(1) Could you tell our readers about your band DOGS IN CHARGE? – What kind of music do you perform, when was it established, etc.?
We are a progressive alternative heavy rock band from Thessaloniki, Greece. The band was established during the Covid period in 2019, although, as individuals or with other bands, we have been a part of the music scene of our town for over 10 years now. We like to approach and create our music as something unique, that has its roots back to the 70’s era but it also adapts to the modern sound of rock.
(2) Which bands or artists inspired you to play music?
This is a tough question because every single one of us has different inspirations from all around the Rock and Metal genre. Kyuss, Monster Magnet, Deep Purple, Clutch, Primus, are some of the names but the list is way bigger, it would take us a whole book to mention every single one of our inspirations.
(3-5) Who came up with the cover art for the Single Mora? Who created the logo for the band, and who takes care of the graphics and the website?.
Our bassist, Nick Vadakis, aka Vadakis_Visuals, is the one in charge of all of our artworks, logo, video editing and basically anything that has to do with graphics and visual design.
He is a graphic designer by profession and he is capable of turning a tiny fly into a beautiful butterfly via his art.
(4) Who wrote the lyrics for your new Single, how did they come to be?
Our singer, Giannis Petmezaris, writes most of the lyrics from scratch or finishes the ideas that the rest of the band has. A new age poet that doesn’t obey the lyrical boundaries that most of the songs nowadays have. Mora draws heavily from the old myth of the Mora – a terrifying figure said to crawl onto your chest while you sleep, leaving you paralyzed and suffocating. It’s a haunting image that many cultures have a version of, and we used that as both a literal and symbolic foundation. On the surface, it’s a creepy tale, but beneath that, the lyrics dig into the things that weigh on us in real life – stress, substance abuse, anxiety, mental health struggles. We wanted to explore how these pressures can feel just as real and suffocating as the myth itself. It’s not just a bedtime story – it’s a reflection of the inner battles that keep people awake at night. That’s the real horror.
(6) How many Shows have you played? Which type of gigs do you prefer, whether (Venues or festivals) and which of your performances would you consider as the best?
We have played around 15 gigs, mostly in our town Thessaloniki, either in underground places or in night clubs, like Eightballclub, which is considered our best performance till now. We haven’t been part of a festival lineup, although it’s in our bucket list.
(7) What is your songwriting process?
Usually, one of our instrument players – Dimitris on guitar, Pantelis on keyboards, or Nick – comes up with a riff idea. We like to jam on that riff in the beginning, with Bill adding his driving drumming touch, so that images and ideas start to form. Then we all shape it together to match the characteristics we’ve mentioned above. Once the song feels complete or has taken its final form, Giannis steps in with his songwriting ideas and voilà, a new music baby is born.
(8) What are some of your favorite current metal bands?
Well, Gojira has to be up there, the guys are terrific, we saw them this summer and the experience was beyond imagination! Also Slipknot, Dream Theater, Mastodon and of course legends like Iron Maiden and Metallica.
(9) What are the songs you default to during a break when jamming?
This is not standard, I don’t remember an existing song that we played more than one time and it’s not in our playlist. We like to try things, new melodies, new songs but for fun mostly. If you want us to give you song names, any song of the bands that we have mentioned could be heard in a rehearsal of ours.
(10) Do you have endorsements that you want to talk about or share?
We have received many good comments from people after our shows that weren’t our friends, but nothing official. The reason is that it’s our first time investing for people outside of our circle to hear about us. Hope you become one of the first to like and share our music!
(11) Would you like to share any shows or festivals coming up?
There are two events scheduled for the next few weeks. One is on Sunday 2nd of November at the Rover Bar (Thessaloniki) and the other one on November 8th, when we return to play at Eightballclub. After that, we’ll focus on creating and recording more music which we love to do, but won’t be negative if another live show opportunity arises!
(12) How and where can your fans contact you? What about you and social networks?
You can find us on Facebook or on Instagram and right now we are working on our Bandcamp page. The links to our social media our found below:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dogs.in.charge
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Dogs-In-Charge-61569923795360/
