Bond – Interview

Tonight you have a huge show. Are you doing a lot of shows or things here and there?

Mostly here and there right now. We just flew in from Australia yesterday and we did a big opening for the rugby season. That was cool. It was in the stadium where they had the Olympics and there were like a hundred and ten thousand people.

That had to be a rush.

Completely. And now we have the festival tonight.

What is going through your head when you are on stage?

I don’t know. I mean, it’s such an adrenaline rush. Tonight we are all a bit nervous because we are playing in this amphitheatre and it seats like twenty or thirty thousand. So anyway, we are on stage and they are seated sort of on a hill and now every interview we do they ask us what we think of the monster. And apparently the audience is the monster because if they don’t like you they voice their opinion and it comes down the hill and sounds like a monster. So they either love you or they hate you.

What can people expect when they come out and see Bond?

Well, like the album is quite diverse, so we like to keep our show that way. Like tonight we are doing “Victory” and we are doing “Winter” and then we have an encore. So the styles that we play are a big mixture of everything. Our stage show, we stand up and the stages are really big and we like to use it. We also have to interact with the audience because we don’t have lyrics to do that. You have to see it to believe it. It’s a really big thing actually.

What was your first instrument? And who introduced you to it?

Violin. My mom and dad introduced me to it. My dad liked the guitar, but when I was in pre-primary, around five, everyone had the chance to learn the violin so my dad was like, ‘Well, close enough.’ (laughs)

The reason I ask is because a lot of kids start learning something like the violin but end up wanting to be a singer or guitar player like their favorite rock group.

Yeah. (laughs) It is true.

But what kept you interested and kept you from leaving the violin for something else?

I’ve just always had a passion for it. It takes me to a different place and the adolescent years are really shitty, right? (laughs) It was a really social thing for most of us as well.

Did you complete school or did you leave early to perform?

I was competing from a young age, so I was always doing things, but I did go to normal school because education was really important.

Had you always felt you could take your music to another place?

Yeah. I think it is having a goal of wanting to be the best at something and I have that drive. For me, music just takes me to a different place. Like if you are listening to Bach and you are having a rough time, like your parents are pissing you off and you are like, ‘I hate them.’ (laughs) But the music is just comforting. But it’s the same for anyone and whatever they want to listen to, from pop to rock.

When did Bond come about?

Bond has been around for about two years. We were all friends studying in London. We were all mucking around with new ideas, but we felt there was such a huge space of experimenting with classical music. It was something that seemed really fun and it was one of those things that we all had lots of things going, but Bond was what I wanted to do.

What do you think about music that has incorporated classical behind rock, like the Beatles or even the William Orbit album?

That album was really interesting. I think the William Orbit album is quite good. I like how he experiments with it. I like the idea of taking a motif and making it into an original track of its own. That is the direction we are taking.

Have you ever thought of doing something, well, sort of like the Metallica and the symphony thing?

Yeah, I thought that was great! I think what they did was amazing. It just shows what you can do and that there are no boundaries. I remember seeing that Metallica show and it was funny because the people were sitting down watching and still head-banging. (laughs)

Have you thought of doing that?

Combining us with a band?

Yeah.

We’ve talked about it, but haven’t figured anything out. We have talked to some bands, but nothing set in stone.

What music do you like to listen to on the road?

My collection of cds are all over the place from classical to jazz to pop. It’s really diverse. I love Dido.

I actually interviewed her.

Really!? (laughs) She is awesome!

What is this thing about some controversy about not being a classical group?

It was ridiculous. We are a classical string quartet, and you’ll find on the classical charts songs with Pavarotti or strings with U2 or Savage Garden and that isn’t classical. But in the end it really did us a favor because it got us a lot of publicity. If you go to any music store in the UK our album is in the classical and pop departments because we are introducing a whole new genre.

Does it feel really good that maybe you can inspire some kids to not give up the violin for the guitar?

Yeah! We have a website and lots of kids write in and say they were going to give up the violin or cello and tell us because of us they are going to stick with it. That is really amazing. (laughs)

+ charlie craine