Ronen Green: Road of War

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Road of War – still from video/Image credit: Avner Elkaras

Protesting the endless cycle of war and violence with a warm groove and optimistic guitar, Ronen Green’s Road of War premieres in an intriguing new video by Avner Elkaras that gets to the heart of the song’s message with its creative imagery. Rising up from the despair of the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the song strikes a universal chord, speaking out against all wars, past and present. If we stay on the road of war, we are “going nowhere,” but the song reaches out to find hope, and imagine a different road.

 

Elkaras creates a very human feel to the wind-up toys and plastic figurines in the video, in the selection and staging of the objects. The occasional medieval knight is a reminder of humanity’s long history of war, while the robots are endearingly expressive, looking a bit bewildered as they march along, wound up by an unseen hand. Amid the plethora of anonymous green plastic soldiers, typically sold in bulk, you might think your eyes are playing tricks on you, but yes, those soldiers are in yoga poses – if we all did more yoga instead of marching to war, the world would be a happier place, more in tune with the upbeat music of the song.

 

Road of War – still from video/Image credit: Avner Elkaras

We are not plastic soldiers, or robots, or wind-up toys. We are people, who live, love, laugh, dance, and hope for better days. We, meaning all of us, us and ‘them’: “How long till we notice our hearts beat just the same?”

Singer-songwriter Ronen Green writes songs rooted in his experiences – as a father, an independent thinker, and relentless optimist.  Growing up in Israel as the son of immigrants from South Africa, with both English and Hebrew as his native language, Green’s songs reflect his strong connection to this place, with a universal social and political resonance. His debut album Puzzle was released in 2013, followed by the EP Coincidence in 2016, both produced by Tamar Eisenmann.

Links: Ronen Green bandcamp, facebook, YouTube.

Road of War

Music & Lyrics by Ronen Green

We’ve got demolition and bombs in the air

We’ve got tanks and guns, so you better beware

They got tunnels and rockets flying everywhere

They got a strong religion and a whole lot of despair

Going nowhere on the road of war again

 

It’s so much to take in, how can you in one breath

Include millions of lives in one word, in one death

And who is the king here, who’s in command

Of all this bloodshed and bodies on the sand

Going nowhere on the road of war again

 

They say it’s a tough situation, there is no clean way out

Either you eat or you’ll be eaten, so there’s not much to talk about

And they say this is your enemy, there always seems to be one around

And if god is a part of this then he must be out of town

Because we’re going nowhere on the road of war again

 

Video: Avner Elkaras

Ronen Green – vocals, guitar; Adi Rotem – electric guitar; Shai Wetzer – percussion