soon evolved into the hyper-kinetic explosions that earned them a solid following amongst New York's downtown hipsters. The band issued a single in 1999 entitled Gogol Bordello, quickly followed by their debut full-length, Voi-La Intruder, which was produced by Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds' drummer Jim Sclavunos. Solofar and Kazatchkoff were replaced by accordionist Yuri Lemeshev, who hails from the Russian island of Sakhalin, and two Israelis, guitarist Oren Kaplan and saxophonist Ori Kaplan, who despite their similar names were not related.
Hütz helped bolster the band's popularity by becoming somewhat of a celebrity in the downtown scene, in part fueled by his Thursday night DJ gigs at Bulgarian club/restaurant/bar Mehanata, where he played Ukrainian, Gypsy, raï and flamenco music for a crowd of artists, models, Ukrainians, Russians, Gypsies, and Bulgarians with tendencies toward exuberant dancing and smashing plates. In the spring of 2002, Gogol Bordello embarked on a European tour and performed as part of the Whitney Biennial, bringing their music to a whole new audience.
In 2007, the band released their fourth studio album, Super Taranta!.
The members of Gogol Bordello have also made appearances in film. In 2006, their song "Start Wearing Purple" was featured in the film Everything Is Illuminated (starring Elijah Wood and Eugene Hütz), bringing their music to an even broader audience throughout the US.
Gogol Bordello all appeared in Madonna's first short film as director, Filth and Wisdom. Eugene Hütz is to play one of the lead roles. The band have contributed three original songs to the soundtrack.
Their music was also featured in the film Wristcutters: A Love Story and the character of Eugene was based on and partially written by Eugene Hütz.
Let's Get Radical
Gogol Bordello Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh! Fuck!
She says, "Let's go to Brighton Beach,
And the ? disco."
Well that would be great fun of ironic kind,
For your self-collapsing ironic mind,
Provided of course you will ever make it through!
So let's get radical!
[Ukrainian] radical!
Not ironic, sardonic, catatonic, ceremonic but radical!
Well you know mother,
Some things are actually sacred.
And tough for you ceremonic just won't do!
So hey girl we've got the cure for you,
Provided of course you will ever make it through,
But, hey boy, we've got the cure for you too,
Provided of course you will ever make it through!
So let's get radical!
[Ukrainian] radical!
Not ironic, sardonic, catatonic, ceremonic but radical!
Let's get radical!
[Ukrainian] radical!
Not ironic, sardonic, catatonic, ceremonic but radical!
Not ironic, sardonic, catatonic, ceremonic but radical!
The song "Let's Get Radical" by Gogol Bordello is an upbeat and fast-paced track that features a call for a radical approach to life. The song starts with the band members waking up with an exclamation of "oh fuck". The first verse then follows with a conversation between two individuals about going to Brighton Beach and to the "ceremonic disco". The singer objects to the idea of this being fun and ironic for a "self-collapsing ironic mind," and instead encourages the listener to take a radical approach to life.
The chorus then comes in, singing about being "Ukrainian radical" and rejecting any other form of irony, sardonicism, or ceremonies. The singer emphasizes that some things are sacred and that catharsis is needed to get through life's difficulties. The song ends with a repetition of the chorus, emphasizing the need for a radical approach.
Overall, the song can be seen as a call to action for the listener to reject mainstream ideas and embrace a more radical and cathartic approach to life.
Line by Line Meaning
(Good morning!)
Expression of surprise and/or frustration
She says, "Let's go to Brighton Beach, And the ? disco."
A suggestion made by the woman to go to Brighton Beach and to dance at the disco there
Well that would be great fun of ironic kind, For your self-collapsing ironic mind, But, hey girl, we've got the cure for you, Provided of course you will ever make it through!
Although your suggestion of going to Brighton Beach is ironic, we have a solution for your underlying problems, but it may be tough to cope with
So let's get radical! [Ukrainian] radical! Not ironic, sardonic, catatonic, ceremonic but radical!
We should adopt radical ideas rather than being ironic, sarcastic, apathetic, or ceremonial
Well you know mother, Some things are actually sacred. And tough for you ceremonial just won't do! So hey girl we've got the cure for you, Provided of course you will ever make it through, But, hey boy, we've got the cure for you too, Provided of course you will ever make it through!
Although some things are sacred, the mere act of being ceremonial won't cut it, but we have a solution for everyone if they can handle it
So let's get radical! [Ukrainian] radical! Not ironic, sardonic, catatonic, ceremonic but radical! Let's get radical! [Ukrainian] radical! Not ironic, sardonic, catatonic, ceremonic but radical! Not ironic, sardonic, catatonic, ceremonic but radical!
We should embrace radical thinking and avoid being stuck in irony, sarcasm, apathy, or tradition
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Eliot Ferguson, Eugene Hutz, Oren Kaplan, Sergey Ryabstev, Yuri Lemeshev
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind