Tag: Fotonovela (Page 4 of 5)

FOTONOVELA A Ton Of Love

10 December 2013 /

Guest vocalist albums are a strange beast; often too varied to give a coherent directional focus but too samey to work as a compilation, reactions to them are mixed.

But among the best in recent years though has been 2009’s debut album by KLEERUP featuring Robyn, Lykke Li, Marit Bergman and Titiyo. And now comes the second album from Greek production duo FOTONOVELA. Although their own catalogue has been small, their fingers have been in many pies. Primarily known for their work with MARSHEAUX, they have also remixed PET SHOP BOYS, GROOVE ARMADA and THE HUMAN LEAGUE.

Named after the cult Italo standard, FOTONOVELA’s sophomore LP is called ‘A Ton Of Love’; it kind of sums up the concept and is appropriately, an anagram of George Geranios and Nick Bitzenis’ professional moniker. The album is a far more song based collection than its groove laden predecessor, ‘Mistakes Are Good’.

The concept of ‘A Ton Of Love’ was to produce a supreme electronic record featuring vocalists from all stages of classic synthpop as a homage to the genre. As a sign of their ambition, the first person they approached was OMD’s Andy McCluskey and the sessions went well… so well in fact that the resultant number ‘Helen Of Troy’ ended up on OMD’s ‘English Electric’ opus! Great for FOTONOVELA’s standing but back to square one for the album. Next up was a collaboration with new Wall Of Sound signings EKKOES… that went well too with ‘Fight The Feeling’> pencilled in as their debut single!

One could be forgiven for thinking with FOTONOVELA’s tracks being coveted by their collaborators for their own albums, the tracks remaining on ‘A Ton Of Love’ might not be of the same standard.

But with a cast that features DUBSTAR, SECTION 25, MIRRORS, CLAPS, KID MOXIE and of course MARSHEAUX, the quality is maintained and in a few cases, exceeded.

Exceeding all expectations is one of the numbers with James New from MIRRORS. Capturing the essence of classic OMD with a spirited, majestic vocal, ‘Our Sorrow’ is a fine tribute to Humphreys/McCluskey but also highlights how much the wonderful MIRRORS are missed.

One cannot failed to be moved by the middle eight where New emotively exclaims “your love is poison to my veins”! And if that wasn’t enough, there’s another James New vocal in the fizzy uptempo synthpop of ‘Romeo & Juliet’ which takes on a slightly lighter shade than the usual pop noir of MIRRORS.

Meanwhile the wonderful Sarah Blackwood warms up for the recorded return of DUBSTAR in 2014 with great pair of wonderfully feisty numbers ‘Justice‘ and ‘Beautiful’. Continuing FOTONOVELA’s hitchhike through the North West of England, SECTION 25’s Bethany Cassidy gives it a pensive ‘Clean Slate’.

A FOTONOVELA album would not be complete without the voices of MARSHEAUX at some point; their ‘So Strange’ was the highlight of ‘Mistakes Are Good’. Unsurprisingly given that the two parties are joined at the hip, ‘Big Black Hole’ doesn’t veer too far from the usual MARSHEAUX formula although more prominent pulsing synthetics add a distinct high energy vibe. However, ‘Close To Me’ delivers some enigmatic pop in a surprisingly higher register than MARSHEAUX have reached before, recalling SANDRA’s ‘Maria Magdelena’.

Remaining near the Aegean Sea, ‘Freeze Frame’ voiced by Elena Charbila aka KID MOXIE is dreamily melancholic with an air of fragile vulnerability. It proves again that the Hellenic beauty has finally found her voice with that gorgeously breathy continental style following her guest spots on Nick Bitzenis’ NIKONN project.

Daryl Smith from cult duo THEY GO BOOM! is brought out of semi-retirement to add his voice to ‘Heartful Of Nothing’ and the result sounds like THE STONE ROSES fronting ERASURE!

