Στα Τέσσερα… : Getting to Know the 4 Artists!

Τάσος Λούκος, Παναγιώτης Αυγερινός, Σπύρος Λούκος and Παναγιώτης Καλαμάκης speak in a deep, heart-to-heart interview with Fuzzy Hound!

Tell us a bit about your journey so far, each of you.

Τάσος Λούκος

First of all, thank you so much for the invitation to talk about our show "Στα Τέσσερα"! Music started very early for me, thanks to a fanatically music-loving father and my older brother, who was also my first guitar teacher. After that I studied drums, piano, theory, then came the brass bands and the first little groups. In 2017, with the English-language progressive rock band «Άπολις», we released our first album titled "The Sun Has Fallen". At the same time music became my profession and songwriting my purpose in life. In April 2020 I started publishing my own personal material.

Παναγιώτης Αυγερινός

I started out somewhere else and life took me somewhere else entirely. I studied music from a very young age, made it my profession... I got into the physics program in Athens and dropped it to make music. I've been working close to 20 years now — the first ones were good, the last ones tough. Lots of collaborations with great names in the field, three records... That's about it...

Σπύρος Λούκος

I was born in '84 in Athens and music is one of the earliest memories of my life. Before I even finished school I'd already decided I'd pursue it professionally. And that's exactly what happened. I studied musicology, piano, guitar, theory, and today I work professionally as a musician, composer, and music teacher all at once. Still, my first and greatest love, to this day, is songwriting. 

Παντελής Καλαμάκης

Music entered my life at a very young age. My first contact with it was through classical guitar lessons, and very soon, through a teacher of mine, I came into contact with singing too, and from there on I dove headfirst into the world of music. Even though there was a period of studies and a distancing from music in between, eventually, after several years of wandering — including outside music — luckily for me, my life ended up in music, and only music. Especially over the last five years, during which I've been continuously involved with music, I've experienced wonderful moments, wonderful collaborations, crowned by my first fully realized solo record, titled 5 + 5 = 10.

How did this whole pandemic period go for you in terms of your artistic work? Was there creativity, or did it all "freeze up"?

Τάσος Λούκος

On one hand, I found more time to focus on my songs; on the other, my options narrowed financially, since the income I used to make from music vanished entirely. In that sense, I'd say I'm one of the lucky musicians who has another source of income (I'm an architect).

Παναγιώτης Αυγερινός

I wrote my third record during this period. Financially tough and generally very strange...

Σπύρος Λούκος

Yes and no. The huge psychological and financial pressure that hit our field too pushed me to look for alternative ways of working in music. That led me to look into music licensing, and so I've started taking my first steps in this field, which is new to me. So yes, there was definitely creativity — but the kind that comes from "turning necessity into virtue."

Παντελής Καλαμάκης

This whole pandemic period, like for most of our colleagues, threw us completely out of contact with audiences, with people. The isolation didn't pass in inactivity though — quite the opposite, thoughts, ideas, creations came and kept us company through this whole graceless stretch we went through. What definitely froze up was communication with the world, and that, I think, was the hardest ordeal.

How do you feel now that you're about to step on a "winter stage" after all this time? What are your expectations?

Τάσος Λούκος

Personally, I'll be going up on stage with a lot of thirst for it — especially since I'll be going up alongside my own brother and two friends! On top of that, we're playing songs we all genuinely like, which isn't exactly the norm in a musician's professional life.

Παναγιώτης Αυγερινός

I don't have expectations, I'm just glad I get to play with these three People...

Σπύρος Λούκος

For better or worse, the fluidity of the current situation doesn't leave much room for big expectations. Personally, I'm already satisfied and happy that I'll be on stage together with my friends playing our "games." Beyond that, I hope this little game of ours strikes a chord and that others enjoy it too.

Παντελής Καλαμάκης

My feelings are wonderful, of course, and as I mentioned, the lack of contact with people was, above all, what cost us the most. The truth is that for some time now we've already timidly started reconnecting with the stage. My hope is that we reach the end of this nightmare as soon as possible. From there on, I believe an even better period for music awaits us, compared to the past.

Give us a quick take on the other three in the show. What do you like about these guys, and what do you hope they like about you?

