The band members actually started out as punks drawing some inspiration from Swedish folk music, but gradually the Oi! genre started having a greater influence on their development and around 1997/1998 Perkele became skinheads.
Despite their Swedish origin, perkele—the noun used for the band's name—is, in fact, a Finnish profanity. In a 2003 interview, lead vocalist and founding member Ron Halinoja cited his "roots in Finland" and the word's expressively vulgar nature as the main reasons behind choosing this for the band's name. Perkele claim to be strongly against all kinds of racism, nationalism, fascism, sexism, and homophobia as well as being opposed to hate, war, and environmental pollution. Despite this, in the past their appearance at traditionally left-wing events has caused controversy due to some of their songs featuring lyrical themes of Swedish and Finnish nationalist sentiments. Due to the background of their bassist Chris as an adoptee originally from Sri Lanka, the band have at one point experienced racist abuse from the audience at a concert in Belgium.
A Song for You
Perkele Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A lot of pride, Born to win.
Ben Sherman, Levi's jeans.
Dressed smart, Never give in.
Drinking beer, Have a fight.
It's a part, Of the night.
A way of life, Unity.
Fly the flag, For your country.
[Chorus]
This song's for you
This song's for the Skinheads
This song's for you
Skinhead, Skinhead
k! ecsbilpjk! kr
This song's for you
This song's for the Skinheads
This song's for you
Skinhead, Skinhead
k! ecsbilpjk! kr
This song's for you
This song's for the Skinheads
This song's for you
Skinhead, Skinhead
k! ecsbilpjk! kr
[Chorus]
This song's for you
This song's for the Skinheads
This song's for you
Skinhead, Skinhead
k! ecsbilpjk! kr
Getting drunk - Have a laugh
Meet the Skins - Everywhere
Feeling love - Feeling hate
Feeling pride - For yourself
Never take - Any shit
Standing strong - In the end
Fight back - Fight hard
For your life - For your future
[Chorus]
This song's for you
This song's for the Skinheads
This song's for you
Skinhead, Skinhead
k! ecsbilpjk! kr
This song's for you
This song's for the Skinheads
This song's for you
Skinhead, Skinhead
k! ecsbilpjk! kr
Skinhead, Skinhead
Skinhead, Skinhead
Skinhead, Skinhead
Skinhead, Skinhead
The lyrics of "A Song for You" by Perkele are an ode to the skinhead subculture. The song describes the appearance and lifestyle of a typical skinhead - boots and braces, short hair, and a sense of pride and unity. The skinhead style is characterized by the clothing they wear, including Ben Sherman shirts and Levi's jeans. The lyrics also reference beer drinking and fighting as a part of their night, and their loyalty to their country is symbolized by flying the flag.
The chorus of the song repetitively declares that the song is for the skinheads, emphasizing the sense of community and identity that is central to the subculture. The second verse of the song talks about the common experiences of skinheads - getting drunk, meeting other skinheads, feeling both love and hate, taking pride in oneself, and standing strong in the face of hardship. The overall message of the song seems to be an affirmation of the skinhead identity and their way of life.
Line by Line Meaning
Boots'n'Braces, Short hair.
We wear boots and braces and have short hair.
A lot of pride, Born to win.
We take pride in our identity as skinheads and believe we were born to be successful.
Ben Sherman, Levi's jeans.
We prefer to wear Ben Sherman and Levi's jeans.
Dressed smart, Never give in.
We always dress smart and refuse to give up.
Drinking beer, Have a fight.
We like to drink beer and sometimes get into fights, which is just part of our lifestyle.
It's a part, Of the night.
Getting into fights and drinking beer is just part of our nightly routine.
A way of life, Unity.
Being a skinhead is a way of life and we value our unity as a group.
Fly the flag, For your country.
We proudly fly the flag for our country.
This song's for you This song's for the Skinheads This song's for you Skinhead, Skinhead k! ecsbilpjk! kr
This song is dedicated to all skinheads out there. Skinhead, Skinhead!
Getting drunk - Have a laugh Meet the Skins - Everywhere Feeling love - Feeling hate
We like to have fun by getting drunk and meeting other skinheads. We sometimes feel love, but also feel hate.
Feeling pride - For yourself Never take - Any shit Standing strong - In the end Fight back - Fight hard For your life - For your future
We take pride in ourselves, never let anyone disrespect us, stand strong and fight back when necessary to protect our lives and futures.
Skinhead, Skinhead Skinhead, Skinhead Skinhead, Skinhead Skinhead, Skinhead
Reiterating our pride and identity as skinheads.
Writer(s): Leon Russell Copyright: Skyhill Publishing Co., Irving Music Inc.
Contributed by Jasmine R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.