“Everything Else Is Just Smoke!”
Greece. Known for many, many things. The “Cradle of Western Civilization,” the Olympics, Democracy…or if I may take this pomposity down a notch…the home of Motherfaster.
Athens, Greece is the home of this “no-nonsense, kick your ass Metal” band that in their words is “the result of a bad idea…with the common purpose to extract the dirtiest side of their souls and present it as an audio insult.” How can you not like this? ???? I listen to new bands EVERY day and this band completely blew me away. A combination of Corrosion of Conformity, Black Sabbath, and a seriously pissed off ZZ Top, this band brings it! With two full-length albums, Motherfaster (2015) and Slower Father (2019), they are poised to make a big splash in the music world. Recently, MHF received the opportunity to ask them a few questions. We wish them all the best.
Jim Gkikas: Drums
Bill Giannakopoulos: Guitar
Paminos Giannakopoulos: Bass/vocals
Greetings from Metalheads Forever and Colorado! How are you this fine day?
Paminos: Hello guys! We are fine! A little bit over bored with the lack of activities that covid measures bring, but fine!
Been listening (a LOT) to the new album Slower, Father, and your self-titled album, Motherfaster. I imagine the next album will some sibling connotation, but I digress. Both are outstanding, but as they say, you are only as good as your last album. So, tell the world about the latest album. Why should we choose it over thousands of others?
I believe you gave the answer yourself! Just give us 5-6 minutes and listen to a couple of songs. If you don’t like it very much, you only lost a little time. If you do like them, you will be listening to those albums all the time!
I have already given a brief bio on the band, but what do you really want the world to know about you? This is your opportunity to brag, embellish, or whatever you like.
What I really want the world to know about us is our 18 (so far) songs. This is all that matters, everything else is just smoke…
In 2014, your song “The Nymph and the God” was part of a CD compilation in Terrorizer magazine. Several big names were on this CD. (Remember CDs, kids?) This was undoubtedly a crucial moment, but if you could go back in time, what song would you put on that CD instead?
I would not change that. I think nymph was the right song to introduce Motherfaster to the audience. The riffs were both heavy and melodic, the chorus was awesome and the story of the lyrics is one of my favorites! Maybe 24/7 could be on that CD as well, but we wanted a faster song. I believe we made a good choice on that one.
Regarding the song “Shotgun Blast” from Slower Father. The lyrics are hard-hitting, especially today. Can you elaborate on this song? We’ve included a video for this song.
“Shotgun Blast” is about a guy who tried to end his life with a shotgun. It is neither pro nor against suicide. It is just the description of this situation. The main thing is that it is difficult to perform this deed with a shotgun, because of the size of this weapon. It is more likely that you will fail and end up without half of your face. Actually, I sadly know of two examples of this and for the first time, I was feeling pretty bad when I was writing those lyrics. I remember thinking: “Wow if this guy was feeling bad enough to do something like this before, how bad and dark must it be for him now?”
I understand (some) of your background is in Black Metal and Death Metal. Any chance we will hear this in subsequent songs?
You can definitely hear it in our other band After Dusk (AfterDuskMetal.com), but we already have a new song with a death metal riff in it… Also, Jim and I produced a black metal project back in 2009 with English and ancient Greek lyrics called En Tafo (https://entafo.bandcamp.com/album/en-tafo)
I love how your songs incorporate little if any, overdubs. The guitar solos and interludes don’t have any multitracking. It gives your sound a more realistic vibe, plus, I imagine, it’s easier to play in concert. What is your overall approach to recording and production?
The goal is not make things easier. It is that when you come to a Motherfaster gig, you are going to get what you heard on the album, topped with that extra live energy. People really appreciate that. We don’t even record guitar backing tracks during the solos, it is just the solo guitar and the bass. Why have a three-member band, if you want to have 5 fucking harmonies? Our approach is pretty old school, but with ourselves, not the equipment. I mean we don’t try to find recording equipment used by Black Sabbath in the ’70s, we try to perform like those guys! You know you don’t have to be 2 years in the studio for a 40-50 minute album…. Also, we don’t use the metronome, it is Jim’s job to give the pulse.
On Slower Father, you cover Nina Simone’s “Sinnerman.” A very unusual, but cool choice for a cover tune. What’s the story here and what else can we look forward to? May I suggest Sarah Vaughan’s “Black Coffee?” I can’t imagine what you would do there.
Actually, it is an African-American traditional song, but Nina Simone’s version is probably the best. It is the one that inspired me as well. I loved that song because it is full of agony. Also, it is something very different from what we are playing. First, I made a demo with guitar and vocals to see if I like it with my voice, and then I played it to the guys. We seldomly do any cover songs, so it has to be something special to make it to a Motherfaster album. Black coffee is a cool suggestion, but I cannot tell at the moment if our next album is going to have a cover, or not.
Assuming Covid didn’t exist, what are/would be your immediate plans?
Play some shows. Our last show was one year ago and we really want to start playing again. And maybe at the end of 2021, we can start thinking about the 3rd album.
As usual, I must ask, if I were to visit Greece, what is the one thing I simply must see? Bear in mind, I have a friend in Greece that I intend on visiting.
One thing only? I have to say what is expected, but true. Definitely, go to the Acropolis and its museum. Time travel at its finest.
We thank you for your time and wish you all the best. Any parting words for our readers?
Thank you for having us! We hope we could play some concerts in the States! Some guys ask us if we have such plans, we even had some messages from Colorado, but it is a little difficult from where we stand right now. Hopefully, it will happen, but until then enjoy our tunes of doom!
