by Dimitris Zacharopoulos

photos by Iro Kalligeri (@irokalligeriphotography)

The doors were scheduled to open at 8:00 pm, something that ended up happening with a delay of about half an hour, with the crowd entering a Piraeus Club Academy that, without being completely packed, was filled with fans of all three bands.

We didn’t have to wait long, as within just a few minutes Senses took the stage, following the intro of “Sirius” by The Alan Parsons Project. Their opening song was “Hard Action”, as part of a set that was based on their excellent debut album, “Out of Line”, along with a cover of Andy Taylor’s “I Might Lie”. Just like at their previous concert, Senses were impressive and more than satisfied everyone in attendance. Once again, it was clear how tight a band they are, how much passion they put into every note, how professional their mindset is and how strong their songs really are. As a result, a small technical issue with the drums didn’t discourage anyone. The singer was spot on, the guitars had a powerful and crystal-clear sound and the rhythm section was on fire. The highlight of the set was, of course, their big hit “Silent Disco”, while the performance of “I Know” was also special, featuring guest vocals by Efi from Euphrosyne. Overall, it was a wonderful performance by Senses.

According to the night’s schedule, The Silent Wedding were next to take the stage after Senses. We only had to wait a few minutes before The Silent Wedding appeared in front of us, choosing “Time of Darkness” as their opening track. For almost an hour, the band delivered their high-quality prog/power metal, thrilling the audience. Marios Karanastasis and his bandmates performed some of their finest songs, such as “The Sea of Fate”, “Point of No Return”, “The Endless Journey”, “Stealing the Sun” and “Catharsis”. They were technically flawless and played their hearts out, something that didn’t go unnoticed by anyone, so we thanked the band with loud cheers and warm applause. Marios was incredible as a frontman, combining vocal excellence with seriousness and humility, leading a wonderful band that has released nothing but admirable music so far. Unfortunately, due to time constraints (completely understandable, if you ask me), they didn’t end up playing one song they had originally planned, and closed their set with the captivating “Song of the Dead”. The Silent Wedding proved that they belong to the top tier of the global prog/power metal scene and renewed our live appointment for the near future.

In this excellent way, we moved on to the main course of the night: the headliners Meden Agan. As mentioned earlier, this was their first appearance without Dimitra Panariti on vocals, so there was understandable anticipation about how her departure would affect the band. The gothic/symphonic metallers had chosen Elena Stratigopoulou to handle the vocals for this particular show, though not as their new permanent singer.

With the intro “Awaken the Nightmare” playing and the crowd cheering, the musicians took their positions on stage. That’s when I noticed that behind the Meden Agan drum kit was the well-known Mpampis Tsolakis (Fragile Vastness, Paladine). The band opened their set with “Moth”, making a strong and impressive entrance, and for nearly an hour and a half they performed some of their best compositions. From a technical standpoint, they played very well, while Elena Stratigopoulou delivered a solid vocal performance, showing that she has a beautiful voice with great range, more than adequately filling the gap left by Panariti.

That said, it was clear that the band was affected by the situation — somewhat restrained and not in the best psychological state. Still, they did everything they could, gave their absolute best, and made every effort to please their audience. It should also be noted that, despite her strong performance, it was evident that Elena Stratigopoulou was a session vocalist rather than a permanent member of the band. She didn’t have much interaction with the crowd and didn’t speak on behalf of the band. That role was taken on by Diman, who spoke frequently between songs and was essentially the frontman of the band.

Nevertheless, Meden Agan ensured we had a great time and partied with the fans for their 20-year anniversary. They had a very good sound overall and fully delivered, performing their catchy songs with emotion, as well as a nice cover of Queen’s “The Show Must Go On”. In any case, it was a big event for Meden Agan and their supporters, complete with some welcome surprises, as several special guests joined them on stage: the young Panos Stasinopoulos of Hordes of Hell, who contributed his brutal-style vocals; Dimitris Giannakopoulos of Victims of Judas, who sang on the cover of Michael Sembello’s “Maniac”; and Ilias Zounis of Karma Violens, who added brutal vocals to some Meden Agan tracks. The night ended with everyone in high spirits, as the show wrapped up a little after midnight with a triumphant performance of “Lustful Desires”.

Even though it was a difficult period for Meden Agan, Diman and his bandmates proved that they belong to the elite of today’s female-fronted gothic/symphonic metal scene. The band’s twenty-year anniversary was a brilliant feast, and a new, important chapter is now beginning for Meden Agan. It’s up to them to do even better tomorrow, as they have all the ability and passion required to move forward!

It was an outstanding event, dominated by metal melodies and emotion. A true feast and genuine fun for both the bands and the audience!

Το άρθρο MEDEN AGAN, THE SILENT WEDDING, SENSES – PIRAEUS CLUB ACADEMY, ATHENS, GREECE – 10/01/2026 εμφανίστηκε πρώτα στο Myth Of Rock.

Meden Agan made the following announcement some minutes ago:

Panariti has joined the Swedish band Sailor Hunter. Here is the announcement of her new band:”Big news from Sailor Hunter! We’re beyond excited to introduce our new vocalist, Dimitra Panariti She’s an amazing singer who has brought new life, power, and inspiration to Sailor Hunter helping us rediscover inspiration to a new sound and energy. With her incredible voice and spirit, we’re entering a brand-new era for the band. New songs are already on the way, so stay tuned the best is yet to come!And we’re thrilled to announce our upcoming gig Dimitra’s live premiere with Sailor Hunter! We’re proud to share the stage with the mighty Liv Sin, with local support from Sailor Hunter (SHR) and Anbaric, at Sagateatern in Borås on November 28th. Prepare yourselves for a real metal punch in the face — it’s going to be sweaty, heavy, and beautiful!”.

