Hi Thanasis and Mike… first of all, tell us… how and when did the idea to record a new album occur? If I’m not mistaken only Thanasis and Kostas Rigopoulos (keys) were in the band at that time, right?
T: Due to some members’ unreliability and their obsession to play only covers, the band had remained dormant in a way, and that thing made me unwilling to deal with SW anymore. At some point Kostas found me and he suggested recording a new album at his home studio, which he had just created – even with the contribution of session musicians if need be. So we addressed our friends and partners, like George Karahalios (drummer on Maidenance) at first, but we were also looking out for some permanent members too.
It was weird not to see the founder of the band Thanasis Fragopoulos in the line-up. What happened? I remember you said that he did contribute in the songwriting part as well.
T: We started working together on the new album but along the way he realized he couldn’t cope with it due to his professional obligations. It’s not easy to be an accountant in a country like Greece, you do not have many options to do other things, but he still remains a good friend and consultant.
How easy was it to find the new members? Which were the criteria to do so?
T: They should be gifted and they must dedicate themselves to the band – at least to the point they can. And it was rather easy to find them as the one led us to the other…
I think that the singer choice is always crucial for a band. How did your cooperation with Mike come about and which were the elements you wanted your new singer to have?
T: Mike was “discovered” by Kostas when the last one saw him on some musical! Kostas liked Mike’s voice, they talked about music and they found out that they have a lot in common. Afterwards he gave Mike some demos and he started working on the vocal melodies and the lyrics. We found out that Mike was a skillful, serious and full of energy… he has all the elements we’re were looking for…
You managed to keep your comeback to discography a secret all this time. How about that?
T: We didn’t want to expose ourselves like other bands do when they announce new releases that haven’t come out yet! Even our Facebook page was created just before the album release date.
Is the album material totally new or did you also use some older ideas or tracks?
T: We used ideas we had already had but some new ideas occurred along the way.
When did you start recording the album, where did the recordings take place and who took care of the mixing and the production?
T: We started recording it little by little in 2010, in Kostas’ studio and always under his supervision.
It was later that you sent the album to Tony Lindgren (Enslaved, Katatonia, Kreator, Wolf, etc.) for mastering in Sweden right? How did that thing occur and are you happy with the final outcome?
T: Kostas took care of it cuz he had cooperated with Tony before for the latest Valor album. Yes, we are very happy with the final result.
What does the album title “Non-Aligned” declare?
M: These two words refer to all those people out there who do not feel “aligned” with their everyday lives and they suffer with the way things have turned out to be in their society and they feel entrapped in a certain life-style. Hence they end up living in their own “microcosms” or better in their own “kingdoms” so that they can protect themselves. Yet, they also look for a way out of this situation.
Is there any relation between the album title and the cover artwork? By the way, who designed that wonderful cover art?
M: Sure there’s a definite relation between the cover artwork and the homonymous track as well as with “Beggar of Emotions”. We tried to create a figure for that “Non-Aligned” character, so we thought of giving him a rather “extreme” shape – just like a man who doesn’t give a shit about life’s luxuries, that we humans are so fond of and we tend to sacrifice our quality of life almost every day in order to get them. This figure has consciously turned into a “beggar”, a today’s Pythagoras (here’s the relation with the track “Beggar of Emotions” too), who lives inside his own thoughts and has his own life philosophy. He constantly watches other humans pass by, but he doesn’t see a human form in them but just some beings that have turned out to be robots slowly – here’s the metallic hand which throws him some coins. We thought of that idea but the design is courtesy of Chaostouched, who is also the singer on Whatever End…
I’d like you to comment on each track…
Μ: “Beggar of Emotions”: This song talks about people who are sick of begging others around them for emotions which should be offered generously and without any begging. We believe that we try too hard in our interpersonal relations today and we do not enjoy them anymore.
“Wind Blown Song”: This is a very powerful song with “offensive” vocals in the beginning and it talks about a man who watches the world from somewhere high above and sees a human-mass which lacks the joy of everyday life, the quality of living, the music, the entertainment and the human feeling. He sees some robots which just care about their business and money. As you can understand several tracks on the album are lyrically related but that doesn’t mean this is a concept album.
“The Key (That Must Be Returned)”: This is probably the darkest track on the album. It talks about a man who trusted his life-partner too early, he gave her the key to his heart – something that he rarely did – and he was exploited and finally betrayed. Now he wants that key to be returned to him.
The tracks “Agelong” & “Wings in Chains” form a unit. Here the style changes a bit and becomes more epic just like the lyrics. Both tracks talk about some intangible & invisible figures who are God’s servants and their cause is to watch and record human activities and also pay attention to human’s evolution on behalf of God. They are neither angels nor humans and they are also not allowed to feel anything nor express themselves. After many centuries those figures rebel against God and He crashes them. But in their last hour, just before they die they feel something and even though it is the unbearable pain of dying – they die satisfied for having felt something eventually. Both those tracks are among our favorite ones.
