Interview by Helena MȺrkos
Petros Spatharos is a DJ and Producer from Athens, who has been exploring the flow of the undeground electronic music since 2010, creating his own optics with influences from unadapted Electro, sluggish EBM and reactive Industrial. Petros has been a resident DJ of the legendary Astron bar, and his music has been hosted on labels such as Body Musick, Dalmata Daniel, Meta Moto, Voltage Tension, Artificial Horizon, Pildoras Tapes and many more.
During the last two years, the music of Petros Spatharos has repeatedly called our attention. A slow eroticism and avant-gardism characterise his productions: emotive synths, dark baselines and gentle but demanding drums. There is almost something cinematographic in his music and each one of his tracks sounds like an acoustic novel, impossible to narrate with words.
We are delighted to host his words on Tales of Psychofonia. We are looking forward to his upcoming work, significantly standing out in an era in which the quality often gets lost amongst the fleeting trends.
T.O.P: Hi Petros, first of all how are you and how are things in Greece?
Hello! First of all I would like to thank you for the invitation, its a pleasure to have this conversation with you… let’s say I’m fine, as much as I can in a time of insecurity, uncertainty and the fear we are going through.
T.O.P: Can you tell me a few things about your musical journey so far?
The journey started years ago while exploring my father’s collection of records and cassettes, I was particularly attracted to disco music and punk. A patchwork of them paved the way for me and my influences. As a teenager, I was drawn to electronic music, DIY raves, and clubs were my regular weekend routine. Then I began to play DJ sets, and my passion eventually led me to music production.
T.O.P: How do you see the electronic music scene in Greece at this moment?
The electronic music scene is going through a crisis like the whole spectrum of art. Nevertheless, in this social imbalance and instability, artists born, evolved and expressed themselves despite the adverse conditions, their imagination remains high. A flower is always beautiful, even if it grew in a landfill.
An artist faces many challenges in the course of his music career. He must remain to the point without musical chatter, to represent the quality and not the quantity and not to be deceived by the ephemeral glory but to follow the healthy humility, the flow of his art and imagination and not any fashion. Petros Spatharos
T.O.P: How do you express yourself in the studio and what is the main drive of your creative process?
I love hiking and walking, and when I go for these long walks, I usually visualise the structures of my ongoing projects. A walk in the woods has always been a source of inspiration. I can not live without nature, a kind of ritual that I do to get inspiration.
T.O.P: How did the pandemic and the current situation in Europe have affected you?
When there are no gigs, I miss the interaction with the crowd. The economic issues every artist had to face affected me as well. During the restriction period and the lockdowns, there was a lot of productive time, but the idea was to have friction and directness with the audience. The ultimate goal of every artist is feedback from the audience.
T.O.P: What do you think are the significant challenges that the artists face nowadays?
An artist faces many challenges in the course of his music career. He must remain to the point without musical chatter, to represent the quality and not the quantity and not to be deceived by the ephemeral glory but to follow the healthy humility, the flow of his art and imagination and not any fashion.
T.O.P: Any upcoming work you might want to share with us?
Recently I released my first remix track for a charity remix project, “May That War Be Cursed” from a very dear friend Anatolian Weapons to support displaced Ukrainians. Also, a split EP is in the works for a very hot record label and a few participations in various artists compilations.
Links:
Tales of Psychofonia 