Unfortunately, ‘Love Without Fear’ with CLAPS vocalist Patrick Donohoe sounds a little too frantic and forced.

Highly rated duo EKKOES finally make their appearance on ‘Arrows’, but there’s something not quite there too… their remixes of KATE BUSH and DRAGONETTE have been superb and on paper, they should be loved. But their Achilles Heel seems to be singer Jon Beck’s voice; it’s pleasant enough but lacks impact. Or maybe it’s the song; ‘Fight The Feeling’ was much better.

These two are the least essential items on the collection; and it’s a shame that for contractual reasons, the lovely enigmatic ballad ‘Scarecrow’ by Swedish jazz singer Jay Jay Johansson isn’t on the album and won’t see light of day until Record Store Day 2014 as a separately sanctioned release. But with three of the original songs intended for ‘A Ton Of Love’ going elsewhere, the final tracklisting was bound to be a little compromised.

Overall, ‘A Ton Of Love’ is great album but has sort of been a victim of FOTONVELA’s own success. The sessions have spawned some the best songs of 2013 and luckily, a number of them are on this album. This is a rather fine showcase for one of best production teams in Europe; ‘A Ton Of Love’ does what it says rather well.

‘A Ton Of Love’ is released as a CD by Undo Records on 11th December 2013 and available from http://www.undorecords.bigcartel.com/product/cdun46-fotonovela-a-ton-of-love-cd

http://www.facebook.com/undofotonovela

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Text by Chi Ming Lai
10th December 2013, updated 29th December 2016

MARSHEAUX Inhale

6 April 2013 /

Athens based synth maidens MARSHEAUX’s 2004 debut album ‘E-Bay Queen’ showed flashes of promise but it wasn’t until 2009 that the potential was fully realised; that year’s ‘Lumineux Noir’ was a wondrous body of work where Marianthi Melitsi and Sophie Sarigiannidou’s wispy synthpop went up several notches.

Haloed by their many admirers from the music scene including Tom Robinson, Stuart Maconie, Andy McCluskey, Rusty Egan, David Beevers and even LA rocker Jared Leto from 30 Seconds To Mars, magnificent songs like ‘Exit’, ‘So Far’and ‘Sorrow’ led some observers to cite MARSHEAUX as the female DEPECHE MODE.

This was hardly surprising as Marianthi and Sophie met at a DM fan event. Indeed, released at the same time as the Basildon Boys’ lame ‘Sounds Of The Universe’, ‘Lumineux Noir’ was far superior too. Meanwhile the album’s other key moments ‘Breakthrough’ and ‘Radial Emotion’ put them up there with LADYTRON and LITTLE BOOTS respectively.

With only the inevitable rarities collection amusingly titled ‘E-Bay Queen Is Dead’ in 2012 to fill in the void, new album ‘Inhale’ has been a long time coming. And it would appear that the Greek financial crisis has loomed heavy over its making with moodier, midtempo numbers taking centre stage.

If 2007’s ‘Peek-A-Boo’ saw the ‘E-Bay Queen’ reach adulthood and ‘Lumineux Noir’ was the carefree but intense period studying for a BA, then ‘Inhale’ is the reality of having to pay off the university loan! ‘Over & Over’ starts ‘Inhale’ in a bubbly champagne manner, if slightly apprehensive at facing the future after graduation. But ‘Alone’ exposes the gloomier shades, punctuated by heavily oscillating bass with the lead theme Numan-esque in its Polymoog flourishes.

Also on the deeply melancholy side is the steadfast ‘To The End’; “I lost my way” sings Marianthi, seemingly unsure which way to turn as a vocodered presence takes hold. ‘August Day’ though is a dreamy grower, developing on the maturer outlook now apparent as the album’s heart while the closer ‘Can You Stop Me?’ takes on FEVER RAY’s dour, atonal ideas but puts them to a tune; its ambient extension is a delight and provides some relaxing optimism to the journey’s conclusion. And that’s the thing… despite the air of pessimism within ‘Inhale’, there are inviting electropop numbers. This can only be expected when living on the sunny South Balkan Peninsula surrounded by beaches with Ouzo on tap, no matter how difficult the times are.

