Big Cyc

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Big Cyc
Image:Bigcyc.jpg
Origin Gdańsk, Ostrów Wielkopolski
Country Poland
Years active march 1988 - present
Genres Punk rock
Pop rock
Pastiche
Members Dżej Dżej
Dżery
Piękny Roman
Skiba
Website(s) Official Site

Big Cyc ("Cyc" is Polish for "Tit") is a Polish rock band formed in 1988.

The band is well-known in Poland for their controversial behaviour. The cover of their first album, Z partyjnym pozdrowieniem (Polish for With a Party greeting), was an image of Vladimir Lenin with a Mohawk hairstyle. The title of their second album, Nie wierzcie elektrykom (Don't believe electricians) refers to the Polish president Lech Wałęsa, an electrician by education. Their fourth album cover, Wojna plemników (War of spermatozoons) featured a nun drying condoms on a clothes line. In May 1999, the band leader Krzysztof Skiba was charged with indecent exposure and fined the equivalent of $308 for mooning the Polish prime minister Jerzy Buzek during a festival in February 1999.

Contents

[edit] Members

  • Jacek Jędrzejak aka Dżej Dżej (Polish pronunciation for J.J., born August 22, 1963)
  • Jarek Lis aka Dżery (Polish pronunciation for Jerry, born April 18, 1963)
  • Roman Lechowicz aka Piękny Roman (Polish for Handsome Roman, born September 27, 1963)
  • Krzysztof Skiba aka Skiba (born July 7, 1964)

[edit] History

The members of Big Cyc met at the University of Łódź. Jędrzejak played guitar in a student reggae band Rokosz, Skiba performed in student theatre Pstrąg and in many school cabarets. In 1988 Rokosz broke up, and Jędrzejak wanted to create a new rock band. Jędrzejczak, Lis, Skiba, and Lechowicz joined him and they created Big Cyc.

In March 1988 the student club Balbina housed the first show of Big Cyc, called Uroczysta akademia na cześć 75-lecia wynalezienia damskiego biustonosza (A solemn ceremony to celebrate the 75th anniversary of invention of women's brassiere). Big Cyc made successive songs, and in 1990 they published their first album, Z partyjnym pozdrowieniem. The album became a hit in Poland and in short time Big Cyc became well-known in the country.

Successive songs and albums of Big Cyc took a sarcastic look on the reality of Polish politics and people. Often in ironic manner, the songs expose issues like problems of Polish youth, economic disproportions, drug addiction, or silliness of TV commercials. In 1996 Big Cyc published their seventh album, called Z gitarą wśród zwierząt (With guitar among animals), which contains the most famous song in history of band, Makumba, the stereotypical story of an African student in Poland.

Two newest albums of Big Cyc, Świat według Kiepskich (World according to Kiepscy) from 2000 and Zmień z nami płeć (Change your gender with us) from 2002 weren't very popular. Big Cyc switched to satirising politics - amongst others, they made the single Złoty warkocz (Golden praid) about Polish member of parliament Renata Beger. In late 2005 Big Cyc made a media furore in Poland with their controversial single titled Moherowe berety (Mohair berets), a commentary on vocal older generation in Poland, viewed by many younger people as old-fashioned (see Mohair berets).

[edit] Discography

Expanded history

The band was officially created in March 1988, when in the students hostel number 2 “Balbina”, of the University of Lodz (UL), the first concert has been played. The concert itself was organized as a sort of happening during an cultural event named “Solemn academy of the 75th anniversary of discovering the brassiere”. The nationwide medias ware invited (among others: Teleexpress, 3 radio channel), and the cabaret performance was introduced by Piotr Trzaskalski, then a UL’s student of culture studies.

