Che Guevara [English translation]

1st verse:

The floor of the school gym

was sticky and full of

dance1

and strange painted lines.2

From your dad’s cabinet

you had stolen

a bottle of mint liqueur

and a handful of coins.3

And when we kissed

I believed either in

victory... or death.

 

Chorus:

Tell your man to wear Che Guevara,4

when you two fall over on your bed.

For a passing while, would that bring back the rush of danger

which twisted our stomachs

back in the days

when we painted our eyes with black,5

acted rebel at the smoking place,6

raging against the machine? 7

 

2nd verse:

The guests are now arriving and bringing

salt and bread in your new two-bedroom apartment.

I'm sitting in the corner,

waiting for the buzz to set in.8

Your husband brings you

a glass of wine and some water.

It’s all so cute

it makes me nauseous.

And when you two kiss

I want to be somewhere else

or someone else...

 

(Chorus)

(Instrumental bridge)

(Chorus)

1. “Dance” as in “dancing people”. This is a reference to the disco/club nights occasionally arranged in Finnish schools. They typically take place in the school gym with some of the older schoolkids volunteering as DJs. The arranger is usually the school’s student organization. Sometimes the arranger could also be the local sports/youth club and the venue could be a local sports hall or club house with actual, touring pop/rock acts performing. These events are meant for minors / teenagers under the legal drinking age, but depending on the arranger and the venue, illegal underage drinking outside the premises is not unheard of. Many Finns have found their first contacts with the opposite sex in such setting.2. The official music video features an image of the typical line patterns painted on the gym floor – intended to facilitate the playing of various indoor team sports, such as basketball or volleyball. The Finnish word rajoja is obviously a reference to these (as the band even includes a picture of those lines in their music video!) but if you want alternative meanings, it could also be translated as ‘boundaries’ instead of ‘lines’ which opens up more possibilities for interesting interpretations (“strange boundaries”, if you will.)3. The original lyrics mention “markka coins”, specifically. The Finnish markka is an old (now defunct) currency which was replaced by the euro when Finland joined the Eurozone in 2002. The reference to markkas in the original lyrics serves as a cue that the protagonist of the song is obviously reminiscing about his past; going back in his thoughts to his teenage years – back in the days when the markka still was the local currency.4. “Tell your man to wear Che Guevara” is a reference to Guerrillero Heroico, the iconic Che Guevara photo originally taken by Alberto Korda, and later turned into pop art. This image of Mr. Guevara has made its way into numerous kinds of products, including T-shirts. Wearing a T-shirt with this iconic picture on it is an allegory of the rebellion of the teenage years when the protagonist of the song and the woman he keeps referring to were hanging out together. (The music video features a picture of the T-shirt and the image of Che on it.) So the whole suggestion is cheeky and bitter commentary on how the woman referred to in the song will probably never get that rush, that rebellious feeling of danger, from her current spouse, except perhaps with the help of a T-shirt...5. “Painted our eyes with black” is both a reference to the schoolyard “rebels” or outcasts using strong or unconventional makeup, such as black eyeliner (think of glam rockers, punk rockers, goths/emos and such), and a more specific reference to Stanley Kubrick’s classic film (an adaptation of Anthony Burgess’ dystopian novel) A Clockwork Orange, where the main characters are acting in a very rebellious and anti-social way and wear a very specific kind of black eye makeup. The official music video, once again, features a recognizable image of the eyes of “Alex”, the main character of the novel/film.6. Smoking is prohibited in Finnish schools but practically all of them have an unofficial “well-known” place somewhere near the premises where the nicotine-addicted kids hang out for their smokes during a recess. Typically all the “wild kids” smoke... maybe simply because it is frowned-upon and forbidden.7. In other words, “rebelling against the establishment”. Also see the band Rage Against the Machine.8. The original lyrics do not specifically mention the word “guests” or their arrival, only that “people” (or “they”) are “now bringing salt and bread” in the apartment with them. The original text also does not specifically mention it being a new apartment, but simply refers to a kolmio, the Finnish word for a “two-bedroom apartment”. But since people are bringing something in the apartment with them, they’re obviously arriving for a visit at the same time. And since the things they bring with them are “salt and bread”, the described situation is obviously a housewarming party, and the people in question are, in fact, guests to that party. (Salt and bread are the traditional symbolic gifts guests would bring into a new apartment on such occasion.) Also, the original text does not specify “sitting” in the corner: only that the protagonist remains in the corner, waiting for inebriation to kick in; to take over. But since the context is a housewarming party, he has obviously been invited to the occasion as a guest as well, has arrived early, accepted drinks offered to the guests, and is now sitting in a chair located somewhere near the corner of the room, observing the other arriving guests, the host couple, their doings and other goings-on, and just generally hoping that getting wasted enough would help numb the pain he’s suffering because of his jealous feelings towards his ex-sweetheart back from the school days.