"...Grandma-Boonika woke up amongst poppies, had breakfast with the trouts,..."

West meets East and Z comes from Zdob [shi] Zdub
Always beyond boundaries
Always LIVE
A musical revolution begins with Zdob [shi] Zdub. If Zdob [shi] Zdub never existed, they would have to be invented. Obsessively talented, incredibly melodic

Zdob [shi] Zdub, More than a rock band, They are a tribe, A unique experience, A planet of sound, Music of the sun, An explosion of energy, Dry wine and heavy guitars, Rhythm, Dance, Roots. And now ZSZ and Moldova say: 'Let's rock!'

With a live show to make others envious, and with 10 years of experience behind them, the ethno-rockers combine hardcore with Moldovan folklore. Add a touch of hip-hop, drum'n'bass, jungle and disco and you're starting to get a feel for this remarkable act. But don't even try to put them in a box - they're utterly un-classifiable. They've been called shamans because everything they do has a magic, hypnotic quality. They always manage to balance riffs that go straight to your heart with carefree lyrical metaphors. The Zdubs amaze, every time.

They have said that 2005 brings them to Eurovision because their "Grandma-Boonika beats the drum like never before!" Grandma-Boonika is ZsZ's number one fan!

Here's how they describe Grandma-Boonika:
"Just like at the dawn of the world, when everybody was speaking to each other in the universal language, everything was perfect and beautiful, Grandma-Boonika woke up amongst poppies, had breakfast with the trouts, chatting to them about the new rocker outfit of DJ Vasile, their neighbour.

After they finished drinking, eating and chatting, Grandma-Boonika took her doba-drum and started belting out her soul. She is a real drum machine! She is like a slapping Queen! By lunch time the big house was full. By lunch time the Zdubs were there to sing along. Everybody's ready. Because Grandma-Boonika beats the drum! Let's wait for them with due respect and awe! The Zdubs beat hard!"

The spark of Moldovan imagination that lit the song according to Zdob si Zdub....

"In the vast expanses of "Indian" Moldovan South, on the bank of the Prut River, there is a village of Valeni. An aged woman lives there, it was she who became the prototype of our song "Bunica bate doba" (Grandmamma beats da drum-a) character. After a hard working week a big family of Bejenaru has a real rest: mamaliga is being cooked, the wine is sparkling in glasses, and Granny Lidia is hitting the drum and singing in low voice traditional recitative chants "strigaturas" and turning us back to our roots.
This picture attracted our imagination; we let it through our souls and have written an ethno rock\'n\'roll song, with jungle elements, "strigaturas" and California lyrics.

The Singer

There's increasingly few Euro-virgins around now, so this year we warmly embrace Moldova, before walking them hand in hand to the boudoir of Eurosong. Rumours abound that this crew of mod rockers may well enlist a grandma to bang drums, thereby reflecting the song's lyrics.
With this in mind I cannot wait for the next Phil Collins ballard to be called "impaled on a spike by you".
Zdob si Zdub however are a lively lot, and I wish them well.

The Past

They don't have one, at least not in Eurovision. It's really that simple.

The Song
"Bunica Bate Doba" is a Ska-lite effort which has that ability of growing on you a bit like a finger wart, and no end of emoluments can shift it. Hopefully, like a wart of this nature, it will miraculously disappear overnight with the threat of imminent removal from the contest.

Gestures - 15 Difficult to discern the gestures from the manic running around and bouncing...you get the picture. .
"Wanna" Count - 1 A solid 1, which, in a paltry year for lazy pronunciation puts Moldova on the podium

Overall
They've decided to give Zdob si Zdub the honour of showcasing the popular music of Moldova to the world. And cor blimey, what a showcase. Put succinctly, expect the grandma to get enough sympathy points from the Eastern bloc for banging her particularly battered looking drums. A trip to the final may well beckon, despite the extremely large odds to be had.

In a Nutshell
"You're a slapping queen"

"The Shrink Says"

Clearly a nation steeped in the memories of its forefathers, this song represents Moldova as a familial culture, with the lionization of matriarchs across society. The potent image of;

Grandma beats the drum
Grandma beats it hard
Grandma beats the drum with a beetle in the house

suggests the lead singer of having not only an inherent fear of aged females, but also a perception of the self as a small lampyrid. A problematic delusional paranoia.

Drain a bottle of wine, no need to smoke the leaves
By the end of that show you'll blow yourself to bits

My concerns deepen with these lyrics, and consideration of referral to mental health professionals would be normal course of action.

Bunica Bate Doba

It's jump-up jungle, a little like-a break-beat
Never seen that hit - bunica beats da drum-a
Big mallet in the hand, high hat in the same beat
She's screaming like Hawkins, my old Big Mama
Bunica beat da drum-a like I never heard before
She's a slapping Miss Blackman, gimme some more
Check it, let's kick it, we wanna dance now
We are turning into hammers ticking rhythm out

Bunica bate doba
Bunica bate tare
Bunica bate doba cu machuca'n casa mare
Bunica bate doba
Bunica bate tare
Bunica cu machuca bate doba'n casa mare

I love so much doba making boom-boom
Now get your body moving, just follow the tune
It's a real magic, big mama play her drum-a
She's flying into trance like an Indian shaman
Who is the Beatles, where from is Peter Pan
Who is the gypsy Jimmy Hendrix, she don't care, that misses L
I smile, I cry when I see that crazy baba
Dizzy tempo, dizzy, let's go my music mama

Bunica bate doba
Bunica bate tare
Bunica cu machuca bate doba'n casa mare

People in the place, feel your body shakes
Bunixa beats da drum-a, tapping out the breaks
Pop you up with that beat, get rid of rotten meat
You dig with your soul, deep inside that rock'n'roll
She's a drum machine, you know what I mean
She wanna play jumparale to make you spin
Drain a bottle of wine, no need to smoke the leaves
By the end of that show you'll blow yourself to bits

Bunica bate doba
Bunica bate tare
Bunica bate doba cu machuca'n casa mare
Bunica bate doba

Grandma Beats The Drum

It's jump-up jungle, a little like-a break-beat
Never seen that hit - bunica beats da drum-a
Big mallet in the hand, high hat in the same beat
She's screaming like Hawkins, my old Big Mama
Bunica beat da drum-a like I never heard before
She's a slapping Miss Blackman, gimme some more
Check it, let's kick it, we wanna dance now
We are turning into hammers ticking rhythm out

Grandma beats the drum
Grandma beats it hard
Grandma beats the drum with a beetle in the house
Grandma beats the drum
Grandma beats it hard
Grandma with a beetle beats the drum in the house

II love so much doba making boom-boom
Now get your body moving, just follow the tune
It's a real magic, big mama play her drum-a
She's flying into trance like an Indian shaman
Who is the Beatles, where from is Peter Pan
Who is the gypsy Jimmy Hendrix, she don't care, that misses L
I smile, I cry when I see that crazy baba
Dizzy tempo, dizzy, let's go my music mama

Grandma beats the drum
Grandma beats it hard
Grandma with a beetle beats the drum in the house

People in the place, feel your body shakes
Bunixa beats da drum-a, tapping out the breaks
Pop you up with that beat, get rid of rotten meat
You dig with your soul, deep inside that rock'n'roll
She's a drum machine, you know what I mean
She wanna play jumparale to make you spin
Drain a bottle of wine, no need to smoke the leaves
By the end of that show you'll blow yourself to bits

Grandma beats the drum
Grandma beats it hard
Grandma beats the drum with a beetle in the house
Grandma beats the drum
Prediction Semi Final 6th
Final 15th