Meet The Callas…Led by brothers Lakis and Aris Ionas, the pair helm a Greek-based art, film and music collective, as well as hosting art and music events at their studio/performance space in Athens–the Velvet Room. As a band, The Callas feature Aris on guitar/vocals, Lakis on bass/vocals, as well as Chrysanthi Tsoukala on drums/vocals and Marilena Petridou on percussion. In 2016, the group collaborated with Lee Renaldo (Sonic Youth) on a soundtrack for their film The Great Eastern, and they have teamed up once again on The Callas upcoming LP Trouble and Desire due out October 26th via Inner Ear Records/Dirty Water Records. Discussing their work together, Renaldo explains:
“Our collaboration took off quickly and was such a natural fit – we speak the same language and the performances we’ve done together have been a total blast!”
“Acid Books” is our first listen in on The Callas upcoming album and it’s a post-punk burner brimming with frenzied energy. Opening with a swirl of droning ambiance and the rhetorical question, “Do you sleep at night?”, the track quickly launches headlong into a fever of activity. With the anxious pulse of a hard-driving bassline to lead the way, and punctuated by terse outbursts of guitar, The Callas pack a tightly wound sonic punch. Narrated by a vocal interplay between the group’s male and female members, and featuring the tumult of a shout-along chorus, the band’s dense gravity of sound will have you pumping your fist in triumph even as it drags you in a downward spiral with its dark undertow.
