Robert Brylewski

The book has 584 pages and is based on a conversation between Brylewski and Polish Playboy journalist Rafał Księżyk.

[4] In the book, Brylewski answers numerous questions about his childhood, youth, music, and private life.

Brylewski's father Waldemar was born in Czeladź, Zagłębie Dąbrowskie, while his mother Hanna is from Warsaw.

Robert was their only child, and the future musician, even though born in Warsaw, spent most of his childhood in a castle at Koszęcin, where all members of the ensemble lived.

Brylewski attended Warsaw's renowned 11th High School, but did not graduate, because, as he claims, while still there, he decided not to pursue any career or go to college, but to become a musician.

In the late 1970s, Brylewski read an article in Życie Warszawy about British punk rock movement.

Impressed by the music of The Clash, Sex Pistols, Buzzcocks and other bands, he went to see the first punk rock concert in Poland, featuring The Raincoats (April 1, 1978, at Riviera Remont Student Culture Center in Warsaw).

After the show, he decided to start his own band, together with students of a high school from Wilanów, Kamil Stoor and Paweł "Kelner" Rozwadowski.

Brylewski wrote music for Kryzys, while lyrics were authored by the band's drummer, Maciej "Magura" Góralski.

The leaders of the band described its music as punkadelic, and first show took place in September 1981 at Riviera Remont Student Culture Center in Warsaw, together with Republika.

As Brylewski said in his autobiography: "The spirit of Josip Broz Tito was still in the air, but they all sensed that after his death, the country would break into pieces.

Unlike such bands, as Maanam, TSA, Republika or Lombard, Brygada Kryzys refused to play at government-sponsored shows.

In reggae I was inspired by the energy of the music, and later I came to know that it was a widely understood culture, which was not only about entertainment, but also about spirituality, social and mental changes" (page 174 of Brylewski's autobiography).

Brylewski wrote songs for it together with Rozwadowski, at Kelner's apartment located in a Communist high rise at Sadyba: "In 1983 there was nothing attractive happening.

Thus Armia (also called Antiarmia) was created, together with Sławomir Gołaszewski, Brygada Kryzys drummer Janusz Rołt, and Izrael's bassists Tomasz Żmijewski and Alik Dziki.

Together with Budzyński, Robert Brylewski was at that time impressed with Aguirre, the Wrath of God (this film influenced Armia's lyrics), books of John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, Native American culture and Christianity.

We played what we called "a fairy tale music" (...) I associated Armia with forces of nature (...) I do not remember how Indians appeared in the band.

I guess we all had in minds the notion of noble Winnetou, so Indian symbols dominated in our graphic designs".

Apart from Aguirre, Brylewski recorded another Izrael's LP, Duchowa rewolucja, cooperating closely with Dariusz Malejonek, who had previously been leader of another reggae band, Kultura.

(page 279) In the mid-1980s Brylewski opened his own recording studio Złota Skała (Gold Rock), issuing first Armia's tapes in 1986.

After coming back to Poland, he left Warsaw and with family moved to the village of Stanclewo, located in historic province of Masuria.

At that time communication was difficult, but still I was the last of those settlers, who gave up, only after Izrael's practices in Warsaw began to take place without me".