Andrei Găluț, the lead singer of the band Goodbye to Gravity, which was on stage when the fire broke out in the Colectiv club on October 2015, launched a new project honoring the victims of the tragedies that have marked Romania over the past decade.
The Memento Project, created as a charitable project together with 10 musician survivors of the Colectiv Club fire, is the acoustic and re-orchestrated recording of two of Goodbye to Gravity’s emblematic songs, “The Day We Die” and “The Cage”.
The project brings together famous names from the Romanian underground scene, namely Cristian Răducanu (Bucium) on drums, Vlad Bușcă (L.O.S.T.) on bass, Cosmin Lupu on guitar and vocals, Mircea Becherescu on guitar, Mihai Grecea on guitar, Alex Penescu on piano, Costin Dumitrache on mellotron, Mihai Balabaș (Bucium) on violin, and Andrei Găluț (Goodbye to Gravity) on vocals & guitar for “The Day We Die.”
Pavlos Popovici (The Longest Heartbreak) on drums, Andrei Zamfir on bass, Cosmin Lupu on guitar & vocals, Mircea Becherescu on guitar, Mihai Grecea on guitar, Costin Dumitrache on guitar, and Andrei Găluț (Goodbye to Gravity) on vocals & guitar perform “The Cage.”
“Alex Pascu, Vlad Țelea, Mihai Alexandru, and Bogdan Enache, the bassist, guitarists, and drummer of the band lost their lives. Andrei Găluț, the lead singer, was severely injured. His chances of survival were minimal. The irreplaceable human losses silenced Goodbye to Gravity’s music. The stillness of mourning settled over the families of those killed, over the suffering of the wounded, and over the band’s creations. The story of a metal group eager to contribute to Romania’s evolution seemed to have ended forever. But the force of Goodbye to Gravity’s music was not silenced by the flames,” the press release states.
The initiative is also personal for Găluț. It marks the first public appearance of vocalist Andrei Găluț after 10 years of absence from the music scene, due to medical treatments, trauma, and reconstructive surgeries, which he still has to undergo.
“I began working on these versions of the songs as part of my recovery process, while still in my hospital bed. I used the guitar both as support in the painful medical procedures to regain mobility in my hands and arms, and as psychological support during the turbulent and extremely difficult years that followed the fire,” said Andrei Găluț.
“The idea of the name Memento seemed fitting for this musical project, which comes to mark the 10-year commemorative point. I believe people must remember what happened to us, and I hope this tribute will inspire them to bring their share of good into the world. Only together can we leave this place more beautiful, safer, and more honest than we inherited it,” the singer added.
All funds raised from the exploitation of the video and songs will be donated to the “În numele lui Alexandru” (“In the Name of Alexandru”) Association, founded by Narcis Hogea, the father of Alexandru Hogea, the 19-year-old who died from nosocomial infections contracted in Romanian hospitals, to offer support to burn victims and their families.
According to the press release, beyond being a musical endeavor, The Memento Project is a testimony of human resilience and artistic creation in the face of the most terrible circumstances that corruption can cause.
Romania built zero major burn treatment centers in 10 years since the Colectiv club fire
(Photo source: Goodbye to Gravity on Facebook)
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