Pop and Rock Magazine, Rock n’ Roll Issue No 311 (June 2005) Interview with Dimitris Argiropoulos

Do you think the fact that you’ve been a member of "Xylina Spathia" is going to influence your personal career?

 
  Xylina Spathia enjoyed an intense and surprising musical journey. I have gained rich experience as a musician and as a team member. However, the almost immediate gratification of some of my ambitions also helped me face an enormous enemy, futility. Demystifying the Rock n’ Roll way of life and me was probably the greatest benefit. I’ve spent eleven years of my life (from 20 years old till 31 years old) with Xylina Spathia. There have always been disagreements and difficulties. The band and the success did not make me happy. But exactly that pushed me to seek happiness.

 
Why did Xylina Spathia break up? Did you just feel that a downturn of the Greek Rock scene was eminent (as it finally happened) and you wanted to end it before that?

 
  I don’t think the success of the scheme had much to do with the rise of the Greek Rock scene at the time. In fact it was the other way round. The creative work and talent of some bands gave them the advantage of commercial success and that led to the development of the scene of the 90s. When an artist or a band has personality and character they do not need to belong to a certain “scene”, they have their personal route.  

Do you think the fact that Pavlos Pavlidis, Giannis MItsis and you all launched personal albums have contributed to the ending of the band?

 
  At the beginning of 2000 my first personal album, “Mia Volta” (“A ride”) came out. My second album “ Fotia vazo stin poli mou” (“I set my town on fire”) came out on 18 April 2005. The ending of Xylina Spathia in December 2003 gave me more time to concentrate on my latest work. I think the same happened to Giannis Mitsis. On the other hand Pavlos felt that in order to start his own work the group had to come to an end.

 
Did you ever feel that you had fulfilled your aims as a band?

 
I was working hard with the band and now I am working even harder. I am trying to evolve, to have something new to say and that keeps me satisfied most of the time. I learned to overcome mistakes on stage and I accepted that things can go wrong. Mistakes can be the cause for something unexpectedly good.

 
How come you didn't join another band?

 
I didn't even think about it. I wanted to express my personal view. With the Xylina Spathia I was composing on something that was already there. The same applied to the atmospheres I created and the sounds I had constructed. Everything was in relation to a pre existing melody, rhythm, chord or lyrics. The power of a band lies in the ability of each member to harmoniously add bits to a song. After the end of Xylina Spathia my inspiration forced me to do what I am doing now.

 
For many years you have just been a member of a band. How difficult is for you to come to the front and play and sing your songs?

 
To be honest, in life nothing is easy. I should do though the things I have to do. Those things that encourage me are much stronger than those things that try to disappoint me.

  
How similar do you think your music is to that of Xylina Spathia?

  
Every member of Xylina Spathia have contributed to the songs. Similarly the sounds and the melodies I had composed have coloured the sound of the group in a particular way. So similarities with my current work are bound to exist. But I don’t think there are any similarities in the style or structure of my new songs. The lyrics, furthermore, are much more different.

 
Your songs seem to be mostly based and built around synthesisers and there are only a few songs with guitars, bass or drums. Why is that?

 
In music styles like Pop, Rock or Electronic the instruments arrangement is part of the composition. In Classic music, for example, the composer dictates what every instrument will play. His main role is composing. However, over the years new version of songs has been confused with composing. Inspiration drives the way I compose songs and it is my main criterion when selecting different musical elements to compose a track.

  
What are your main influences?

 
I studied Classical music and played anything ranging for Pop to Hardcore. I have dedicated much time on constructing sounds with my synthesisers and also studied beats. I was influenced by the “modal” way of approach and development. I have looked into the feeling certain musical styles provoke and the way this is achieved. I was never interested in copying other styles but I rather wanted to come up with my own thing and create.

 
The first song of your new album is called “I set my town on fire”. Do you refer to Thessaloniki, where you live, and why would you want to burn it down?

  
I refer to an “internal town”. The one that is always following us. The one that even when it is burning it is still trying to resurrect. It is our very own “establishment” that is preventing us from moving on.

 
In your song “Fake streets” you strongly criticise the “fake” elements in our life…

 
Modern life is based on the “image”. Hypocrisy and lies are triumphant in our era. I have seen people claiming to be liberal and against the law while in their immediate environment they were the worst control freaks and would try to mobilise any legal force whenever their most trivial interests were concerned. I am observing the world hiding, in full consciousness, behind an artificial version of truth which is being constantly manipulated to fit one’s interests.



  
Finally, do you plan to present your new work live?

 
Yes, on the 3rd of June 2005 together with Manolis Trixakis and Elias AIfantis I will present my new album as well as other, undistributed yet, material.