So, I've decided to do a bit of a retrospective post and this time featuring the Lithuanian actor, director and singer-songwriter Saulius Mykolaitis (1966-2006).
Now, dare I say, this guy shaped a whole generation of people in their twenties today. Shame if you're not Lithuanian, but this guy was a big deal in 2006, when we were in our 'teen' years. At least for those of us more poetically inclined, the release of his first album coinciding with the news of his suicide, was a strong enough mixture of death, shock and sadness to shape him into 'the artist' of our youth.
His releases consist of three albums. The only 'official' album, released with his own intent and recorded in a studio was Nieko Nepasakyta/Nothing Said (2005). It was a good enough release to capture our attention, but fades away fast as a 'commercial' album with a lot of 'glitter' added to remove him from the archetypical 'one guy/one guitar' image, which was (and in a sense still is) typical in the eastern countries. His second release was a collection of children songs called Nupiešti Pasaulį/To Draw a World (2006). Released posthumously, it featured songs collected from his theater plays and some other recordings. After the sound quality of Nieko Nepasakyta/Nothing Said, this album had a noticeable drop in quality, due to it being just that - a collection of random recordings. However it served as a precedent (and in some sense already an indication of his status) that it was ok to release poor quality recordings just because there was no other way to listen to more of him. The album itself was ok, showing more of his 'raw' side, in terms of recording and the quality of the performances. It was pretty random, as a collection of songs, but served as a good addition to the world of children songs of Lithuania, even including some of the 'would be' hits like Kaip Smagu/Oh How Fun It Is. However, his major release (and my own personal favorite) Debesys/The Clouds (2007) fully completed his image as an artist. Since it was the second album to be released posthumously, it seemed like it would be a collection of 'what was left'. And it probably was. But 'what was left' were his actual, 'raw' recordings of the 'serious' songs which were either to 'serious' to make it into the first two albums or not popular enough. But boy oh boy were they serious. These songs finally read as an artistic expression with no need for either commercial success or the approval of children (or their parents) and had a more serious undertone of death, struggle and life. At this point I have to point out, that if you don't speak Lithuanian, there's probably nothing for you in listening to these songs, but they set the tone of what it means to sing, when you're singing with the acceptance of your own end in your mind.
Although his releases were hectic and most of them posthumous, the work of Saulius Mykolaitis, showed how poetry can be sung, and offered a wide array of themes to keep you interested. My own personal story, was that when I first heard Nieko Nepasakyta/Nothing Said I was slowly becoming interested and shared that information with my parents, to which they replied: "Him? Oh yeah, he killed himself recently." Now, had he lived he might have faded out completely, or had taken a secure, but not intense position in my mind. But the realisation that "This is it. You' re starting to love (as teenagers most intensely do) his music and already you're doomed for failure. There will be no more." made it so, as if I'd lost something which I never had. This realisation combined with this close (and first, for that matter) exposure to death, made me (and a lot of other people my age) grip on to what was there of him, thus intensely falling in love with him and his music, and turning him into the icon that he is today.
Though not much as recommendations go, here are some links, with (hoping I'll deliver) comments/translations:
Tea
TranslationKaip Smagu
TranslationWhite Day
Translation
