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 first two Indie Free Festivals in Athens (1992-93), 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 Karayannis), which lasted for a decade.
Just as one might expect from the combination of such a dull line-up with such a bizarre name (a misspell of the name of the Ukranian physiologist Oleksandr Bogomoletz, who had come up with a serum intended to prolong life up to 140 years), their songwriting is a rather perverse mix of mostly regular elements. This is mainly due to the composing process, during which songs come up as the result of collective experimentation on a melodic idea (usually brought forth by K.R.) and to their wide-ranging influences. They also soon developed the justified fame of being one of the most thrilling live experiences in the Athenian rock scene.
Their debut album “Xero” (LP-1995, CD-1996, Lazy Dog Records), was (and still is) hailed by Greek reviewers as one of the best English-speaking Greek rock records ever recorded. In 1997, the band switched label and their new home was Hitch-Hyke Records, the most important Greek indie label of the time. Bokomolech recorded four records for Hitch-Hyke: the “Insect(songs)” (mini-LP, CD) released in the spring of 1997, instantly followed by “Jet Lag” (2LP, CD), which was recorded in Electrical Audio, Chicago by Steve Albini, whom they are proud to consider a fan and good friend. Their fourth release, “Slowburner” (CD) came in 1999 was produced by one of the most important electronica musicians/producers in Greece, Coti K. Their last album for 9 years was “Exit: Trance” (CD, 2003), which was again recorded by Steve Albini, this time in Iain Burgess’ Black Box Studio in rural France. Soon after the session, Evi left the band for personal reasons.
There followed a period of introspection and sparse live appearances until 2008, when two new members joined the band, Tasos Protopapas on keyboards and loops and Christina Kassesian on guitar. The new form resulted in new dynamics, and the band entered the recording studio in the summer of 2009. After a slow but intense editing and mixing process, they came up with the ten songs for “Mass Vulture”, that is out in February 2012, in LP and CD, on Inner Ear Records.
Bokomolech are:
Dimitris Ioannou
Vlassis Karayannis
Christina Kassesian
Lila Katerinaki
Tassos Protopapas
Kostas Ragoussis
