The biography of the Bi-2 group interests all its fans, without exception. This is a domestic musical group that plays alternative rock. It was founded in Bobruisk in 1988. Its frontmen and permanent participants are Leva Bi-2 and Shura Bi-2. Also in the group there are several more musicians. In 2017, they completed work on their tenth album, entitled Event Horizon.
Group birth
The biography of the Bi-2 group, in fact, began with the acquaintance of its future founders. Their real names are Yegor Bortnik and Alexander Uman. They first met in 1985 in a children's theater studio called Rond, which was located in Minsk. Together with their peers, they decided to stage performances in the genre of the theater of the absurd.
Vanguard productions, at that time, were not in honor, but because the studio was soon closed. Then the friends agreed to try their luck in music. Shura, by then, had already studied at a music school, played the double bass in an orchestra, and Leva began composing lyrics for songs.
In 1988, they organized their first team, which they called the Brothers in Arms. It also included Alexander Fedorov, as well as members of the Chance group. Soon, the group began to be called "Coast of Truth." The composition was unstable, the participants were constantly changing, in total about 15 people passed through the group.
The musicians rehearsed in the House of Culture of the tire factory in Bobruisk, where Shura worked at that time. The collective received its usual name in 1989. From here comes the biography of the Bi-2 group. Leva became a soloist in her. The first major performance took place at the Mogilev Rock Festival in the same 1989.
Why such a name?
There are several versions of the stories of the name of the group "Bi-2". One of them refers to the US military aircraft of the US Air Force - B2. This is an almost imperceptible strategic heavy bomber. It is designed to break through the air defense, no matter how dense it is, and deliver nuclear weapons. Allegedly, one of the musicians was seriously fond of American military aircraft.
The second version, which looks more believable, refers to the previous name of the collective “Coast of Truth”. After him, it was decided to rename the group to "Bi-2".
Overseas period
The biography of the Bi-2 group had several foreign periods at once, when the musicians lived and worked away from Russia. From 1991 to 1993, the so-called Israeli period continued, since Belarus at that time was an unpromising country for musicians.
At first, they could not make music in another state. They even worked as security guards at a construction site, but soon managed to recreate their team. Performances began at club venues and at festivals. At this time, the style of the group changed. Musicians began to work on arrangements and acoustic sound.
In telling a brief biography of the Bi-2 group, it is necessary to mention the first resounding success. In 1992, the team won first place at the rock festival in Jerusalem.
Careers in Australia
In 1993, participants in the Bi-2 group make an important decision in their biography. They are leaving for Australia. Shura has relatives there, and in Israel there are no prospects for further creative growth of a group that sings in Russian. At the same time, Leva still lives in Jerusalem, even joins the army, and later works with computer graphics.
Creating new compositions did not stop there. The musicians began to work remotely, talking a lot on the phone. In Australia, Shura launches a new project, the Shura B-2 Band, which hesitates to call “Bi-2,” since it plays without its friend.
Only in 1997 did the history of the Bi-2 group revive. Shura plays with Victoria Bilogan. Leva writes words for new songs. An album comes out, known as "Sexless and Sad Love", on which Alexander Uman himself sings.
In the late 90s, Egor Bortnik, nevertheless, gets to Australia. Musicians record the album "And the ship is sailing." Songs from this disc are broadcasted by domestic radio stations. For example, the song “Heart” is constantly spinning on “Our Radio”. The team begins to gain popularity in their homeland. This is the story of the creation of the Bi-2 group.
The first album in Russia
Musicians released their first album in Russia in 2000. It was called Bi-2. The main hit is the song "Nobody writes to Colonel." Interestingly, the members of the group did not conduct a pompous presentation, as most music groups do when a new album is released.
Instead, they come up with an original marketing ploy to please their fans and maximize their reach. Moreover, his exit coincided with the last bell in schools. Among all Russian schools, a contest was held, the winner of which was Moscow School No. 600. “Bi-2” organized a presentation of the album at the Last Call in this educational institution.
In total, the team has released 10 records at the moment:
- in 2001 the album "Meow Kiss mi",
- in 2004 - "Foreign cars",
- in 2006 - “Milk”,
- in 2009 - Lunapark,
- in 2010 - “What Men Talk About,”
- in 2011 - Spirit,
- in 2014 - “# 16 plus”,
- the latest in 2017 is the Event Horizon.
