Bond

An all-female string quartet consisting of both Brits and Australians that bridges the worlds of classical, pop, and dance music, Bond formed in 2000 in London. Tania Davis (viola), Haylie Ecker (first violin), Eos Counell (second violin), and Gay-Yee Westerhoff (cello) were brought together by a pair of music businessmen to create a classical act full of beautiful women. However, far from being just a crass marketing maneuver, the women are all talented and trained musicians. Their 2001 debut album, Born, relied on classical instrumentation, but it was loaded with dance beats and electronic flourishes to such an extent that it was not considered a classical album on the British charts. Although their unusual sound brought them the scorn of both classical and pop purists among critics, the album charted well around the world. They stuck with their style for 2002’s Shine, and served up a remix album one year later. They attracted enough attention to appear in movies, including the British comedy Johnny English and the American action film XXX: State of the Union. Three years after 2004’s Classified Ecker left the group, forcing a line-up change that involved Davis switching to first violin and Elspeth Hanson joining the quartet on viola. Play, which featured reworkings of songs by The Rolling Stones and surf guitar legend Dick Dale, appeared in 2011. The next year the band performed with Russell Brand at the closing ceremonies of the 2012 Olympics in London. That same year they issued a single of Wham’s perennial yuletide classic “Last Christmas” for charity. They continued to release singles throughout the decade.

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