Performer of a music style known as Canto Nuevo or Nueva Trova, Luis Eduard… Read Full Bio ↴Performer of a music style known as Canto Nuevo or Nueva Trova, Luis Eduardo Aute has been an artist in many different ways. It was in 1954 when Aute moved to Spain, after spending his childhood in the Philippines. Deciding to become an artist, Luis Eduardo Aute's first passion was painting, having his first exhibition in 1960, while living in Madrid. By the mid-'60s, the painter and poet was convinced to start recording his own music and he signed up to RCA in 1966. The following year, Aleluya and Rosas En El Mar were released. Prominent books such as Las Matematicas del Espejo, La Liturgia del Desorden, and Animal were published in recognition to his writing skills. After releasing Alevosía in 1995, Aute started touring all over Latin America and Spain with a painting exhibition called Ad Libidum; he later participated in a collective album called Un Secreto A Voces, based on lyrics by Alejandro Filio.

Enamorarse O Morir
Luis Eduardo Aute Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Ya nadie queda absuelto
del "sálvese quien pueda",
del "a río revuelto",
"calumnia que algo queda",
del "dos y dos son cuatro"
y los sueños son mentira
que yo sólo idolatro
el espejo que me mira.

Y yo como un idiota
que aún cree que el malo es Judas
no acepto una derrota
y me debato entre las dudas;
no acepto una derrota
y me debato entre las dudas.

Y debo decidir
enamorarse o morir, enamorarse o morir...
o simplemente escapar
al primer bar.

Y ya triunfó el discurso
del "arrajón del oro",
de "el que montó el concurso
se llevará el tesoro",
de "cualquier cosa vale"
que vale casi todo
y al que se queje dale
y que se joda en su lodo.

Y yo aún disidente
del dios de las verduras
me voy a que me cuente
el lobo, qué es la emboscadura,
me voy a que me cuente
el lobo, qué es la emboscadura.

Y debo decidir
enamorarse o morir, enamorarse o morir...

o simplemente escapar
al primer bar.

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Luis Eduardo Aute's song Enamorarse O Morir explore the struggle between staying true to oneself and conforming to societal pressures. The opening lines describe the pervasive sense of self-preservation that has taken hold, where nobody is absolved from the "every man for himself" mentality. This is further highlighted by the line "calumnia que algo queda", which alludes to the prevalence of fake news and slander in the media. The singer concedes that dreams are nothing but a lie, and the only thing they idolize is the mirror that reflects their own image.

The singer then reveals themselves as someone who still believes in the concept of a hero and villain, refusing to accept defeat and wracked with doubt. The refrain of "enamorarse o morir" presents a poignant dilemma - should one choose to give into love and open themselves up to the possibility of pain, or should they simply choose to escape to the safety of a bar?

The second half of the song turns its focus towards the rhetoric of power and greed, where the lure of gold and success drives people towards exploiting any and all opportunities. The lyric "cualquier cosa vale" highlights the idea that almost anything is permissible in one's pursuit of their goals, even if it means causing harm to others. The last stanza finds the singer rejecting the societal idea of what constitutes as success and instead opting to seek answers from the natural world. The final lines are a reiteration of the refrain, emphasizing the importance of making a choice.

Line by Line Meaning

Ya nadie queda absuelto del "sálvese quien pueda", del "a río revuelto", "calumnia que algo queda", del "dos y dos son cuatro" y los sueños son mentira que yo sólo idolatro el espejo que me mira.
Everyone is now guilty of practicing a survival instinct and a lack of empathy. People believe in propaganda and rumor, even if it is not true. All this is because people don't believe their own dreams anymore and instead idolize their reflections that they see in the mirror.

Y yo como un idiota que aún cree que el malo es Judas no acepto una derrota y me debato entre las dudas; no acepto una derrota y me debato entre las dudas.
I am like a fool who still thinks that Judas is the bad guy. I can't accept defeat and keep doubting myself. I can't afford to accept defeat and keep wondering what to do.

Y debo decidir enamorarse o morir, enamorarse o morir... o simplemente escapar al primer bar.
I must choose between loving someone and dying or running away quickly to a bar and drinking. I must choose to either put myself in harm's way and experience love or to simply run away from everything.

Y ya triunfó el discurso del "arrajón del oro", de "el que montó el concurso se llevará el tesoro", de "cualquier cosa vale" que vale casi todo y al que se queje dale y que se joda en su lodo.
The speech that values gold above all else has won. The one who arranges the game will win the prize. Anything goes as long as it's worth something, even if it's worth almost nothing. If anyone complains, they will be punished, and they deserve all the trouble they get.

Y yo aún disidente del dios de las verduras me voy a que me cuente el lobo, qué es la emboscadura, me voy a que me cuente el lobo, qué es la emboscadura.
I'm still against the god of vegetables. I'm going to the wolf, to find out about ambushes. I want to find out about traps and ambushes from the wolf.

Contributed by Alyssa L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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