Shura
Citing briefly the history of the Bi-2 group, it is necessary to dwell on its main frontmen. Alexander Uman was born in 1970 in Bobruisk. He learned to play the bass at a music school, and moved to Minsk with his parents.
He recalls his first acquaintance with the Left, which took place even in the children's theater studio. Leva constantly revolved around their company, until he had the courage to approach and tell that his friend was writing poetry that he would like to give them to read. Shura admits that as soon as he saw them, he immediately realized who their author was in reality.
Shura Bi-2 was twice married. His first beloved was Ukrainian Victoria Bilogan, a native of Odessa. They met in Australia, where they began to perform in the same group. His wife played under the pseudonym Victoria Victory. In 1999, they got married, but already in 2001 divorced. True, they continued to live together until 2004.
In 2009, Shura married a second time. His current wife is Elizabeth Reshetnyak. In 2010, their daughter Eva was born, and in 2012, their son Oliver.
Leva
Egor Bortnik, better known as Leva Bi-2, was born in Minsk in 1972. Talking about his childhood, he admits that the Left became, even when his parents worked in Africa. His father taught physics to students in the Congo, Leva lived with his parents on the Black Continent.
Once, his father gave him a lion's fang, which he hung on his neck, for which the surrounding guys gave him the nickname Leo. He liked this name so much that he began to ask everyone around him to call himself that. Over time, even his own mother began to call him Left.
His father is a candidate of science. He teaches at the Faculty of Radiophysics at Belarusian State University. He specializes in statistical physics and thermodynamics.
Like Shura, Leva was twice married. From his first wife, Irina Makeeva, he has a son, Fedor, who was born in 2002.
In 2009, he married Asa Streicher, who previously worked as a tour manager for the Mumiy Troll group. They have two children. These are the sons of Aviv and David.
Composition of the group
Over the course of its long history, the composition of the Bi-2 group has repeatedly changed, only the founders, Shura Bi-2 and Leva Bi-2, constantly played.
In the current lineup, Leva sings, plays the acoustic guitar, percussion and an additional electric guitar, and Shura plays the solo guitar. Also in the current team are:
- Andrei Zvonkov, nicknamed Bell (he plays the guitar),
- Maxim Andryushchenko, nicknamed Lakmus (bass),
- Boris Lifshits (drums),
- Yanik Nikolenko (keyboards, tambourine, flute, samples, backing vocals).
Among the former participants, it should be noted Victoria Bilogan, Peter Woodrowb, Serge Petron, Grigory Gaberman, Nikolai Plyavin, Vadim Ermolov, Alexander Lyubarsky.
Not only music
The Bi-2 group has always been distinguished by the fact that it was engaged not only in music, trying to prove itself in other areas of art. She especially succeeded in the cinema. The collective has more than two dozen films in which their songs sound, and in some they appear on the screen themselves.
Success began with Alexei Balabanov’s dramatic action movie Brother 2. In it, musicians appear in a cameo, singing the songs “Barbara”, “Nobody Writes to Colonel” and “Happiness”. At Balabanov they played in the tape “War” the songs “It’s not yet evening”, “Wolves”, “Falcon” and “Fellini”.
In the comedy Election Day, the musicians play a group of musicians called Smoke Above, performing the song Night Stall.
In the film “What Men Talk About”, the main characters travel from Moscow to Odessa for the opening of a new club and a concert of the Bi-2 group throughout the film. In the final shots, the musicians appear on stage, performing the soundtrack.
Their songs sound in the tapes “Dreaming is not harmful”, “I stay”, “Major of the Winds”, “The vicissitudes of fate”, “Duty angel”, “Sugar”, “Navigator”, “Brotherhood of the landing”, “Metro”, “Snowy” Queen 2: Re-freezing. "
A busy life is now with the team. Everyone can learn and hear the history of the Bi-2 group and 17 super hits that it presents at concerts if it comes to their next performance. Musicians regularly visit various cities with tours.
In June 2018, their concert in Cyprus and two performances in St. Petersburg with an orchestra are planned. In July, the group will go to Bobruisk and Yekaterinburg, in September - to Tver, Riga, Murmansk and Arkhangelsk, in October - to Tula, Ryazan and Moscow (a concert in the capital will be held at the Olimpiysky sports complex). In November, the collective performed in Yekaterinburg with an orchestra and a concert in St. Petersburg.