We wish Dimitra Panariti, Meden Agan and Sailor Hunter all the best for their future endeavours.

Το άρθρο MEDEN AGAN AND SINGER DIMITRA PANARITI PART WAYS εμφανίστηκε πρώτα στο Myth Of Rock.

by Dimitris Zacharopoulos

When was the material for the “My Name is Katherine” album composed? Who were the composers? How did you compose these new songs?

The composition for this album started during and after covid, we took our time to bring our vision to life, we didn’t rush the completion of the songs, we compose as always, meaning we all contribute to the songs. Regarding the lyrics everything was written by Dimitra – our vocalist -, as for the music, it’s the usual procedure, you start with a riff, a melody or even an idea and then everything starts to take shape.

Where was the album recorded? Who did the production? The mixing and the mastering?

The album was recorded and mixed here in Greece in Zero Gravity Studios by Terry Nikas, the mastering was done at Fascination Street studios by Jens Bogren.

Where would you trace the differences between the new album and your previous one? How much have you progressed as a band? Would you say this new album is your most mature to date?

The core elements of our music I think are present in every Meden Agan album, but every time we try to push it further, push ourselves further. We want every album to have its own identity, as you constantly evolve as a person year after year so does your music. I know this answer comes out as a cliché but honestly we believe that this album is our most technical, fast and mature yet.

How would you describe the music style of Meden Agan now? Which are the trademarks of your current sound?

If I had to describe our music to someone· is that we play, Melodic metal with power metal elements at its core, but everything is with a more modern approach. Our trademarks are heavy and melodic riffs, fast guitar solos, keyboards front and center and of course the powerful voice of Dimitra.

 The lyrics of the new album are based on the homonymous short novel by Dimitra. Can you tell us the concept of the album in few words?

“My Name is Katherine” is our first concept album, an original story written by our vocalist Dimitra. The main theme(s) is about torment, guilt, psychological trauma, inner demons that lurk and need to be tamed. The story is dark and deals with a lot of issues that they can be translated differently from every reader. After finishing the story everyone should have a different opinion about who Katherine is, did she found salvation at the end or only torment, that’s for you to decide.

When did Dimitra write the novel? Has she written any other books? The lyrics of the new album are all written by Dimitra?

Yes, it’s her first attempt for a book/novel. The first idea came to Dimitra when we were at Tel Aviv supporting Epica back in 2019. We really liked the idea, and we supported her from the beginning, the novel was written together with the composition of the album and yes everything regarding the story/lyrics were written by Dimitra.

The protagonists of the new album are Dimitra’s vocals and the guitar of Diman, in my opinion. Do you agree with me? Why?

I think that every instrument has it’s time to shine in this album, vocals, guitars, bass, drums, keyboards. For example, when it’s time for a guitar solo, is all about the guitar in that section etc. We don’t write songs only with guitars and vocals in mind, we try and find what suits every song best and go for it.

Tell us about the beautiful album cover!

We are very proud for the album cover and the overall artwork, everything is done by the amazing artist Dimitris Tzortzis and our model is Foteini Vasiliadou.

Describe the atmosphere of the new album. Would you say it has a dark atmosphere?

The overall atmosphere of the album is indeed dark, keyboards and lyrics also contribute a lot in this atmosphere. Maybe it has to do with the overall theme of the album that we subconsciously wrote something with darker melodies.

How do you make decisions as a band? Do you act democratically as a band?

As you exactly said, we are a band and not one man show/project and that means that decisions are discussed within the band. We act democratically with the sole purpose that every decision is the best for the band.

How do you see things for the Greek melodic power/prog metal scene in the year 2024?

The Greek scene right now is alive and kicking and has progressed a lot in these last years, we have a lot bands that is worth checking out, the only thing that is needed is support and faith from fans and record labels etc.

How are you going to promote the new album? Any tour?

We have booked a couple of show here in Greece for the summer, we are playing in Crete at Rethymno Rocks, Kavala, Volos and Thessaloniki to name a few. We are also in talks for some live show is festivals and a small tour outside of Greece but I can’t say much ata this time, stay tuned for announcements.

If you could collaborate with a famous musician in a song of yours, who would he/she be?

That’s a tough question, just to name a few, guitar wise I would really like a collab with Gus G, Michael Romero, John Petrucci. With vocalists we would really like to collab with Floor Jansen, Simone Simons, Roy Khan. And this is where I stop because I can continue forever.

How did the pandemic and the lockdowns affect Meden Agan?

During the pandemic we tried to keep our selves busy with the creation of the new album, we had a lot of time to compose and not rush it. The downside, besides the ones that we all had to deal with that situation, was not being able to perform live shows.

Send your message to the fans.

First of all we want to thank everyone for the support in Meden Agan and for the positive feedback on our newest album. And we are happy to announce that at the 30^th of November you are all invited to our album release party/live show, come and celebrate with us in this special live show.

http://www.medenaganmusic.com/

https://www.facebook.com/meden.agan.official

https://twitter.com/Meden_Agan_GR

http://www.noremorse.gr

Το άρθρο AN INTERVIEW WITH MEDEN AGAN εμφανίστηκε πρώτα στο Myth Of Rock.

♦ 9/10

Dimitris Zacharopoulos

Το άρθρο MEDEN AGAN – “MY NAME IS KATHERINE” (2024, SLEASZY RIDER) εμφανίστηκε πρώτα στο Myth Of Rock.

Το άρθρο MEDEN AGAN – “MOTH” εμφανίστηκε πρώτα στο Myth Of Rock.