tomorrow we party
the gig is tomorrow, people! so get your backsides in gear and head down to afaneis. the show starts at 10pm.
to get you in the mood, here’s the mountain of love, in our rehearsal studio, doing his thing.
all i can say is… don’t miss this one.
in the company of stars
so piers marsh of alabama 3 is also the mountain of love and he’s playing in athens on tuesday… with us!
be there or be very, very sad
back online
we “suffered” three days without the internet and survived.
the gig is coming up very fast, on tuesday to be exact. piers marsh (alabama 3) is working away furiously on some interesting stuff he’s going to be doing with us. he’s working on “shopping” at the moment. it’s odd to hear one of oldest tracks “remixed” by someone else. especially someone with such credentials! he will also be doing his own set on the night. looking forward to it and to seeing you there.
carpet bombing
so our rather strange but ingenious bass player, webmaster, designer and all-round good egg type came up with the poster for our next gig entitled “carpet bombing”. for those who have seen us live and know the holy rug, this is a gem of title.
for those of you who have never seen us live, i have one question… why the hell not ? you have no excuse. unless you don’t live in athens, hate our music, are allergic to small venues, don’t have 5 euros, or spontaneously combust on leaving your house.
so be there at the next gig on thursday the 25th of september at after dark (31, didotou and ippokratous) or i will stop talking to you. or perhaps i will talk to you 24/7 for the next 50 years. now there’s a real threat.
see you on the 25th.
big bad blogger
what a naughty and neglectful diva i am, dearest reader. (hope you are still there !) i haven’t written here for weeks and while i don’t really feel bad about that, i wish i could find it in me to write more often. the truth is that nothing has happened with the band since i last wrote. two of the boys went on holiday. you’ll be able to tell which two when you see us next. they’ll be the tanned bottoms clad in thongs. i wish !
so what’s new that prompts me to write today. well, our incredibly creative bass god vishy has come up with a poster for the next live show (lamia on the 23rd august). and here it is…
to quote the artist himself…
mad as a bucket
mims is a magician
this is unbelievable !
it could only happen in greece…
press release from emi
MIMS IMPOSTER DISCOVERED
PERFORMING IN GREECE!Athens, Greece
Capitol Records hip-hop breakthrough artist MIMS can apparently do magic and appear in two countries at once, according to dedicated fans in Athens, Greece.
Loyal MIMS fans attended a concert on June 10th hosted by a promotions company entitled “Knockout Productions”. The production company promoted the concert heavily via the internet and with fliers around Athens. It was to be one of the most anticipated shows of the summer; however, there was just one problem. Shortly after the concert began, loyal fans quickly noticed that the man performing was not Capitol Recording artist MIMS – it was an IMPOSTER!!!
“We paid so much money at the door, and we feel we got cheated. The artist appeared on stage with a hood, sunglasses and a baseball hat” stated the US fan who was visiting Athens for the summer. “Everybody started shouting “fraud” & “cheater” and left the club. I live in the States, but I am here for a few months for work and I knew that the person performing was not MIMS”, stated the concert attendee.
Upon learning about the “MIMS” imposter, Capitol Recording artist MIMS issued this statement:
” My deep apologies to all my Grecian fans that came out and thought they were going to see a MIMS concert and instead saw someone that was pretending to be me. I was here in the United States working on my new album. My legal team is aggressively investigating the people and promoters responsible for doing this and plans on swiftly and severely initiating legal action to hold them accountable”, stated MIMS via phone.
MIMS debut album “Music Is My Savior” produced one of the biggest songs in 2007 and made airplay milestones with the #1 smash “This is Why I’m Hot” . The single also sold over 2 million ring tunes worldwide.
Washington Heights, New York-born MIMS began DJ-ing in his early teens, and at age 20, appeared in Baby Blue Sound crew’s Much Music Awards Best Video nominee “Love Em All.” Last year, his independent release of “This is Why I’m Hot” attracted local New York radio play, and a Capitol Records deal.
MIMS is currently in the studio working on his sophomore release which is schedule for release this fall.
the real mims
[thank you mixtape for the heads up]
gig gig gig !
dearest reader, i have neglected you for far too long. i was busy with the exhibition last week and this week i was just being too lazy to blog here. not very diva-like, is it ? so here i am again with the announcement of the next gig. on wednesday 4th june 2008, we will be playing at after dark. i know you know where it is but in case you have forgotten, it’s ippokratous and didotou 31, central athens.
you never know with us what will happen but one thing is for sure… it won’t be boring. don’t miss out on the mad jams, terrible jokes, the gut-churning mistakes, the never to be repeated moments of fabulous, the heckling, the strippers and the good old bone-shaking rock n roll that is bad mathematics.
look forward to seeing you all there… you know you want to !
More tomorrow including the very artistic poster from everyone’s favorite bass player and dictator webmaster. love you vishy.
musical unions
Yiannis Angelakas (r) and Nikos Veliotis, a strong draw on the local alternative music circuit, have just released a new brighter-sounding album, ‘Pote Tha Ftasoume Edo,’ as the follow-up to their very well received debut together, “Oi Anases Ton Lykon.” The duo is now touring.
