Bondzinsky busts a move on the local stage.Bondzinsky, a reputed band on the local rock club scene, has resurfaced after months of inactivity and a number of line-up changes.
But the situation has changed both for good, and for worse.
The good thing is that Bondzinsky's sister band Tequilajazzz, which made its debut just a couple of months before in late 1993 and works in the similar "jazzcore" vein, has reached some success. A five-album deal with a Moscow label, which allowed the band not to worry about financing recording sessions, is something that most local club groups can only dream of. Tequilajazzz has already released two CDs in accordance with this contract.
The bad thing for Bondzinsky is the fact that hardcore punk has failed to make a noticeable impact in Russia. The "scene," which once started to emerge in St Petersburg under the influence of American hardcore recordings, second-hand copies of the "Maximum Rock'n'Roll" magazine and visiting punk missionaries such as the San Francisco band MDC, was not to become a full-fledged reality.
"I think there is a crisis of any heavy music not only in Russia, but in the whole world," said Igor Mosin, Bondzinsky's drummer and co-founder.
But there is a way out. "Some bands get experimental, for instance, working with new-jazz improvisers," said Mosin, who is especially enthusiastic about the recent collaboration between the Dutch punk band The Ex and cello player Tom Cora.
Apparently Bondzinsky's new songs have become less straightforward. In an early club hit Bondzinsky urged the masses to "Kill the Bootleg Vodka Maker," but now they have songs like "Perverts," which the songwriters themselves find difficult to explain.
"You know, in this song we say that real perverts are often not those whom people consider perverts, and vice versa. This has something to do with DJs and journalists," said Mosin, who combines his music activities with his regular job as a DJ at Radio Baltica.
Bondzinsky's line-up has substantially changed, but still centers around its founders Mosin and bass player Dmitry Petrov. The band's new guitar player Ilya Orlov used to play with local groups Dolphins, Numb Paramour and Natasha, while the vocalist who goes by his first name Gena used to front a punk band, which has never performed in public.
On Thursday and Friday Bondzinsky will play with their Moscow counterparts Distemper, who perform a lively pop punk.
There is a different situation in Moscow. "You can play punk there and get $250 a night, which is not that bad at all," said Mosin.