Electric Litany
Electric Litany is a rock band was formed in the spring of 2007 in North London, England. The lineup consists of:
Alexandros Miaris from Corfu, Greece I Vocals, Guitars, Piano, Synths
Richard Simic from Devonshire, England I Drums
Pavlos Mavromatakis from Greece I Bass
Benjamin Prince - Keys
Former band members : Duane Petrovich from Texas, USA I Bass
Alex Deligiannidis from Greece I Bass
The story of the band started, when Alexandros and Richard met in London. Alexandros moved from Corfu to London, while Richard was leaving Devonshire for London in search of forming a band of his own. Duane was the last member to join the band, since he was found by Alex and Richard through an ad.
Their first rehearsals were taking place in some pretty unusual places, like abandoned and derelict buildings. Since the rehearsals saw progress, they soon attended their first live concerts. Their first demos were recorded in an old pub by the name "Fallen Angel" (that was soon turned into an illegal studio, in need of a place for rehearsing).
Electric Litany have created their very own characteristic sound, that is very difficult to define and settle under genres. Though the fans usually refer to their sound as experimental.Over these years the band has managed to build a kind of reputation around their name and have created a fan base of their own.
In July 2009, the band started working on their first studio album. Recordings took place in an abandoned church of 1895, that has a very good acoustic quality. They only lasted 3 days and all songs were performed live under recording phase.
Soon enough the value of Electric Litany was appreciated by label Inner Ear Records and signed the band. Their first effort How to Be a Child & Win the War was released by Inner Ear on February 1st, 2010.
A while after their debut release, the band arranged some live dates in Greece. They also recruited Benjamin Prince as the fourth member of the band, playing the synths and the piano.
With their debut album, “How To Be A Child And Win The War”, not only won great reviews, but they were instantly loved by the Greek audience. Then came the concerts in Greece and Europe, where the lucky ones who attended, shared a unique experience. In expectation of their new material for some time now, finally there’s a 7inch, forerunner of the second Electric Litany album, expected near the end of 2012.
Electric Litany continue to compose, rehearse, make demos and live in public spaces combining economy with a certain clandestine charm and following an ideology that says that public buildings belong to the people for any possible use, even to write music. After the church that hosted them and the recordings of their first album, their new home for a while was a large rectory in West London, where “Enemy” was written. When forced to leave it, they moved to an old candy factory in East London, in which they built a rudimentary home studio and there continued to rehearse and wrote “Betrayal Of The Lamenting Circles”. The final recordings took place – unexpectedly – in Athens this time, at Vasilis Terlegas’ studio, where the aesthetic connection between Terlegas and Litany was their shared love for analog recording on magnetic tape.
The arrangement and the lyrics of the two tracks bridge lyricism with crudity and action. At the same time their thematics are looking for the perfect balance between personal/social revolution and eros/love, starting from the idea that to be someone or something revolutionary, they should have only love (for life, for mankind) On the other hand, for someone to truly love, to fall in love, the ideal is to be free. Basically the “Enemy” is all the things that we do not need and in fact harm us and getting rid of them as soon as possible, will give us one day when we will be able to have and we will only need our loved ones. The “Betrayal Of The Lamenting Circles” was written for all those dark love passions that triumphantly remind us how weak we are against love, the most obscure, the most incomprehensible and beautiful thing of all.
After two years,in 2014, Electric Litany return with a unique album that was definitely worth waiting for. "Enduring days that you will overcome" is the fruit of a difficult and stagnant era. However, confirming every word of its title, it’s proof that the conscious perseverance of creation is the solution to overcome the problems and move forward. The album rises from the ashes of a lo-fi world, maintaining the lyricism and the characteristic "haunting" atmosphere of Electric Litany. The album expresses love, dedication and patience, which lead to beauty, creation and liberation. Simultaneously it records the practical difficulties and the everyday problems of life and survival as experienced by the band the last 3.5 years during which this album was recorded.
In 2012 the band contacted legendary producer Alan Parsons who, after hearing "How To Be A Child And Win The War" agreed to collaborate with the band. The recordings were an adventure "hosted" in several London based studios as well as a studio in the Welsh countryside and the island of Corfu. Mastering once again took place at Abbey Road Studios.
February 2016 will see the forth release from the band. The five track EP, simply titled “Love” explores the infinite paths created by the human condition. Themes such as loss, distance and rumination are told through the arrangement of piano, shoegaze guitars, vocoders, lap-steel, synths and electronic percussion for which the band have become synonymous. The compositions pay tribute to 2014’s “Enduring Days You Will Overcome” yet somehow manage to draw us a little closer to the heart of the subject matter.
It is arguably the groups most intimate release with lyricist Alexandros Miaris wearing his heart on his sleeve with songs such as “Until The Day Breaks” or post apocalyptic “Crumar.” Fellow band members Benjamin Prince (synthesizers) confidently takes centre stage with the haunting “Earth II,” whilst Richard Simic (drums, pads) and Alex Deligiannidis (bass) leave their mark with the thunderous tribal rhythms on “War is abstract.”
“Love” also marks the second collaboration with associate producer Alan Parsons and George Botis whose influences can be felt within the sonic diversity. With the third album set to be released in 2016 “Love” is far more than a stepping-stone into the unknown. It is a record unafraid of its vulnerabilities that invites us to face what lies ahead. Whatever that may be.
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