Interview: Guitarist/Composer Tasos Peltekis Talks About His Newly Released EP "Algebraic"
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Algebraic is the solo project of guitarist/composer Tasos Peltekis. Born in Thessaloniki, Greece he started studying classical guitar at an early age. His music is an amalgam of cinematic landscapes, guitar textures, electronica and world music influences. He has recorded, performed and toured with artists in a plethora of genres. He has also composed music for other artists, theatrical plays and documentaries such as "What Politica" (17th Thessaloniki International Documentary Festival, 2015), "Schnitzel Arthur " Studio Vis Motrix (2017), "Nerium Park" Averto Theater (2018).
We connected with Tasos for an exclusive Q&A to discuss his very DOPE newly released EP “Algebraic” and much more. Our in-depth review of “Algebraic” is coming very soon, but in the meantime, enjoy our conversation with Tasos, connect with him on his website and social media, and listen to the EP below.
Congratulations on the completion and release of your new EP “Algebraic”. Tell us about your creative process for the EP’s songs and how long it took to complete overall.
Thank you very much. The EP creation including the recording and mixing process took me about a year. Some of the ideas though were older, having been featured ‘fragmented’ in some theatrical plays and documentaries that I composed music for.
The past year I gathered some of them and they were developed into new tracks. So I would say that the final outcome is a combination of older and new ideas that were molded into this EP during the past year.
You are currently based in Las Vegas but originally from Greece. How would you compare the music scene for electronic music, especially the more experimental side of it, in Greece to that of the United States?
I come from the city of Thessaloniki, which has always had a very vibrant original music scene in all genres. ‘Reworks’, one of the biggest electronic festivals in Europe, is hosted in Thessaloniki every year and features a wide spectrum of music from experimental sound and modern classical music to contemporary dance electronic.
I had the pleasure to collaborate as a touring and recording guitarist with Cayetano - a great electronic artist from Greece - and while performing in different cities and festivals, I realized how big the community who loves electronic music is. Of course, the market size of Greece is significantly smaller than the USA’s, but the passion and will of the audience to discover and support good music is as strong.
Besides the guitar, which instruments and software were used during the development of the EP?
I mainly work on Logic; I have been using it for years and I am familiar with its workflow. Besides the electric and acoustic guitars, most of the other instruments that were used are VST. It is quite fascinating how many things you can nowadays do with just a laptop! I also used the Korg MS-20 for some synth sounds and as a filter for some guitar parts.
When working on new music, when do you know that your song is truly finished?
This is a tough one! In many cases I really don’t. Even with some of the tunes in this EP, I still feel this way; that they could be evolved more. But putting a deadline, like a release date, helps me focusing on finishing them. Otherwise, I feel that I would be in that endless loop of keep ‘correcting’, rearranging them etc. Maybe some pieces are never truly finished!
If you could produce the soundtrack to any past or current movie, which one would you select?
I really loved the music that Thom Yorke composed for Luca Guadagnino’s Suspiria remake. He perfectly captured the mood of the film. As an avid fan of psychological thriller movies, I would have enjoyed composing music for a similar concept.
With “Algebraic” now released, what else can we expect musically from you this year?
I am already in the process of writing and recording ideas for the next album. Also, being a performing guitarist myself, I would like to present my ‘Algebraic’ music live performing with other musicians; it is something that I am trying to get organized at the moment.