In memory of Nikolas Asimos: 20 years after his suicide

20 years were completed today, the Greek music composer and singer Nikolas Asimos committed suicide.

Nikolas Asimos was an unconventional music composer and singer, a very special case of a counter-culture artist, mostly because of his choice of lifestyle. His behaviour and songs were often received as provocatory by the general public and moved in the margin of music industry in Greece. He was anticomformist and allowed only a few of his songs to be released under famous music labels. The majority of his work was recorded on tapes in his home (tapes No 000001-000008), the so called “Illegals” by him. He was anarchist in his political orientation and the majority of his songs deal with such topics: social revolution, against authorities, against religion, education system, against consumerism, work, etc.

His music cannot be classified as a genre. He wrote and played, mainly by himself as performer, greek popular music, ballad, rock, blues, rebetica. His lyrics were sarcastic, provocative, offensive, outrageous and sometimes romantic and melancholic expressing his turbulent personal world and his rage against the society. It worths mentioning that his few releases under famous labels were extensively edited even censored by the music companies in order to make the stuff less provocative to the public.

His life was turbulent too, censorships, imprisonment, sanitarium, etc that led him to commit suicide in 17 of March 1988. After his death many of his songs reproduced, remixed or performed by other musicians and released by famous labels.



We present “Μπαταρία” (Battery), one of his most famous songs that has been performed by many Greek musicians and rock bands. It deals with mind manipulation, consumerism and the plastic ideals of modern life. Those who prefer to sacrifice, in favor of fake comforts, their freedom, quality of life, public health and generally choose not to take life on their hands, are condemned to be reduced to robot-like slaves, easily manipulated by their leaders, masters, etc. This song makes hints to the polluting urban and industrial environment: “pneumoconiosis”, the disease caused by chronic dust inspiration in heavy polluted cities, like those in Greece, and industries.

The song has been included in form of ballad in two compilations, the “illegal tapes" No 000003 (Γιατί φοράς κλουβί-Why you wear cage) and 000008 (Το φανάρι του Διογένη-Diogene's Lantern) “released” by him in 1979 and 1987 respectively. Later, after his death, it was remixed and reproduced in a more rock form and released in the compilation ”To falimendo tou cosmou” (World’s bankruptcy) .

References
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikolas_Asimos
http://leonardo.spidernet.net/Recreatus/424/asimos3.html

Lyrics in Greek:

Μπαταρία - Νικόλας Άσιμος

Εκπορνεύεσαι κουρέλι
στην μπορντελοκοινωνία,
ξεπουλάς και την ψυχή σου,
για την υπεραφθονία.
Στην καρδιά σου βάλαν φρένα,
το μυαλό σου παίρνει βύσμα,
για χιλιάδες σαν κι εσένα
θα αρκέσει μια μπρίζα.

Κι η Πνευμονοκονίαση, κι η πνευμονοκονίαση
κι αυτή θα έχει πάψει.
Ρομπότανθρωπομήχανση και ξύπνοπνευματύπνωση
και χρυσωμένο χάπι.

Θα είσαι με μπαταρία,
να εκτελείς εργασία
με σούπερ ενημέρωση, τροφή και διασκέδαση,
θα πλέxεις ευφορία.

Για κοιτάξτε με σακάτη,
ένα έχω μόνο μάτι.
Μου ρουφήξατε το αίμα,
μα αλογόκριτο έχω βλέμα.
Αποφασισμένος πάντα
στην προσωπική μου μπάντα,
την ψυχή μου δεν πουλάω
και το δρόμο μου τραβάω.

Την πνευμονοκονίαση, την πνευμονοκονίαση
εγώ τη συζητάω
ρομπότανθρωπομήχανση και ξύπνοπνευματύπνωση
δε θέλω να τη φάω.

Ξερνάω την μπαταρία,
δεν εκτελώ εργασία.
Δεν θέλω ενημέρωση, κορσέ και διασκέδαση,
γουστάρω ελευθερία.

Translated by us lyrics:


The Βattery – Nikolas Asimos

Prostitute rag yourself
in this fucking society
Sell our soul
for an affluence variety
Your heart is bounded with chains
They put a plug in your brain
For some thousands like you
it’s enough only one fuse

By pneumoconiosis, by pneumoconiosis
you won’t suffer anymore
robot-human-machinery an awake-mind-hypnosis
and a sweatened pill

You’ll be connected to a battery
for working all the day
with super information, food, amusement, recreation
you’ll produce euphoria state

Look at me a cripple guy
I have only one eye
You sucked my blood with pipe
but I still have a striking sight
Always making my mind
to my personal lonely side
I don’t sell my soul
I walk my own road

Pneumoconiosis, pneumoconiosis
get used to and have a chat with
robot-human-machinery an awake-mind-hypnosis
Don’t want to be laden with

I spit out the battery
I refuse to work all day
Don’t want no information, corset, recreation
In freedom I want to lay.


you can hear this song (rock version) in you tube:
Battery
And a live performance of another famous song, a sarcasm to music industry:
Ο Μηχανισμός (The Machinery)