So ‘Self Control’ is enjoyably snarling and ‘A Secret Place’ strangely exuberant while ‘Come On Now’ is a fully realised cousin of BLONDIE’s ‘Call Me’… Giorgio Moroder would be proud! And to shed more light into the valley, ‘End Is A New Start’ is filled with the synthetic zuckerzeit that makes listeners either love or hate MARSHEAUX.

The ‘Inhale’ title track does slightly retread over some rocky ground and is reminiscent of ‘Breakthrough’ but ‘Never Stop’ points to an exciting new direction, rhythmically feisty with the girls showing a turn of chanted aggression. Credit must be give to MARSHEAUX’s production team FOTONOVELA who cannot be faulted with their sonic contribution to ‘Inhale’. Fresh from working with OMD on ‘Helen of Troy’ on ‘English Electric’ and soon to unveil the stupendous ‘Sorrow’ (not a cover of the MARSHEAUX song) recorded with MIRRORS’ singer James New, they are well on the ascendancy.

All in all, ‘Inhale’ is a good album but perhaps isn’t the great bleep forward that ‘Lumineux Noir’ was and lacks its epic quality. Less immediate due to the inherent downbeat spectre forced on it by concerns closer to home, ‘Inhale’ is still a worthwhile listen that captures a challenging moment in time. But it requires investment… a bit like the Greek economy itself!

‘Inhale’ is released by Undo Records on 22nd April 2013 as a CD. It can also be downloaded via Amazon and iTunes

http://www.marsheaux.com

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http://marsheaux.wordpress.com/

http://www.undorecords.com/

Text by Chi Ming Lai
6th April 2013

OMD English Electric

4 April 2013 /

OMD-English-ElectricWhen a band has been established as long as OMD, there is often a creative dilemma faced when deciding how to approach new studio material.

For such occasions, Brian Eno produced a pack of cards called ‘Oblique Strategies’ designed to get producers and musicians out of sticky situations when lacking inspiration in the studio.

Helpful suggestions include: “What would your closest friend do?”, “Try Faking It!” and my favourite “Be Dirty!”

So, with such a rich back catalogue of albums to reference and a sizeable amount of hits under their belt, what would OMD’s strategy be on their 12th long player? “Be experimental!” and revisit the ‘Dazzle Ships’ era.

“Be melodic!” and follow a more tuneful path as evidenced by ‘So In Love’ and ‘If You Leave’. “Wear your influences on your sleeve!” and reference elements of bands that have shaped your sound and finally the risky one: “Get down with the kids!” and try to incorporate more contemporary sonic elements to show you’ve moved with the times.

So with this, their follow-up to the successful ‘History Of Modern’ comeback album, what have OMD done? To be honest, rather than following a single path, they’ve gone down the eclectic route and tried incorporating bits of the above, cherry-picking sounds and styles from a few of their periods and in a move which is bound to please a lot of hardcore fans, even revisiting the ‘Dazzle Ships’ era which although proved a mid-period career-suicide move, spawned the epic ‘Telegraph’ and ‘Genetic Engineering’.

With this album more than any previous OMD one, there is an elephant in the room and it’s a big, KRAFTWERK-shaped one… lead-off single ‘Metroland’ re-imagines ‘Europe Endless’ but with a stomping kick drum, ‘Kissing The Machine’ has its roots in ‘Neon Lights’ (more about this track and its Germanic links later) and throughout the album, there are riffs and sounds which remain in debt to the German meisters. In interviews, it has become apparent that Paul Humphreys has taken the reins with much of ‘English Electric’ and gone for a classic, monophonic sequencer-driven approach, yet still retaining enough elements to brand each of the tracks as OMD.

