Greek thrash/death metal veterans Piranha have had a tumultuous yet enduring journey, from their early days in 1987 to their reformation in 2017. With their latest album Arise from the Shadows, they have solidified their legacy in the extreme metal scene. In this interview, John Koskinas reflects on their past, musical evolution, and the current state of the Greek metal scene while offering insight into their future plans.
Serial Metalbums: Piranha has had a long career with a significant break between 2001 and 2017. What motivated you to reform the band after all these years?
John Koskinas: Of course we have regretted our hiatus all this time (2001-2017), I wish we could turn back time and erase our decision to disband the band back then. To tell the truth, during all these 16 years (2001 - 2017) that we have been inactive, the thought of starting the band again was always in the back of our minds and we just believed that we were waiting for the right moment and with the encouragement of our guitarist Denny, this moment came at the end of 2017 when we played as headliners at the Extreme Assault Festival
Serial Metalbums: How would you describe the evolution of your music from your early days in 1987 to now? What are the most memorable moments of your career, both before and after the reformation?
John Koskinas: We believe that with the passage of time, the musician changes and matures both sonically and personally and it is logical because we cannot listen and play the same things for 4 decades now. So our sound became more modern, heavier and aggressive with quite dark and epic elements. We believe that one of the highlights of our career was when we played together with our idols the mighty Destruction and the masters of death metal Malevolent Creation.
Serial Metalbums: What were your main musical influences when Piranha was formed, and how have they evolved over the years? Are there any Greek or international bands that have particularly shaped your Thrash/Death Metal sound?
John Koskinas: Some of our musical influences are Death, Sepultura, Kreator and Children of Bodom.
Serial Metalbums: Can you tell us about the creative process behind Arise from the Shadows? What were your thematic and musical inspirations?
John Koskinas: The music & lyrics of our songs is written by me (guitars & vocals). We don't have a specific style, we just write what interests us, eg Nuclear Disease refers to a nuclear war that decimates humanity, Eternal Night is a horror story, Rotten Mind is a journey into the mind of a serial killer, Dead Boat is an epic piece describing a warrior's journey of no return, Haze is a typically Faustian one-man story.
Serial Metalbums: The album was well-received by fans and critics. How do you interpret this response? Is there a specific track on this album that you feel best represents the essence of Piranha today?
John Koskinas: The “Arise from the Shadows” is our comeback after many years and we expected a strong response from the world (from the old fans mostly), but what is happening now after 4 years since its release is beyond our expectations, all the major magazines, sites, stations all over the world (e.g. Metal Hammer, Rock Hard, Legacy, etc.) that have criticized it have rated it with an average of 8/10. Also, all those who have buy our cd their response is more than enthusiastic. We believe that “Eternal Night” is best represents the essence of Piranha today.
Album Review: "Arise from the Shadows" by Piranha
Serial Metalbums: Are you currently working on new material or a future album? If so, could you give us a glimpse of what’s coming? What are your goals for the future, whether in terms of music or touring?
John Koskinas: Our priority for now is the concerts and the promotion of our new music video for our track “Eternal Night”, but to tell you the truth we have recorded some new riffs and we put them aside so that we can use them when the time of our new creation has come.
Serial Metalbums: How would you describe the Greek Thrash/Death Metal scene today compared to your early days in the 80s and 90s? Which current Greek bands would you recommend to extreme metal fans worldwide?
John Koskinas: Having a metal band in the 80s in Greece was quite difficult because then there were very few rehearsals studio and places to hold concerts. Even the recordings back then were different, i.e., then the recording were analog (no copy, paste and erase) as a result the mistakes were not forgiven and you had to spent many days in the studio. Also, the promotion of a demo or record was difficult then because you had to running from door to door and leaving tapes with your material so that a radio producer could listen to it or a fanzine to review it. The Greek metal scene is now recognized worldwide with awesome bands in all genres of metal such as Rotting Christ, Septic Flesh, Suicidal Angels, Acid Death, Nightfall.
Serial Metalbums: As an old school band, what is your perspective on the evolution of extreme metal globally?
John Koskinas: We believe that extreme metal music took the path it was meant to take, and was able to evolve and mature into the global musical phenomenon it is now.