Diesel

DIESEL was an Athenian Hard Rock/Blues Rock outfit that, considering the notoriety of its individual members, strangely enough seems to have passed under the radar of many Greeks and Internationals alike. The band was founded in spring 1986, centered around the trio of former APHRODITE’S CHILD drummer Lucas Sideras, his wife Sigma Fay (Eftychia Athaniti – previously known as a solo artist within the disco/new wave fields) on vocals and last but not least the great Yiannis Dropalas (VAVOURA BAND, Μουσικές Ταξιαρχίες) on guitars. The bassist position on the other hand was held by a number of different musicians through the years, including Dimitris Daskalothanasis, Johnny Vavouras (VAVOURA BAND), Jimmys Diakoymakos (the one who played on their one and only official studio recording) and finally Panagiotis Haramis, who was the longest remaining bass player in the band.

Right from the start, the band seems to have enjoyed including a vast array of cover tunes in their concerts, which were met with encouraging response despite of the band not yet having released any recordings. In addition to their original numbers and celebrated jams, DIESEL thus interpreted a wide array of classic 1960s/70s Rock artists (CACTUS, THE DOORS, JIMI HENDRIX, PATTI SMITH), which surely helped shape the decidedly vintage sound experienced on the band’s sole release during their fourteen years of existence: 1992’s self-titled five-track EP “Diesel”. Here, the listener can enjoy earthy, Blues-derived Hard Rock that should appeal to fans of DEEP PURPLE or just anyone with an affinity for the 1960s/70s Rock canon.

After a long period of relative obscurity, the Greek label Ikaros Records put out the retrospective LP “Refuelled” in 2019 (limited to only 300 copies). It includes the entire 1992 EP along with five demo recordings on the B-side. The latter was allegedly discovered in the basement of guitarist Yiannis Dropalas, and might just have been the creative spark needed to make this very likeable vinyl come into existence.

Along with his contribution to DIESEL and APHRODITE’S CHILD, Lucas Sideras has also released a couple of solo albums, as well as played with the Rock band EROS, 1960s Garage Rockers THE STORMIES and the more progressive-oriented YPSILON. As for guitarist Giannis Dropalas, if you haven’t already checked out his previous work in VAVOURA BAND, do yourself a favor and listen to Ikaros Records’ awesome live retrospective “Live – The Early Days” (2003). Maybe not 100% Heavy Metal, but definitely Heavy as Hell!

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