The album opens with ‘Please Remain Seated’, one of the three shorter speech synthesized tracks. In the context of the album, both ‘Decimal’ and ‘Atomic Ranch’ now reveal themselves as musical red herrings, as when the snippets of the album first started to appear, gave the false impression that the band were about to return wholesale to the days of ‘Dazzle Ships’. Instead, they simply provide short links between the more conventional songs.

First impressions of third track ‘Night Café’ is that of a saccharine-sounding electro ballad with a vocal melody strangely reminiscent of John Denver’s ‘Leaving on a Jet Plane’.

But by dissecting the lyrics it becomes clear that the major-scale melodies are counterpointing a song about a jilted lover drowning their sorrows at the song-title’s location…

One of the more surprising tracks is ‘The Future Will Be Silent’ which welds contemporary, enveloped dubstep bass and chordal sounds to the more familiar Mellotron-style choir textures that seem to be an OMD staple now, the track climaxing with a rising ‘Numbers’ style synth riff which takes the track to it’s conclusion.

The song itself could be seen as being a thinly-veiled critique on what modern electronic music has now become, with the wub wub synth bass sounds becoming accompanied by a female vocal intoning “the future was not supposed to be like this!” …the song’s inspiration is cited by Andy McCluskey as “audio pollution”, whether that is musical or otherwise is left up to the listener to decide!

‘Kissing The Machine’ will be familiar to those that followed the career path of former Kraftwerker Karl Bartos – the song originally featured with McCluskey’s vocals on the ELEKTRIC MUSIC album ‘Esperanto’. Although similar in sound to that version, the Humphreys’ update / re-work’s synth programming is even more reminiscent of ‘The Man Machine’-era than its predecessor with an added vocoder-led intro and middle eight being spoken in German by Claudia Brücken.

With further nods to their past, the trademark McCluskey live bass makes a welcome re-appearance on ‘Dresden’ and on the aforementioned ‘Night Café’, as do Paul Humphreys’ vocals on ‘Stay With Me’. ‘Our System’ sonically revisits the ‘Architecture & Morality’-era with a live drum-led climax and thematically ‘Helen Of Troy’ also harks back to ‘Joan Of Arc’, albeit with a far more synthetic backbone.

Probably the most out there and experimental track is the closing and fittingly titled ‘Final Song’ which combines a CR78-style drum pattern, upright bass, female semi-gospel vocal sample and almost Steve Reich-esque serial music vocal loops. This track shows that the band is still not afraid to take risks and will probably be the standout track for many on this album.

Criticisms? The synth lead sound that Ralf Hütter wheeled out on the ‘Minimum – Maximum’ tour is maybe over-used on a couple of songs and the overall sonic palette is a little limited in places, but these quibbles aside, ‘English Electric’ is a fine album and one which will undoubtedly delight their hardcore fans, put the band back on the radar for casual listeners and might even pick up a few new ones along the way.

‘English Electric’ uses the following instrumentation…

Paul Humphreys: Synth-Werk, ARP 2600, M Tron Pro, Trillion, Omnisphere, Oberheim SEM V, Morphoder, Jupiter 8V2, Minimoog V, Prophet Pro 53, Massive, Vacuum, Boom

Andy McCluskey: Vacuum, Indigo Virus, M Tron Pro, Jupiter 8, Vox Machina

‘English Electric’ is released by BMG on 8th April 2013 in CD, deluxe CD+DVD, download, vinyl and tin boxset formats. The tin boxset includes a bonus 7 inch vinyl single of ‘Our System’ featuring an exclusive track ‘Frontline’ on the B-side.

