Bokomolech

Bokomolech is a band from Athens, Greece. Its members met some time in 1991 in the National Technical University, studying Architecture. After a period of experimentation with the line-up, during which they performed live at the 2nd Indie Free Festival in Athens in July 1993, they came up with the formation of a singer (Dimitris Ioannou), two guitarists (Kostas Ragoussis and Evi Fraghedaki), a bassist (Lila Katerinaki) and a drummer (Vlassis Karagiannis), which lasted for a decade. Their name, proposed by Lila and supported by popular vote, came from a Ukrainian physician (Alexander Alexandrovic Bogomoletz) who came up with a drug of the same name some time in the 1950’s, supposedly postponing the ageing of cells in the human body. The drug was met with considerable success for a few years, before it was sadly proved ineffective. Just as one might expect from the combination of such a dull line-up with such a bizarre name, their songwriting is a rather perverse mix of mostly regular elements. This is mainly due to the composing process (songs are always the result of collective experimentation during rehearsals, based on musical motifs usually introduced by Kostas) and their wide-ranging influences, which made most Greek music journalists characterize their debut LP " Xero " (1995, on Lazy Dog Records, an important indie label from Salonica) as the best English-speaking Greek Rock Record Of All Time. They also soon developed the justified fame of being one of the most thrilling live experiences in the Athenian rock scene. There followed a change of label, mainly due to problems caused by the (geographical) distance from Lazy Dog. Their new home was Hitch-Hyke Records, the most important Greek indie label, also the distributor of (at least until recently) every respectable label on the planet, from Domino to Southern, and from Rykodisk to Epitaph and Sub Pop. They have four releases on Hitch-Hyke so far: the " Insect(songs) " mini-LP, released in the spring of 1997, instantly followed by " Jet Lag " LP, which was recorded in Electrical Audio, Chicago, Il. by Steve Albini, whom they are proud to consider a fan and good friend. (Steve and Shellac fitted an extra day in their European tour that autumn, so that they could play in Athens with Bokomolech. The Athenian underground still remember that gig as one of the best in the decade).Their fourth release, " Slowburner " came in 1999 (in the midst of the compulsory army service for the male members of the band), and was yet another mini-LP, this time produced by one of the most important electronica (!) musicians/producers in Greece, Coti K (who has recorded a series of fine, experimental solo projects, and has collaborated, among others, with Blaine E. Raininger, Stereo Nova and the most successful English-speaking Greek band, popsters Raining Pleasure). Its futuristic pop/rock sound didn't stop it from being their darkest release to date. There followed a period of scarce rehearsing and live activity, which led many of the fans to believe the band actually broke up. But it was back to form in the winter of 2002, a period of experimentation on loose song structures and improvisation, which led to the recording of " Exit: Trance " in the summer of 2003, once again with Steve Albini, but this time in Iain Burgess’ Black Box Studio in rural France. Soon after the session, Evi left the band for personal reasons. This is the first Bokomolech album to be properly distributed abroad: by the time these lines are being put down, Exit: Trance is out in Portugal and Germany. In the beginning of 2008 two members, Tassos and Christina, where incorporated into the band. In this new form Bokomolech performed two live shows in Athens and Thessaloniki, presenting mostly new material. These days the band is rehearshing and looking further.Bokomolech currently are:Dimitris Ioannou (vocals, lyrics), Lila Katerinaki (bass, vocals), Vlassis Karagiannis (drums , percussion), Kostas Ragoussis (guitar), Tassos "ettin" Protopappas (keyboards, electronics), Christina Kassesian (guitar )