“Feline Madness”: This track talks about humans fighting against cancer. They wanna fight it, they use all their strength to do so but like a feline that “evil sickness” manages to escape and bring them down in the end. This is a very sensitive matter but we felt we should talk about it due to some personal reasons. It is a very powerful track but it is the saddest track on the album as well.
“Behind the Mask” & “The Deceit”, which are not a unit, refer to betrayals among humans. The first one is slower and the other faster but both of them bring up the feelings of fury, despair or sadness which are caused by such situations.
“Scattered Thoughts (of a Dying Mind)”: This track refers to a woman and the thoughts she has just a few minutes before she dies. Her whole life passes in front of her eyes and she sees & realizes the true intentions of the people who were surrounding her all these years, now that her life is suddenly coming to an end. She passes away happily for she sees her redemption somewhere in another life…
We talked about the lyrics of the eponymous track above – musically, we consider that this track is the answer to the question “can classic metal be modern?”…
Did you look out for any label in order to release the album or you had decided from the very start to release it independently?
M: Since we had recorded the album in our own studio and we had funded all the expenses, we didn’t search for any label, especially a Greek one. Now that the album is out in Greece independently, it’s more likely to look out for a label abroad especially for the distribution part and not for the economic one.
Which are the cons & pros of the independent releases today?
T: The advantage is that we retain our musical freedom so that we can sell our CD anyway we want to, even by giving it out for free or uploading it on the web. Labels wouldn’t approve such activities. But we also get all the income from the sales in order to fund the band. Of course, the disadvantage is the lack of distribution which is necessary for our album sales out of Greece. This is something we will take care of in the future. The distribution issue is not much of a problem in Greece for there are not so many record stores anymore, so we do all the work by ourselves through the net and via mail.
You have already given some live shows for the album’s promotion. When & where will the next live appearances of the band be?
M: The live shows are of significant importance cuz in that way we can have some income via our merchandise and we also have the chance to strengthen our fan base for the future. Our line-up is stable so I guess you’ll get enough of us…
Do you plan to release any video and if yes for which track?
M: Yeah we’re planning to do it very soon! We haven’t decided yet if it will be for the homonymous track, or “The Key”, or “Wings in Chains”. Things will become clearer on the next band meeting…
Which are SW’s further plans and what do you wish to achieve with the band’s reappearance in the music scene?
T: We hope to get more recognition which will encourage us to go on.
How and where can someone buy your CD and T-shirt?
T: Check out our official eshop here or by coming to one of our live shows.
Time for our “strange questions”!!! How did you come up with the name Sorrowful Winds in the first place?
T: Thanasis Fragopoulos came up with the name by matching two words he liked in order to give a more melancholic character to the band.
Why do you believe that the lion’s share of recognition has been taken by the extreme metal acts of the Greek metal scene which are also vastly known globally? It’s not that you can’t find any good bands in the classic/traditional metal scene and not only, right?
T: Sure there are, but most of them are recycling the same things and we’re lacking on the production part, on the singer’s accent & right tonality etc. Thus, it was easier for the extreme metal groups to separate themselves on this market since all that matters is how “evil” you are and not how skilled you are. Moreover, in contrast to the classic metal scene where each is trying to undermine the others, the extreme metal bands used to have and still have a much more reciprocal attitude.
Which are the best and the most underrated bands of the Greek metal scene?
T: I can name numerous bands but the most characteristic case is the band Deceptor. I consider it to be the top Greek heavy/power metal band ever!
How do you see the “free downloading issue” (albums, movies TV series) of our time?
T: It’s a good way to find things when they’re hard to be found or if you’re doubtful whether something is worth buying or not. You can save some extra money out of this…
Since you are one of the oldest members in the Greek metal scene how do you see the “social media panic” of today? What has changed since the old days?
T: News updating, promotion and communication is easier now but it’s even harder for any new album to be separated out of the numerous new releases… and what reaches the ears of the average listener is more or less a coincidence!
Which are the 3 most significant heavy metal albums in your opinion?
T: Judas Priest – “Unleashed in the East”, Iron Maiden – “Powerslave”, Black Sabbath – “Mob Rules”…
Which are the top 3 horror movies and books according to you?
T: Beyond, Dr Phibes, The Shining!
Which are the most technical and hardest guitar solos?
T: Anything from Allan Holdsworth!
Which are the 3 top guitarists that defined the sound of metal music?
T: I can mention many guitarists but I’ll choose Tony Iommi, Michael Schenker and Eddie Van Halen!
Guitar-player or drummer?
T: It depends on the money and the space you have!
What’s the worst thing you can say right after sex?
T: ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!!!
Which of the Seven Deadly Sins do you reckon is the one, that’s more likely to send you straight to Hell, in the afterlife?
T: I can’t consider anything to be a “sin” when it doesn’t hurt other people.
Imagine that your girlfriend/wife is selling your whole album-collection just to buy an expensive ring for herself. How would you react?
T: Unfortunately, I do not have such an expensive album collection!
Thanks for talking to Grande Rock guys. I wish you the best for the future. Add anything you like before we end this interview… take care!
T: Thank you Grande Rock and we hope that our new album will be appealing to the fans. We will talk in one of our live shows soon…