OMD’s 2013 UK tour with special guests JOHN FOXX & THE MATHS includes:

Margate Winter Gardens (28th April), Birmingham Symphony Hall (29th April), Nottingham Royal Centre (1st May), Ipswich Regent Theatre (2nd May), London Roundhouse (3rd May), Bristol Colston Hall (5th May), Oxford New Theatre (6th May), Sheffield City Hall (8th May), Leeds Academy (9th May), Manchester Academy (10th May), Glasgow Royal Concert Hall (12th May), Gateshead Sage (13th May), Liverpool Empire (14th May)

The Benelux shows featuring special guests METROLAND include:

Utrecht Tivoli (17th May) and Brussels Ancienne Belgique (20th May)

The German tour with special guests VILE ELECTRODES includes:

Hamburg Docks (21st May), Bielefeld Ringlokschuppen (22nd May), Berlin Tempodrom (24th May), Leipzig Haus Auensee (25th May), Köln E-Werk (27th May)

http://www.omd.uk.com/

https://www.facebook.com/omdofficial/

Text by Paul Boddy
Photo by Tom Oxley
4th April 2013

NIKONN Interview

31 May 2011 /

Nick Bitzenis is the musical genius behind Greek power popsters MIKRO and the co-founder of Undo Records with George Geranios.

With Geranios, he is also a member of FOTONOVELA who not only released their own album ‘Mistakes Are Good’ in 2008 but also produced MARSHEAUX’s three albums ‘E-Bay Queen’, ‘Peek a Boo’ and ‘Lumineux Noir’.

Another notable production was the 2004 Eurodisco hit ‘Ready For Love’ featuring the model Maria Korinthiou as guest vocalist for ESTE, who on closer scrutiny were found to actually be FOTONOVELA in disguise! Never one to sit still, he also has a brilliant solo project under the moniker NIKONN.

In addition to instrumentals, it has featured a variety of guest vocalists such Maria Papadopoulou (whose own album Nick also produced) and Maroola Koutsouri as well as his own voice. Released in 2005, the superb debut ‘Poladroid’ quietly became one of Undo Records biggest sellers. It was the perfect electronic chill-out album with beautiful widescreen textures, warm melodies and subtle beats. The 2008 follow-up ‘Utopia’, described by Nick as “a soundtrack of our dreams”, maintained the high standards set by ‘Poladroid’.

NIKONN’s brand new album ‘Instamatic’ began its genesis with a strong Nordic influence. Indeed, the working titles of the tracks referred to countries or regions in the area.

But the final titles themselves reflect the continual tranquillity that was part of the original concept. This has now been combined with a sun-kissed drama that can only come from living close to the Aegean Sea. ‘Instamatic’ itself is a wonderfully dreamy listen, rich in wispy vox femina and nominally more uptempo than its two predecessors.

Although entitled ‘Silence’, this opening number is paradoxically percussive and features Nick’s own vocals alongside the gated, indie-like backing. ‘The Sea’ is suitably Mediterranean with sexily breathy vocals from KID MOXIE’s Elena Charbila while ‘Afterimage’ is what DEPECHE MODE would have sounded like, if Martin Gore had moved to Barcelona instead of Berlin in 1984 and replaced Dave Gahan with Patsy Kensit.

‘Moby Is Around’ also featuring KID MOXIE does exactly what it says on the tin and is a charming tribute to the former Richard Hall.

The title track’s gorgeous string pads continue the MOBY theme while on the neo-rave of ‘Lifeless’, the ghost of ‘Go’ isn’t far away. However, the angelic chorals provide a great counterpoint to the thumping dance beats.

‘All We Can Do Is Love’ recalls the laid back lounge of AIR’s ‘You Make It Easy’ although at the opposite end of the spectrum, Someday is surprisingly motorik. Piano textures and strings shape the effervescent ‘La Bottega’ while the charming mystique of the French Yeh-Yeh girls and some Riviera vibes concoct the lovely cocktail that is ‘Sunrise’.

‘Nikonn Vals’ provides a waltz interlude before finishing the album with ‘Lust’, a comparatively discordant collage with steady drum loops jarring against the vibrato synth lines. A satisfying fifteen tracks form Instamatic and as an ideal travel companion for a holiday soundtrack, it is perfect.

