The typical Ukrainian high street
A stroll through Zaporizhzhia, May 2024
Fortress Bakhmut by Antytila Chorus: Fortress Bakhmut All our prayers are here And the spirit of steel hearts And the indomitable heroes of Kruty Give us strength from heaven Freedom, fire and fury The walls are burning in battle Mama, I'm standing Mama, I'm in the ranks Motherland, I'm fighting I will destroy and return Verse 1: Soon we’ll be at the base We’ll end the pain, the old insults Here’s my shoulder, brother, I’m here And the infestation is before us Here it’s coming from the flank – a new phase We work calmly, as they taught us For our tomorrows stand behind us And our children parents, families are there And our brothers who were borne home on their shields Are behind us too. Let the rat jump, we have it cornered And our progress is alight with flame This means, there is work for our hands Here, here Chorus Verse 2: It’s about to get dark And the bloody demon will collapse in agony That means we’ve fought for a reason That means we pushed on, so hard That means everything is according to plan, then the morning And with it the victory. And finally I will say one thing only: it’s no sin to be afraid The sin is to betray your own Chorus
This is the acoustic version of a song released in February 2023 before the city of Bakhmut fell in May. The rock original with its evocative video can be found on YouTube.
I wish the portraits had never been necessary and that things were back to the usual everyday stupid graffiti on the walls. They say everything passes, but even in the best of outcomes, this will take the longest time to pass, and will feel even longer.