Rock Monsters Romania

The East European Rock Alliance (EERA) is a groundbreaking international initiative designed to support and empower young and emerging rock artists across Eastern Europe. Funded by the European Union, this ambitious project brings together Romania, Poland, and Slovakia in a unique cross-border collaboration. EERA 2025 aims to ignite the region’s rock scene, blending raw talent with established icons to shape the future of rock music.

Today we are talking to Łydka Grubasa (in English: Fatman’s Calf), a genre-blending powerhouse from Poland that was born in 2002 when members of the prog metal band Respite switched to funny outfits mid-show—accidentally creating a new project that quickly stole the spotlight. Since then, this five-piece has fused reggae, folk, prog, hip-hop, and metal into their rock-rooted sound, pairing it with sarcastic lyrics that poke fun at modern life. Their viral hit “Rapapara” has racked up over 150 million views on YouTube, and their reach continues to grow with five studio albums, a live DVD, and millions of fans across social media. Known for their high-energy, top-quality live performances—often featuring a brass trio for extra flair—Łydka Grubasa has played to sold-out crowds across Poland, including a massive audience of 500,000 at Pol’and’Rock Festival 2019. Following international appearances in Ireland, Germany, and Romania, the band is gearing up for even more global adventures.

Your music blends a wide variety of genres and styles. How do you manage to balance these influences without losing the band’s identity?

Ha! The whole idea is about that – to be multidirectional, not just to stick to one template. I think that playing just one style would be kind of boring for us. And also, we are very broad-minded and each of us has a different taste in music. So, what we do is the result of many brains colliding. But the one thing that glues all of us together is our passion for rock and metal! So – we pour many things together into one pot, but we mix it with one ladle held together.

Your lyrics are often sarcastic and grotesquely humorous. What inspires this style, and how does the audience usually react to your messages?

We always loved making jokes and laughs about almost anything! God, the world is so full of stupidity, nonsense and absurd… It can take you down, you can struggle under the pressure – or… you can laugh about it. And even as we sing about obvious things in a funny way, we notice that people need someone to say things out loud, to get some eyes opened. Besides, too much seriousness kills slowly 🙂

Over more than 20 years of activity, how has your songwriting process evolved? Is there an album or song that you consider a turning point in your career?

At the beginning, our songs were mostly about food and getting fat. As Hipis switched from guitar to singing, we begun to write about things like tolerance, human dignity and… cows… Haha, sorry – I cannot answer this question seriously. It was always all about inspiration. Different things inspired us – so we made songs about it, from gender to traffic jams. The good things is, we are moving in the right direction, because we think that our lyrics and music are getting better and better. And the song that changed all is „Rapapara”. Of course, it is our most simple song and it is 100% a joke – but it’s gained an astonishing popularity and made us famous in Poland. It is played on every wedding and every party – and you know what? We are absolutely proud of it!

Since your music is in Polish, have you ever been surprised by how international audiences interpret your songs’ messages?

Directly – no. But it is always funny to watch people trying to sing the chorus without knowing the meaning of our lyrics. And it is a great reward to hear them laugh after we announce in English what the song will more or less be about. Finally – when you hear them repeat even a single word after you… Oh, it’s beautiful!

How did the Bucharest audience meet your expectations during your concert on February 28, 2025, at Club Quantic? What message would you like to share with the Romanian audience who experienced your music for the first time?

Oh, it was amazing! So many people, it was one hell of a challenge! With our knees shaking we managed to overcome the jitters – and it took a very short time. Why? Because the crowd was so open minded and welcoming… We knew from the start that everybody is friendly and ready to hear our music. And we must say, you have very polite and gentle crowd 🙂 In Poland, people are more expressive, both in good and bad way 🙂

You’re collaborating with Dirty Shirt and Heľenine Oči on this EERA 2025 tour. How does this partnership influence the dynamics of your shows, and what does each band bring to the table?

I think that this fusion effect is what we are talking about – and it works great! All the bands together can deliver a mix of different styles – so nobody gets bored during the whole show. We have some really heavy stuff going, but also folk, pop, and even a touch of reggae. And the most important thing is that all three bands are so much nested in east european style and culture! As we are playing 12 shows with EERA, we added The Netherlands and The UK and suddenly, it appeared that we are going international, for the first time in our history :). Funny, isn’t it?

Since you’ve performed in Romania before, what made you want to come back, and what do you enjoy most about the Romanian audience?

We feel at home here. There is so much similarities between Romanians and Poles – the sense of humor, the ability to have a great time together, the openness, some behaviours – we really do not differ much. And of course, beautiful sights, great food and the chance to play in totally different venues that we are used to. What we enjoyed most about the audience is that the people are interested in the whole show, and do not yawn at all. Even if they don’t understand everything, you can see the music flowing through them. And they also look after each other, there is no mean pushing even if the crowd is big.

How do you see the future of the rock and metal scene in Eastern Europe? Do you think there’s a distinct musical identity in this region that’s starting to gain international recognition?

It is very hard to say what will come up. I would like for rock music to become as popular as it was in the 90’s. But – the world changes all the time, people are looking for so many different things – it is really hard to anticipate anything. But rock bands are very determined and I guess, we will never let it go, we love it too much. So, perhaps someday folks are going to notice us and consider: „Heeeey! This is cool and worth watching!” – I really hope so.

After the EERA 2025 tour, what are your future plans for Łydka Grubasa? Are there any new projects or releases that fans should be excited about?

Yes! Early fall we are releasing a completely new record. And, of course, there will be a tour. We are currently in between recording sessions, all that’s left is keyboards and vocals to be done. And we cannot wait until we play the new material live – it is going to be awesome and a little heavier than what our fans are used to. The first single is scheduled to be released in early May.

Do you have any message for the people who are going to read this interview?

Read books, listen to music, take care of the people that are close to you. Be wise, be openminded, do not hate anyone, look after your country and society, enjoy life. Live it fully and let others do the same!

Interview by Ionela Pleșan and Radu Mihai