My knowledge of Greek rock bands is slim to say the least. Although I have been a fan of Socrates Drank the Conium for years, Raw In Sect is the first to catch my attention since then (ignoring Rotting Christ on purpose). Comprising of Kostas Diamandis (Lead Vocals & Guitar), Dimitris Alexiou (Drums & Backing Vocals), George Ioakeimidis (Guitar & Backing Vocals) and Ilias Platanitis (Bass & Backing Vocals) they have just released their third album and, with it, have moved away from the sordid into the heavy prog. Called Kitro, the new album is 46 minutes of Greek mythology and musical heritage built around their sound. It’s difficult to categorise: it’s not straightforward progressive metal, the vocals are sung in Greek, the music can vary wildly from Bouzouki led heavy metal (never thought I’d say that!) to clever overlays of I think, things like a Cretan Lyra.
It starts off with 58 seconds of string led rhythms before a very Greek motif takes hold on ‘Therion’. This approach is taken throughout the album and, I must confess, whilst it is not immediate in any way, it draws you in and the melding of metal and traditional Greek music is fascinating. The only spoiler for me was the too U2 sound on the title track and on ‘Trauma’, as Bill Bailey explains better than me…”The Edge; huh!” although it suddenly occurs that The Edge owes more to Greek music than you would believe. The rest of the album is fascinating with tracks such as the speed metal of ‘Lycanthropy’ and the true progness of ‘Gramma’. The best track is the almost blues-rock of ‘Phrygia’, with its slower, separated sound that allows all instruments to excel. It all wraps up with the orchestral movement that is ‘Fortuna’. Even this damn well works too!
To summarise, this is metal fused brilliantly with traditional Greek (folk) music in a way I never thought possible. It fascinates, it makes you actually listen, not just hear. Above all it entertains and you quickly forget that you can’t understand a word! Next time I’m on holiday in Greece, this should be the soundtrack in every restaurant and bar, as it embodies their heritage and brings it into the modern metal oeuvre in a totally believable way. OK, I may not play it every day, but it is sufficient to reward the ears when it does come up on shuffle.
