A few months ago, my work colleague turned up positively giddy. “Do you know the Leningrad Cowboys?” he asked excitedly.
Well, no, I didn’t. But after a quick round of internet show-and-tell, I was bouncing up and down saying “I have to do photos of them some day!”
“Wait, wait,” he says. “That’s where I’m going with this…”
He had an assignment shooting a full-day festival for the magazine Biker’s News – including a scheduled interview with the Leningrad Cowboys, a Finnish rock band known for their crazy costumes and crazier hair pieces. He needed a back-up photographer, and a German-English translator for the interview. And that was me.
The Leningrad Cowboys – who call themselves “the worst rock ‘n roll band in the world, ever” – started out as the now-cult-classic The Leningrad Cowboys do America. After the film, the band stayed together and kept rocking, Finnish style. And they do rock. Despite being a cover band, which I usually despise. They’re fun. They’re full of energy. And they’re damn good musicians.
And now, without any further ado:
