Gemma: The sound of Cretan music with modern touches
Gemma present their debut recorded work to us. On their self-titled album, they combine the sounds of Cretan music with modern elements. Gemma come from Crete and show us a new side of it.
By Dimitris (Bari) Polyzois
The Gemma, come from Crete and show us a new side of it. Modern electronic music sounds, intertwined with rock and tradition. With their first, self-titled record, the band hopes to take us on a journey through familiar traditional sounds, enriched with plenty of modern elements. Their record, released a few months ago, consists of 8 tracks, 3 of which are instrumental.
Hailing from Crete
The Gemma are a five-member band formed in 2017 in Rethymno, Crete. Their aesthetic is quite distinctive, as they combine electronic sounds from synths with post-rock elements from guitars, bass and drums, marrying traditional and modern elements, effects and vocal loops.
As a result, they create original compositions, as well as covers of traditional songs from the wider Greek region, walking a tightrope between traditional melodies and lyrics and contemporary melodic and rhythmic lines.
The band's name could certainly confuse us. First of all, it isn't pronounced as ‘Tzemma‘, but ‘Gemma‘. The name comes from the book of the same name by the professor, educator, philosopher and poet, Dimitris Liantinis. Born in Polodhitsa, Lakedaimon, the professor is an adherent of the dies canicularii principle and is known for his work and his philosophical pursuits.
An exploration of familiar, traditional musical elements
The band's aim is to carry out an exploration of the music of our homeland, specifically Cretan music. Throughout the whole compositional process, the familiar elements from the tradition of their particular homeland are absorbed into more contemporary music.
Creation of original compositions, but also covers (such as the traditional Rizitiko «Ο Μπέλος»), with an electronic post-rock aesthetic, synths, guitars, bass and drums. Prog & psychedelia, brainwave and trippy melodic lines, airy vocals that preserve the Cretan dialect.
Musically speaking, the band has a mix of traditional and modern rhythm section. Specifically, Nikos Mavrogiannakis (drums), Anastasis Paschidis (bass) and Apostolis Spinthourakis (percussion, lyrics), do the heaviest lifting in keeping the rhythm together. In this respect, the parts of Giorgos Kaparos (production, composition, loops, synths, guitars) could also be included, which have an otherworldly texture and give the whole endeavor its most modern character. On the flip side, the voice of Evangelia Danili (vocals, loops) preserves the traditional element and offers atmosphere. Finally, it has an earthy tone, which suits the record's style.
Style and music
The Gemma springing from Electronic Post-Rock, show their influences from bands such as Dead Can Dance, The Fog Ensemble, Sleeping Pillow, Archive, Mogwai and Pavlos Pavlidis.
Editor's Choice: 'Μπέλος'
From Gemma, the one that stood out to our ears was ‘Μπέλος‘. The track seems to have the texture of a rebellious mirologi. It has an excellent melody, and combined with Evangelia's vocals and the musical arrangement created by the full ensemble of instruments, it takes on a very dynamic character. Towards the end, the song becomes even more otherworldly and reminds us of a soundtrack from mythology films! Enjoy it!
Christ, if only it had unraveled,
The dream I saw tonight..
I saw my blood-brother as a hunter,
I saw my man as a wild beast..
Christ, if only he had killed it,
The hunter, the wild beast..
And brought it to our house,
To hang it on the post..
To open his chest,
To take out his heart..
And with the blood of his heart,
To dye my hair..
Christ, if only it would dawn
Tracklist:
- Χρόνος / Instrumental
- Ίκαρος
- Δεντρό
- Πεταλούδα
- Στιγμή / Instrumental
- Ανθός
- Ήτα / Instrumental
- Μπέλος (Διασκευή Ριζίτικου)
Credits
The Gemma are made up of Δανίλη Ευαγγελία (vocals, loops), Καπαρός Γιώργος (production, composition, loops, synths, guitars), Μαυρογιαννάκης Νίκος (drums), Πασχίδης Αναστάσης (bass) & Σπινθουράκης Αποστόλης (percussion, lyrics).
The composition, production and mixing were done by Γιώργο Καπαρό (Tricell / @Tricell.Official), mastering Αλέξανδρος Χρυσίδης (Sierra Studios), lyrics Αποστόλης Σπινθουράκης. Cinematography and editing of the videos for the tracks Δεντρό & Πεταλούδα, Αλέξανδρος Ηλιάκης. Χρόνος & Στιγμή, editing Γιώργος Καπαρός & cinematography Γιάννης Ανδρίτσιος, photography Ελένη Ψωμά & Νένα Νικολουδάκη.
The album is available on all digital platforms, as well as in physical format. It's worth checking out the band's YouTube channel to enjoy all the videos related to this release.
Gemma: The revival of the traditional sound
The Gemma, is a journey of emotions, images and musical landscapes for the band, through which they express, admire and criticize whatever troubles them. Gemma, is the philosophical way out of every Labyrinth, on a human scale.
The album is a wonderful mix of traditional and modern elements. We could say that the band took our grandparents' music and offers it to us in a fresh and impressive form, capable of competing with futuristic sounds. Most importantly of all, is the fact that we never feel its authenticity has been lost. Its style and texture are preserved.
The album gives me the feeling that the music the band uses as its base got into a time machine and came out 40 years later! It has something of a sci-fi movie about it, yet the melodic quality of the music remains, making it more down-to-earth. Finally, this work definitely fires up our interest and whets our appetite for the future. For now, enjoy it!
Dim the lights, turn up the volume and get swept into its vortex!