In a break from his busy schedule, Nick Bitzenis joined ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK for a spot of Souvlaki and a chat about his varied catalogue of work.

Who were the artists that inspired you to become an electronic musician?

The first artist that inspired me was KRAFTWERK. Then after KRAFTWERK, there was DEPECHE MODE, VANGELIS, OMD, THE HUMAN LEAGUE and YAZOO.

Are you a classically trained musician?

No, I’m self-taught. As a kid, I liked playing with buttons to make noises. When I was five years old, I cried for one week to my father to buy me a small keyboard!

I understand you once played in a DEPECHE MODE tribute band?

Yes, that’s correct. I was in a band called NAKIN EYES that played covers.

But the tribute band that only played DEPECHE MODE songs was CARPE DIEM IV, the name is Latin.

What was your favourite DEPECHE MODE song to play?

I think ‘Stripped’. We played the festival that Hysterika, the Greek DM Fan Club held which is where I met George Geranios.

You have been recently touring with MIKRO in Greece with the Download album, how is your popularity in your home country?

It is very big; I think we are the most famous home-grown electronic band in Greece.

You also played in London in November 2009 supporting MARSHEAUX to promote the English version of the album called ‘Upload’. How do you think it was received?

We were very nervous about it, but because we usually play to an audience who like already like our music. So it was a big surprise that we had people dancing to our music and like it. I know it is very difficult in England, in London to present this kind of music… it’s a tough audience but the feedback we received was very nice for us, it gives us more power to continue our work.

How do you feel about this age of free downloading?

It helps spread the music. Downloading is only a type of media, what’s important is the music. In ten years from now, it will be another type of media. We had CDs, then minidiscƒ do you remember minidisc? *laughs*

What do you think about the loss of sound quality in MP3s?

People have moved from listening to music on Hi-Fi to headphones. 90% of people do this so they can’t understand the difference in sound.

What influenced you to undertake an ambient solo project such as NIKONN. Was it the success of artists such as MOBY, ROYKSOPP and even Greece’s own VANGELIS?

With MIKRO, it’s loud musicƒmore power pop. I needed a solo project to express some of my sound ideas. It’s like an atmospheric soundtrack with electronic moods. I like soundtrack music very much.

Your music as NIKONN has a wonderful filmic quality. Has it been featured on any soundtracks yet?

One track was featured on ‘CSI: Miami’. NIKONN is more successful abroad; I have four tracks from the ‘Poladroid’ and ‘Utopia’ albums on various ‘bar’ compilations.

Do you prefer female vocals on your work?

I like girly vocals very much but it depends on the song. If itÍs my vocals or a girl’s vocals, itÍs not a problem for me.

You are part of MARSHEAUX’s production team. What is it like working with the girls in the studio?

It’s very hard work! *laughs*

You are very busy with FOTONOVELA too. The first album ‘Mistakes Are Good’ appeared to be more grooves rather than songs. So what concept will the new album take?

FOTONOVELA was George’s idea to make pure electro music with 80s influences like Italo Discoƒ the band’s name is taken from the song. The new album goes further with songs.

We would like to have a more serious but modern sound and make the music that we like, whatever! And the vocals, we will experiment. We hope to have a lot of guests; we are talking to Claudia Brucken from PROPANGANDA and ONETWO, Sarah Blackwood from DUBSTAR and CLIENT, and Daryl Smith from THEY GO BOOM.

What have been your favourite albums or artists over the last 12-18 months?

GROOVE ARMADA ‘Black Light’ is my favourite album at the moment; I listen to it all the time. THE CHEMICAL BROTHERS’ album ‘Further’ is good. I also like MIRRORS ‘Lights And Offerings’ and THE SOUND OF ARROWS. THE GOLDEN FILTER ‘Volupsa’ is very nice, although I didn’t like ‘Head First’ by GOLDFRAPP; but I’m in love with Alison and the first albums ‘Felt Mountain’ and ‘Black Cherry’.

ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK gives its thanks to Nick Bitzenis

‘Instamatic’ is released by Undo Records

https://www.facebook.com/undonikonn/

http://www.undorecords.com/

Text and Interview by Chi Ming Lai
31st May 2011

Interview with George Geranios of UNDO RECORDS

21 September 2010 /

George Geranios is the co-founder of Undo Records.

Based in the offices of EMI in Athens, Undo not only have MARSHEAUX, MIKRO, NIKONN, ROCKETS IN A COMA and KID MOXIE on their roster but have also issued albums by CLIENT and MESH for their domestic market.

They also recently announced they will be releasing the new OMD album ‘History Of Modern’ in Greece.

George’s love of music has resulted in one of the largest music collections that ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK has ever seen. We thought we had a large music collection until we clasped eyes on this wonderful archive!

Occupying two rooms from top to bottom on three and a half walls each, you will find all manner of vinyl, cassettes, videos, CDs, magazines, books, promos, boxed sets and DVDs. ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK talked to George about this lifeblood which fuels Undo Records and his many other musical interests.

Can you remember the first records you bought with your own money?

The first record was the Greek 12 inch of ‘Parlez-Vous Francais’ by BACCARA in 1978. The same weekend I bought ‘Radio-Activity’ by KRAFTWERK and then the week after, I bought SPARKS’ ‘Kimono My House’.

That’s funny because MARSHEAUX look a bit like BACCARA in the 21st Century!

Yes indeed! I wish they would have the success that BACCARA had in Europe!

How many records and CDs do you think you have in your collection now?

15000 vinyls and about 10000 CDs. The problem now is that I am running out of space!

Your music collection is very international and a lot of your favourite acts are British. How did you acquire your imported items in those pre-internet days?

I had a few pen-friends and I sent them what was new in Greece and people sent me things from Japan, England, France and Germany so I became informed about what was happening. I also used to buy music from Adrian’s Records and Esprit.

Is it true you used to come to England with an empty suitcase and go to Adrian’s to fill it up?

Yes it’s true. Me and a friend of mine used to visit London a lot, sleeping on the Heathrow couches instead of a hotel, so that we could save up money for records. We’d spend hundreds of hours in Adrian’s and Kensington High Street Market in Camden. Wonderful times!

Your collection is like a history of electronic and New Wave music. Which bands are your absolute favourites, the bands where you HAVE to buy everything?

I’m a completist of DEPECHE MODE, OMD, ERASURE and PALE FOUNTAINS.

From the new artists, I collect GOLDFRAPP and HOT CHIP among others.

I understand you have one of the largest DEPECHE MODE collections in the world. Can you tell me a little as to how important this band has been to your life?

DEPECHE MODE were my biggest heroes of all. I grew up with them. They are connected with my life as for example I was listening to Depeche with my first girlfriend. We used to spend hours listening to ‘Speak and Spell’ and ‘A Broken Frame’. They played with synths, but they never sounded cheap. They always had a unique quality that touched my heart in a magic way!

And what is the most valuable DEPECHE MODE item in your collection?

The most valuable DM item I own is the 10 inch acetate of ‘Behind The Wheel’ with the DJ mix.

Is there anything you would like to have, but haven’t so far due to either cost or rarity?

I would love to have the four vinyl acetates for the DEPECHE MODE B-Sides box set, and the ‘Music For The Masses’ LP with the withdrawn cover. These are the only DM items I really want and I believe that I am complete until another buried treasure comes out.

What’s the craziest thing you’ve ever done in pursuit of your love of music?

When I was 15, I lied to my mum that I was going on vacation with friends to a Greek island… I actually went to Paris to see CHINA CRISIS and SIMPLE MINDS!!! But I arrived one day too late so I missed the concert *laughs*

I still have the poster! I hitchhiked from the biggest port in Athens and asked truck drivers if any of them were going to Paris. And when I tried to come back, I ran out of money… I got back after six days! I told my mum the story one year later.