By Yiouli Eptakili
We were drinking tea at a quiet cafe in downtown Athens. Yiannis Angelakas, the former frontman of the popular Greek rock act Trypes, and his gifted music partner of late, the talented cellist and composer Nikos Veliotis, an active figure on the international experimental circuit, were preparing to depart for Thessaloniki for final rehearsals ahead of a mini tour, now on. The pair has just released a second album, “Pote Tha Ftasoume Edo,” following their very well received first outing together, “Oi Anases Ton Lykon.” Both albums are unique. Veliotis’s multilayered sounds, chords, and drones, all on the cello, blend with Angelakas’s thoughtful lyrics. The duo traveled along different paths, at different times, before joining forces. From Thessaloniki, Angelakas picked grapes as a youngster before rejecting that line of work. He turned to music and fronted his rock band Trypes along a blazing trail for 15 years. Back then, an entire generation here identified with the angst-ridden words and thoughts of Angelakas, now 48. Born and raised in Athens, Veliotis, a cool-headed 38-year-old, thrives on city life. The classically trained cellist prefers anti-academic ways in music, surfs the Internet, and gets his kicks out of watching trash TV and frequenting small venues with experimental leanings.
Yiannis Angelakas, are you still mad at [the late archbishop] Christodoulos?
Y. A:
I was not mad at Christodoulos, nor was the song “Airetiko” (Heretical) just about him, but about what he represented. Christodoulos was a passionate priest in a mad world, a rock star who controlled listeners, and a TV star, but his show was cheap. In the end, of course, he became a hero. Everybody emerged in the media and spoke lofty things about how significant a personality he was. Big deal, we knew what he was.
N. V:
Greek hypocrisy is a well-known fact. We need mass, national psychotherapy in order to be able to move on.
Should I assume that you were not at all alarmed by all that has gone on at the Culture Ministry (Zachopoulos affair)?
Y. A:
It’s a joke in itself that a Culture Ministry exists. Power, amid all its interests, cares little about how it will further develop people. Like the Public Order Ministry and its enforcement of order as it sees it, the Culture Ministry imposes its own views about culture. And we’ve seen what the results are – dirt, money, scandals…
Would you accept financial backing from the Culture Ministry?
Y. A:
We would most probably say “no,” as we’ve done in the past. If we lived in a more serious country with serious leaders and I saw that people like Socrates Malamas and Thanassis Papaconstantinou received occasional ministry backing, then I may have asked for funds to maintain the band.
N. V:
I would prefer it if young, unknown artists received ministry funds. But, as Yiannis just said, we don’t live in a serious country. We’ve suddenly just realized that the Chrysi Avgi (right-wing extremist) group enjoys good ties with the Greek police force, and that immigrants get beaten up at police stations. Reality is just what is captured on video and put on the screen.
Do you watch television?
N. V:
I do. I’ll find something even in the junk. There’s something worthy there, too, if you watch with a conscience. I’m just as conscientious about not watching the news.
Y. A:
It’s not news, its a show. Fortunately, not everybody is feeding television’s atrocious state. TV junkies in Greece number no more than 2-2.5 million. They’re the minority. There are also people who think, worry, and get out onto the street to fire up the thoughts of fellow citizens.
Are you optimistic?
N. V:
Yes, because we get around here, meet people, young people who think. There’s something alive out there that’s boiling.
Is this why your new album is more optimistic than the previous one?
Y. A:
When we were making “Oi Anases Ton Lykon” it was a difficult period for both of us. Things around us then changed, as did our energy, and this new album is truly more luminous.
How did you two get together and find you matched?
N. V:
Yiannis was doing the soundtrack for Nikos Nikolaidis’s film “Loser Takes All” and wanted to do something with the cello.
Y. A:
And we became friends. It’s the only way I can work. I don’t function in a totally professional way. I create human bonds and, then, music through them.
N. V:
What we do is like a serious game.
Is there any chance of us seeing Trypes on stage again?
Y. A:
No, no chance whatsoever. We have nothing to do with this trend for band reunions, all for the sake of making money.
N. V:
It’s still early. You’re all too young!
Nikos Veliotis, did you follow Trypes ?
N. V:
No, I’d started getting involved with experimental music at the time.
Y. A:
I like to collaborate with people who didn’t listen to Trypes. Much of the Episkeptes [Angelakas’s current backing ensemble] lineup had no idea about the old band.
How did you manage to gather all these exceptional musicians? And how can such a large band of about 15 people on stage survive financially?
Y. A:
It’s total madness trying to maintain such a band in Greece. It does generate some wages. Our nerves often reach the breaking point, but we carry on because the guys understand that what we do is worth the effort. Which is why they often sacrifice better pay to be with us.
Do you believe in the freedom that the Internet provides musicians?
Y. A:
I believe with hesitation. I need to wait a few more years. There’s momentum and potential, so something may be achieved here.
N. V:
We feel concern about the distribution of our work. Total freedom may come through the Internet.
Your album sells for about 17.80 euros. That’s expensive isn’t it?
N. V:
It’s expensive because of the middlemen.
Y. A:
We dream of cheaper albums, but at this point in time, don’t have the power to achieve this. Of the 17.80 euros, our label, Alltogethernow, which does all the production work, gets 5 euros. The money we get is in there. We give the distributors completed work and they share the remaining 13 euros with the record shops. Let’s not talk about this anymore because it drives me crazy.
N. V:
And just think, albums are even more expensive in the country’s provinces.
Does it annoy you if some listeners freely download your music?
N. V:
Now, that’s just the way things are.
Y. A:
We try to be on good terms with our fans. And because they’re quality-minded, they understand that All together now needs the money to survive. Until now, despite these difficult times, people have been buying our music, consciously. I’m certain that if we were to ask our following for support, it would offer it. At some point, when it became known that Alltogethernow had problems, a girl called me to say that she had 1,500 euros which she could gladly give me. There was a boy, too, offering about that much more. I didn’t accept it, of course, but it’s touching when somebody says: “Well, I’m here and want to help you continue with what you’re doing.” People know.
congratulations
to our multi-talented bass player vishy on the success of the design walk 2008. here’s looking forward to many more projects like this in the future. i’m so proud…