Hipodil

Hipodil is a band from Sofia, Bulgaria that built a loyal following with loud rock, crude jokes, and sharp social jabs. They started as a group of classmates, moved through arrests, chart success, and fights with the Ministry of Culture, and kept popping back up for reunions long after their first breakup.

How The Band Got Started

Hipodil formed in 1988 when four classmates from Sofia’s Mathematics High School decided to start a band. Nikola Kavaldjiev, Miroslav Tellalov, Nikolai Savov, and Petar Todorov wrote their own songs in Bulgarian and chose a name by blending the words “Hippo” and “Crocodile.” The result sounded strange and instantly memorable, which fit their sense of humor.

Their first public performance took place at Sofia’s Summer Theatre, an open-air stage in the city’s largest park. They played “Zidaromazachi” (“Wallplasterers”), a parody of the ruling communist regime. The authorities were not thrilled, and the band ran into minor trouble, which only confirmed that they were hitting the kind of nerve they wanted.

Alkoholen delirium And Growing Notoriety

In 1992, after some lineup changes and the arrival of new vocalist Svetoslav “Svetlyo” Vitkov, Hipodil recorded songs such as “Bira s vodka” (“Beer With Vodka”), “Bira” (“Beer”), “Chift ochi” (“A Pair of Eyes”), “Himna” (“The Anthem”), “Jenata” (“The Woman”), and “Klitoren orgasm” (“Clitoral Orgasm”). The song titles themselves made it clear that subtlety was not the priority.

Their first studio album, Alkoholen delirium (“Alcoholic Delirium”), arrived in 1993. The band supported it with a self-financed national tour. At a concert in Varna, a mass, alcohol-fueled disturbance broke out, leading to the arrest of the band members and some fans. That incident, combined with the explicit lyrics, gave Hipodil a strong “scandal” reputation and helped fix their image as troublemakers.

Even with the jokes and chaos, there was structure behind the band. All lyrics were in Bulgarian and written by Vitkov, while most of the music came from guitarist Petar Todorov. Brass players and other guests often joined recordings, adding extra power to the arrangements.

Nekuf ujas, Nadurveni vuglishta, And Big Airplay

Hipodil released their next album, Nekuf ujas, nekuf at (“Some Kind of Horror, Some Kind of Hell”), in 1994. The song “Hipodili,” which came from the Varna experience, quickly became a band anthem and a live favorite. A national tour of around 20 dates followed, pushing their name deeper into the country’s music culture.

The fourth studio album, Nadurveni vuglishta (“Horny Charcoal”), arrived in 1998. On this record the band stretched out musically, trying more ska elements and improving production values. It became their most commercially successful release and their first to appear on CD. It was also their most controversial. Some lyrics prompted the Bulgarian Ministry of Culture to consider legal action for obscenity.

The ministry eventually dropped the idea, but the public dispute helped album sales. Suddenly Hipodil found themselves among the best-selling and most heavily played acts on Bulgarian radio. The opening track, “Bate Gojko” (“Big Brother Gojko”), about actor Gojko Mitić, shot to the top of the airplay charts and earned one of the band’s rare music videos. The record also featured their first instrumental track, “Otnesen!” (“Scatter-Brained”), along with more of their usual mockery of celebrities.

Lineup Changes, Hora ot naroda, And Later Reunions

At the end of 1999, vocalist Svetlyo Vitkov went to work in the United States. The band chose to keep moving and started recording new material with a rotating set of singers from other Bulgarian bands. The album Hora ot naroda (“People of the Folk”) was released in 2000, keeping much of the familiar sound but leaning even more into ska and adding more keyboards than before.

Vitkov appeared as lead singer on only two songs on that album, “Partizani” (“Partisans”) and “Drugo nyama” (“There’s Nothing Else”), and did backing vocals on “Choveche” (“Dude”). In 2002, Hipodil released a promo single for “Skakauec” (“Grasshopper”), backed with the song “PVC,” about women with small breasts. The single was meant to preview an album titled Aa, Bb, Vv, Gg, Zz…, but that record never came out because the band broke up in 2004.

Even so, Hipodil did not disappear completely. The compilation Tu’pest (“The Best,” playing on the Bulgarian word tup, meaning “dumb”) was released in 1999, followed by Tu’pest 2 in 2009. Vitkov and other members also formed Svetlio & the Legends, often seen as a successor band. They released the album Bulgarno in 2007 and IBAN in 2011.

Hipodil reunited several times. In 2006 they played the “Koncert na godinata” at the Zimen dvorec in Sofia with Review and Upsurt, debuting the song “Let Me Da Te Love You,” later recorded by Svetlio & the Legends. In 2011 they again shared the Zimen dvorec stage with Kontrol and Review for the film Sega i zavinagi. In 2013 the band performed to celebrate 20 years of Alkoholen delirium. In 2018 they reunited once more at Arena Armeec to celebrate 20 years of Nadurveni vuglishta and reissued several vintage shirts from the 1990s.

Critics and fans often point out that Hipodil’s songs and behavior, while rarely polished, captured the mood and contradictions of post-communist Bulgaria in the 1990s. Their work sits firmly in that period’s pop culture as a noisy, messy reflection of rapid social change.

Members

• Svetoslav Vitkov (“Svetlyo”) – vocals, primary lyricist.
• Petar Todorov (“Pesho”) – guitar, main composer.
• Nikola Kavaldjiev – original member, early lineup.
• Miroslav Tellalov – original member, early lineup.
• Nikolai Savov – original member, early lineup.
• Lachezar Marinov – later member.
• Ventsislav Lozanov – later member.
• Other musicians – various guest players, especially in the brass section, across many recordings.

Discography

Studio albums:

• Alkoholen delirium / Alcoholic Delirium (1993).
• Nekuf ujas, nekuf at / Kinda Horror, Kinda Hell (1994).
• S gol v rukata… / With a Naked … in Hand (1996).
• Nadurveni vuglishta / Aroused Charcoal (1998).
• Hora ot naroda / People of the Folk (2000).

Other releases:

• Tu’pest / The Best (1999, compilation).
• Hipodil EP, also known as Skakauec (“Grasshopper”) (2002).
• Tu’pest 2 (2009, compilation).