Petr Mamonov
| Peter Mamonov | |
|---|---|
On-stage in 2011
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Peter Nikolaevich Mamonov |
| Born | 14 April 1951 |
| Origin | Moscow, Soviet Union (now Russia) |
| Genres | Alternative rock, progressive rock, experimental rock |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, songwriter, actor |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar |
| Years active | 1960s-present |
| Labels | Warner Bros, Otdelenie Vykhod, Moroz Records |
| Associated acts | Mamonov and Aleksei, Otzvuki Mu |
Pyotr Nikolayevich Mamonov (Russian: Пётр Никола́евич Мамо́нов. [ˈpjotr nikɐˈlajivit͡ʃ maˈmonəf]; born 14 April 1951) is a Russian rock musician, songwriter and actor, frontman of the Moscow band Zvuki Mu.
Born in 1951 to Nikolai Mamonov, an engineer, and a Norwegian translator, he lived on Bolshoi Karetny Lane during his childhood. During his teens, he would dress as a stilyaga and often got into fights, one such incident resulting in a scar across his stomach (which can be seen in the film Igla, which he starred in over 20 years later). Sometime between 1951 and 1957, Mamonov's parents separated and his mother began a relationship with Nikolai Bortnichuk, also an engineer. This relationship resulted in the birth of Mamonov's half-brother, Aleksei Bortnichuk, on 13 July 1958.
His first band were a covers band called Express, who were active in the mid-to-late 1960s and early 1970s, playing covers of popular rock bands such as the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin, although Mamonov himself preferred black R&B, soul and rock 'n roll music. During the 1970s, he suffered from depression and worked various jobs, including boiler operator and Norwegian translator (he learned the language from his mother). He lived with the artist Olga Gorokhova between 1979 and 1981. Gorokhova stated that Mamonov would listen to a lot of Weather Report during this period.
In 1982, he began Zvuki Mu. The name originates from a series of affectionate names beginning with the syllable mu that Mamonov and Gorokhova would call each other, though the earliest occurrence of the name Zvuki Mu occurs in some of Mamonov's poetry from the late 1960s. Between 1986 and late 1987, he wore a moustache - it can be seen in images of Mamonov from that period, such as the images inside the booklet of the compilation Mamonov '84-'87.
Mamonov was one of the few rock musicians from former USSR who managed to achieve recognition abroad, through his collaboration with Brian Eno in the late 1980s. Around the same period he started acting in films, and over the next decade wrote, produced and acted in several one-man theatrical performances establishing himself as a cult figure in Russia.
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