Τάσος Λούκος

I'll start with the easy case, my brother Σπύρος Λούκος. Σπύρος is the person I'm closest to in terms of musical taste. We grew up on the same songs, we've worked together a lot, and quite exclusively, just the two of us. He's the person I lock eyes with during a live show, and we understand each other without saying a word.

Then there's Παντελής Καλαμάκης, someone I met relatively recently, and yet we managed to become friends very quickly, which is extremely rare for me. Παντελής really comes alive on stage, and he's one of the few people I can really "hear it" alongside during a live show.

Lastly, with Παναγιώτης Αυγερινός you could say we're almost family. Another guy you know you can lean on when you're on stage, someone who can bridge the gap between us and the audience — which is where every show starts. I hope, though I already know it, that all three of them have a good time up there with me, and that I help them "hear it" too.

Παναγιώτης Αυγερινός

I love them and their songs too, they're great guys and hugely talented at what each of them does...

Σπύρος Λούκος

What can one even say about these lowly, unmentionable characters? Joking aside, I love and admire all three of them for many different reasons that wouldn't fit in a couple of lines. To me, these guys are family. They honor me with their friendship, and what I hope for is that we keep walking this road together, one way or another, regardless of the artistic side of things.

Παντελής Καλαμάκης

Look, the guys and I have known each other for years. In all that time, beyond the musical collaboration, a strong bond has formed too — personal, friendly. We're a group with our own individual songwriting, each of us different, distinct, and I think that this collaboration, at least on that level, holds a surprise in itself. Now, as for what they like about me... I think you'd better ask them that yourself!

What should we expect from you, and overall from the show at Μπαράκι της Διδότου?

Τάσος Λούκος

At the show "Στα Τέσσερα" one thing's for sure: you won't get bored! You'll see 4 friends and 4 mismatched singer-songwriters, 4 very different voices, playing beloved songs — arranged with a lot of care and often in four-part harmony — plus all four of our own original material, creating a musical range that "holds" the ear!

Παναγιώτης Αυγερινός

New songs, multi-part harmonies, joy, sorrow, happiness, laughter...

Σπύρος Λούκος

It's a handmade show, one that came about effortlessly out of friendship, amid jokes, all-nighters, coffees, emotion, armchair philosophizing, and our shared love for Greek song. So expect all of that (except the coffee... we play at night and the espresso machine is closed for business).

Παντελής Καλαμάκης

As for what to expect from me and from the show at Διδότου, I'll tell you roughly what I said before: we're a group of people who make music, who write songs quite different from one another, and that's where the interesting part lies. Of course, alongside that there will be a set built on meaningful, substantial material, which combines everyone's voices in a way that's harmonized and emphatic.

What are your future personal artistic plans?

Τάσος Λούκος

The first and main thing right now is our show "Στα Τέσσερα". We've made a bet with ourselves that we can become the Monday hangout for the crowd that goes to music shows in Athens. At the same time, there's always some song floating around in my head! Whether to write it, record it, or release it.

Παναγιώτης Αυγερινός

I can't make plans in the state things are in right now, especially for music.

Σπύρος Λούκος

Right now I'm preparing a work made up of pieces for solo piano and voice, some of which are mine and some are covers. The plan is for these pieces to be turned into visuals and released digitally. At the same time, I've been preparing a record made exclusively of my own songs for a while now, which got delayed because of the pandemic. I hope to finish it this year.

Παντελής Καλαμάκης

As for future personal plans, I'll tell you this: this is basically when any real planning starts. It's certain that it'll be a winter of testing; my plan is to perform live as many times as I possibly can from now on, and at the same time I think it's a good moment to gather material for what will now be my second record.

Wrap it up however you like!

Τάσος Λούκος

With the whole covid situation, we've come to realize, even at our age which still keeps us far from the terror of physical decline and death, that the first and most important thing is for us and the people around us to be healthy — everything else can more or less be sorted out. See you at Μπαράκι της Διδότου!

Παναγιώτης Αυγερινός

"Στα τέσσερα" is one of the most important things I've done in music.

Σπύρος Λούκος

I wish everyone physical, mental, and spiritual health. And above all, composure, because the trials we're all going through this period very easily push our emotions toward explosions... Thank you very much for having us!

Παντελής Καλαμάκης

I'd like to wish that we all stay healthy. That we get out of this unprecedented situation as soon as possible and move forward optimistically toward better days, more creative and more meaningful ones!