Muniek Staszczyk: In the contemporary world, Catholicism is simply embarrassing [WYWIAD]

In 2022, T.Love celebrates its 40th anniversary, and celebrates the 30th anniversary of the release of one of his most important albums, “King”. After a six-year break, Muniek Staszczyk reactivated the band with a line-up that recently recorded together just 30 years ago. Muniek Staszczyk (vocals, lyrics), Janek Benedek (guitars, compositions, music production), Jacek Perkowski (guitars), Paweł Nazimek (bass) and Sidney Polak (drums) – today they are presenting “Hau! Hau!” To fans.

– When the time is as it is, I thought: guys, if we are getting together, let’s enjoy it first of all, let’s make an album so as not to do such an embarrassing situation – 40th, go on tour, play hits, then record acoustically, then symphonic, then plus guests … Let’s record a new album and go on tour – says Gazeta.pl Staszczyk. He adds:

What I can do is give people this energy pill to pull them up. Not stupid entertainment, not stupid optimism.

See the interview of Gazeta.pl with Muńek Staszczyk

The album consists of 10 songs featuring Sokół, Andrzej Smolik and Kasia Sienkiewicz from Kwiatu Jabłoni, who sang in “Pochodni”. It was Staszczyk’s idea, whose singer surprised during the recording with a family story. – I got the phone, I called, Kasia came to the studio. She said she was honored – I thought she was flirting with the old boomer, but she told me one more story. She said she was in mom’s belly at the T.Love concert. Her mother was at a concert in the 90s, because then the young band Elektryczne Gitary supported T.Love, somewhere in Kępa Potocka, in Warsaw and Żoliborz. So a nice loop … – he talks about Sienkiewicz and “Pochodni”, a piece which – as frontman T.Love notices – reminds him of the music of his youth, bands such as The Cure, The Smith, Morrisey or even Maaanam.

Muniek Staszczyk: In today’s cool and modern world, Catholicism is simply embarrassing

Next month, T.Love will go on a tour promoting the album. Staszczyk, who informed fans about a stroke in 2019, emphasizes that he is trying to approach the matter rationally. – A situation like mine teaches humility, empathy, many things. I am very lucky that we talk, that I walk, talk, even sing, I am fully fit, but I am absolutely humble about it – he says and adds: Of course I do not go to any gym and do not do any mega-effort sport, because I am not too I can do a lot, but I walk Nordic and I ride a stationary bike, plus I do exercise tests from time to time.

– I have been singing acoustic concerts for two years in the band Muniek and Friends, but this is a different situation, it is sitting – notes the singer. He emphasizes that T.Love has never been a static band, but thinks that everything will come out on the tour starting in May:

The guys from the band know I’m not the cossack and gun I used to be. I put some limits in terms of numbers so that it’s not a sick situation that we are still playing, but we spread it over the whole year – we start in May and end in December. I have the impression, it is reasonable.

We also talked about one of his recent interviews in which, in addition to saying that he is a believer, he also said: “I belong, along with smokers and hunters, as a Catholic, one of the most discriminated against group in Europe at the moment.”

– When you ask me, I’m a believer. However, with this discrimination, I would like to say that in the modern, contemporary world, the so-called modern, many things are taken also stupid about being modern and stupid about being ultra concrete. But in the cool and modern world today, Catholicism is just embarrassing. I joked so that there was a discussion – he explains. When asked if he was not afraid that now the extreme right-wing or national circles would take advantage of his words, he emphasized that any chambers were always distant for him, especially such. He also mentioned that it wouldn’t be the first time:

I remember how a hundred years ago the song “Wychowanie” – our one of the most important songs to this day – bald, or skinheads, that is a complete cosmos very far from me, considered their anthem. A song that was about something else at all. “The homeland must be loved and respected …” was rather critical – not towards the homeland, but towards a certain upbringing. I’m not a fan of this November 11th “festival of fire”. You could celebrate it in a more open way and with a bigger smile, because it is a beautiful celebration. Everyone will say something – net plus … I am far from people like “Poland for Poles”. I am absolutely rooted here, 100 percent. in this country, but like Gombrowicz, maybe out of love for this country, I am also critical.