In the same hostel the band members lived, studying on the philology faculty Jacek Jendrzejczak (studying polish philology), Krzysztof Skiba (culture studies) and Bozena Tomczyk (currently Czembrowska). Jacek Jedrzejak has been an experienced musician by then, playing from several years in a reggae band “Rokosz” (laureate of the Golden Ten during the Festival in Jarocin) and Skiba preformed in students theatre “Pstrag” and in several student cabarets, also co-creating street happenings named “The Orange Alternative”. After dissolution of the “Rokosz” Jendrzejczak has been trying to create a new band, with highly liberated repertoire. In this constituting new group such artists as Jaroslaw Lis (drums), Roman Lechowicz (guitar) and Robert Rejewski (vocal) preformed. After some time Rejewski was replaced by Skiba, who introduced a significant creative potential. New compositions followed quickly (Captain Wildcat, Loving Toilet Lady) and soon a great concert took place. The members of the band took pseudonyms: JJ (Jedrzejak), Jerry (Lis) and Lovely Roman (Lechowicz). Skiba remained with his own name.

Big Cyc kept creating new songs, all in unique hilarious poetics taking parody off the atmosphere of the late PRL (Polish People Republic). The first record, named “With Party’s gratings. 12 hits in lambda-hardcore style”, was released in 1990, already in new political environment, which the title and the cover – Lenin’s portrait with punk-like “irokez” – bear witness to. The record introduced such well known compositions as: “Highlander’s song”, “Western Berlin” (reminiscences from first performances in western society) and “The sad skinhead’s ballad”. Since then, the band became internationally known. Soon after, the band played part in the film named “The chemical weapon”, devoted to life and creative activity of the group, accomplished by independent creators team Garage-Film.

The following records never caused such sensation as the debut. The authors precisely stigmatized polish reality, but the music background was weaker and uninnovative. The second one, “Don't believe electricians” (1991) carried a prophecy of Lech Walensa’s failed presidency, the third “Love, music and brawl” (1992), brought an ironic critic of the musical environment – the Jarocin Festival, or the “Republika’s” creativity. The Fourth record, “War of spermatozoon’s” (1993) was condemned by members of the catholic party ZChN (National-Christian Union) for moral boldness and provoking cover. Subsequent one, “Pigs Knuckle, tripe’s, and other delicacies” (1995) became a sneer of the pseudo-grange wave and TV-commercial culture (“Hairdresser drama”). “You'll never forget” form 1994 was a collection of the greatest hits and some new songs, among which “It’s for you my brother” can be stated as a bands ideological hymn.

In that period the musicians ridicully but bitterly commented their world. They didn’t fail to notice new social phenomena: growing disproportions in wealth, clericalism , necromancy, and callous elites, and contrasted it with freedom and neutrality of the young people.

In 1996 the “With guitar among animals” record became known, it brought band’s greatest hit – “Makumba” along witch successive texts, exposing polish reality, e.g. showing the birth of the gangs. Another vocalist, Jaroslaw Janiszewski from “Bielizna”, appeared in this record, and soon he has created a parallel band, named “Black Blacks”, with the members of Big Cyc’s musicians.

Celebrating the 9th anniversary in 1997 the band introduced subsequent record, with quite shocking title: “First Communion, second breakfast, third Rzeczpospolita (The Republic of Poland)”, was chosen by the public present. “All saints” (1998), based on texts of a dead poet Wieslaw Dymny, proved to be an interesting experiment. Two last records: “World according to Kiepscy” and “Change your gender with us” discount the band’s medial popularity. Nevertheless the texts of do not lose their inner sharpness and validity, they ridicule pop-folk fashion or the tracksuit dressing tendency. Recently the politics have returned as the major subject (the “Golden plait” concerning Reneta Beger, the member of the polish parliament, or the “Mohairal berets” a satire on polish government elected in 2005 and one criticizing the president of Belarus – Alaksander Lukaszenko.

The band has never forgotten about it’s happening origin. Several times it managed to present, in an unconventional way, the absurd and disabilities of public life. The musicians had chained themselves to radiators in publishing house “Polish Records”, protesting against unwillingness to pay artist’s royalty, they have eaten tax forms (along with Janusz Korwin-Mike) fighting with too high taxes, and they protested under the Minister if Culture’s cabinet unmasking partiality of the financial politics.

Some time ago a new member has occurred, Piotr Sztajdel Gadak, keyboard player. Jan Borysewicz, Marek Piekarczyk, Paweł "Konjo" Konnak, Wiesława Warszawska and Viganna Papina also had a chance to perform along with BIG CYC.

[edit] External links

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