A talented musician who succeeds in blending lesser known gems of Greek and worldwide poetry into airy and transcendental melodies in the most unstrained and effortless way one can imagine. A tireless explorer and a persistent eulogist of the long-gone urban beauty reflected in the most unseen and unremembered corners of the metropoles. Resourceful and high-flying head of the special events and screenings both at the open-air cinema “Apollon” and the movie theater “Vakoura” in Thessaloniki. A true enthusiast, devotee and connoisseur (these adjectives describe ideally his subtle and meticulous work) when it comes to the production of his own albums, which are nothing less than little masterpieces. All the above are only a handful of the flattering yet deadly accurate labels that can be attributed to Giorgos Kostogiorgis (born Kostas Bakirtzis) for his multifarious artistic-creative endeavors.

His sophomore album titled Ta Anantha Hronia Mou after a lyric from a poem by Greek poet Rigas Golfis (“My Flowers Years”) comes as a perfect compliment to his debut album To Kalokairi Perase Sa Rigos (“The Summer Passed Like A Shiver”), unveiling a musician with a crystalized view on music and a rock-solid artistic vision. If one had to detect a major difference between the two albums, this would be none other than him taking on the role of the main singer (in addition to having composed the music, of course), performing poems by Mitsos Papanikolaou, Rigas Golfis, Konstantinos Theotokis, Konstantinos Hatzopoulos, Emily Dickinson and Romos Philyras, joined in the album’s vocals by Foivos Delivorias, Caterina Sisinni and Argyris Bakirtzis.

Coming from a multi-stimulus environment, he navigates us through his intricate and pluralistic music influences and references. “I remember traveling as a family by car and disagreeing as to whether the trip’s soundtrack will be Marika Papagika or The Rolling Stones. At the end of the day, of course, there’s so little separating Markos Vamvakaris from Blind Willie Johnson or Marika Papagika from Sweet Emma Barrett, but this talk can take a raincheck. I recall with fondness this period of new music discoveries on a daily basis. As I grew up, I felt the need to delve into this quest, which started to serve as a journey towards a kind of serenity. Whenever I had the time, I immersed myself into the work of Kostas Skarvelis or Bix Beiderbecke. I usually get infatuated with a particular genre of music or an artist for a certain period of time, and then I move on to something new. For instance, a while ago I got stuck with John Coltrane’s ballads, before passionately turning to Thanassis Evgenikos. I dare to say that only Bill Evans holds a reserved place in my fluctuating music world.”

The production of his latest album is so refined and sophisticated that it oozes a long-forgotten hand-made quality. We ask him to give us an insight on this laborious process, as well as to share his thoughts on his profound love for architecture and the urban landscape, mirrored through the accompanying material of the vinyls. “I made a promise to myself to release my albums only in hard copy. Digital releases are harmful for the record industry, a field widely considered as outdated and with no future. Moreover, I have a soft spot for the limited number of copies. That’s why my double single album Agries Nychtes (“Wild Nights”) was printed in 50 numbered, hand-made and transparent 45 rpm discs. In addition, every disc was accompanied by a typewritten paper featuring streets of Athens or Thessaloniki where one can admire true architectural treasures of the two cities. The album’s vinyl was released in a limited number of copies; a 100 to be precise. Architecture is a great love of mine. It is a form of self-therapy, but also a time-machine for me to go back to past times I always wished to have lived in. The first chance I get, I storm out to the neighborhoods of Thessaloniki and Athens to discover and photograph buildings and edifices that inspire me and guide my mind away from today’s lost aesthetic.”