With such a large music collection, it was probably inevitable that you would work in the music industry. How did you come to set up Undo Records with Nick Bitzenis of MIKRO?

Undo was Nick’s idea because in 2002 or 2003, MIKRO gave a song to be used by a big telecommunications company in Greece and the deal was very lucrative. But MIKRO’s then record company Warners took 90% of the money, so Nick suggested setting up a label to have more freedom to do things.

The name was also Nick’s idea, we wrote things down and ‘Undo’ looked better. The other name we considered was ‘Gaga’… this was before LADY GAGA! So we used the Gaga name for our video operation to produce films for other artists. And ‘Undo’ stands for…’UNITED DONKEYS’! *laughs*

Were things like the artwork and presentation inspired by labels such as Factory or Mute?

It was Factory, Mute and ZTT. We always liked Tony Wilson’s and Daniel Miller’s philosophy about the music and the freedom the artists can have. This is important, we want our artists to be happy people… if someone wants to leave Undo, they are free to go. So far, nobody has left Undo.

How do you feel about download culture?

When we release an album, at the same time we put high quality 320kps MP3s on the internet, because our philosophy is that it’s better if you have 100000 people download your album for free than 2000 people buying it. This way, more people will know about you and come to see you play live, more people know about your music.

Today I saw at HMV, they have a big vinyl section again. Vinyl is a totally different culture, you own it, you’re more involved. You have the artwork on the outside and you can check the lyrics in 12 inch x 12 inch. It’s different from CDs. But at HMV, the record companies have put a lot of CDs at £3, £4, £6… and these are for releases less than six months old. This is what should have happened 10 years ago. Not now, now its too late! You can’t sell your product that costs you £2 at the most, for £12!

Do you think there is now less of an emotional attachment to music when it’s just an invisible file on your computer or iPod?

We are not against downloading, it is a fact and we must live with it! We all have to find out what is the next step as to how to sell your music to people. Me and Nick have thought about giving physical CDs at our live concerts for free. We had this idea with MIKRO three years ago, but we had no idea then where things were going.

Now we are more aware of what is going to follow. You must give to people some extras with their purchase, something collectable that they can’t find nowhere else.

That’s why bands are releasing big boxes; DEPECHE MODE released one for ‘Sounds Of The Universe’ for £70, RECOIL released a box that was £100, OMD’s is £50. But I don’t know if this is good for the fans.

Fans like to buy different things or packages with extras, but if you do it continuously, like for example BJORK who had the worst philosophy… all these DVDs released on the same day. It is a disaster if you are a BJORK completist. You have to spend a fortune to buy BJORK things! *laughs*

Saying that, I did spend 1500 Euros to buy all the DEPECHE MODE live CDs from the previous tour!!

How do you feel about modern remastering techniques?

For example, the new remaster of SPANDAU BALLET’s ‘Journeys to Glory’ is crap! But if you listen to it on headphones, you will not be able to understand it is bad! It has been remastered for computer! If you play the CD on Hi-Fi, it sounds horrible!

Who are the artists you are listening at the moment, is there anyone who you rate highly?

VILLA NAH was a big surprise for me; ‘Origin’ is a really good electropop album with references to classic bands we like, the production is superb. I like MIRRORS a lot, TAREQ who we will release on Undo, YEASAYER, REX THE DOG, MARINA & THE DIAMONDS.

And finally, what are your upcoming plans for UNDO Records? I understand you are releasing the new OMD album.

We are amending the OMD artwork and packaging for Greece. It will be different to the UK standard and limited CD. Also there will be a CD with extras and unreleased material on the Undo version. We have a new album from TAREQ, we all at Undo believe that he will make it. He’s a star!! Then FOTONOVELA and HOMETAPING. I hope MARSHEAUX will have an album ready in 2011.

ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK gives its thanks to George Geranios

www.undorecords.com

https://www.facebook.com/undorecords/

Text and Interview by Chi Ming Lai
21st September 2010

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