Psycorepaths is a cornerstone of the Northwest hardcore underground. Formed in the early 2000s, the band didn’t just emerge – they built a scene from the ground up, carving out a space for raw, unfiltered expression. With a relentless discography spanning full-lengths, EPs, promos, demos, and participation in over thirty compilations both physically and digitally around the world. Psycorepaths have earned their reputation as the true architects of the Northwest Greek sound. They were the pioneers who introduced the term extreme hardcore to their territory, represented it till nowadays.
Psycorepaths is a Greek extreme hardcore band from Corfu formed in 2004. The band was founded by Spyridon Gkogkas, known as xThugisx, with the intention of blending the musical genres he enjoyed listening to while channeling both external and internal challenges through the extremity of what would later become the vision of Psycorepaths. The beginning was sudden; an incident that took place in the yard of the public school he attended was enough to ignite the spark, and some of the first lyrics came to life. Gathering his friends who had been present at the scene, they began to write lyrics and music to give both form and, at the same time, a scream of rage for the traumatic event they had witnessed: the suicide attempt of a classmate.
The outcome of this situation ignited the spark to compose more songs. The first demo of Psycorepaths was written by Spyridon Gkogkas vocals, Panagiotis Gianniotis vocals, Dimitrios S. guitar/programming, and Anastasios K. vocals. Since the other members were not clearly interested in something dedicated to the topic, xThugisx had to find a name to represent the sound, lyrics and the musical legacy, he wanted to leave behind. Keeping in mind the history of the island with the first psychiatric hospital in the country, gave him inspiration for the first song he wrote for the project ‘Ψυχοσχολείο’ (Psychoschool) and came up with the idea naming the band ‘Psycorepaths’.
In less than a month, four full tracks were written with a DIY style and aesthetic. The members shared their musical expertise in composition, recording, and production, and all of this was released as a demo just before mid-December 2004, titled ‘Demo 1 I got u…’. Thirteen copies were released and distributed hand-to-hand.
The tracklist of ‘Demo 1 I got u…’ was: ‘Intro – Outlaw Torn’, ‘Ψυχοσχολείο’ (Psychoschool), ‘Κόπανοι’ (Jackass), ‘Νυχτερινό Δρομολόγιο’ (Night Route). Obviously, the recording was quite rough, leading them to want to re-record some of the tracks a month later. This time, the central track that essentially started the whole project was combined with a remix of it and two more, resulting to the release of their first maxi-single ‘Ψυχοσχολείο’ (Psychoschool) in 20 copies about a month later.
After the release of this maxi-single, another track was recorded, ‘Εμπορευματοποιήσου ή Πέθανε’ (Commercialize or Die), which was only available on a local compilation with other DIY bands from that time. The compilation was distributed hand-to-hand and was limited to 30 copies. The members who wrote this track were Spyridon and Anastasios, with the lyrics entirely written by Spyridon. Because most of the sounds were coming from digital media and less from natural instruments, the search began for additional members to incorporate live instruments into the band, allowing the material being written and to also be performed live.
A few months later, specifically in June 2005, Fotis Karaoulis and Kostas Kaloudis joined the project to cover the guitar and keyboards/noise positions, respectively. They essentially provided the spark to restart hardcore punk as a genre on the island where the band was based at that time. Drums were taken over for the upcoming summer by Jimmy D., who, after hearing the first demo, was excited by how alternative and unusual it was compared to the DIY releases of the era. He gave a rather motivating statement to the band’s founder: “What you’ve started, , is very different, keep it going, don’t stop, I’ll play drums for as long as I’m in Greece.” The bass was taken over by Jim K., an old friend of everyone and a reviver of the Punk culture on the island, known as Retab. Lyrics were entirely handled by Spyridon, as well as the main vocals, with Anastasios K. providing backing vocals.
Together, they composed three tracks and released the live recording demo “Demo 2 Corfu City DIY Punk.” Since Jimmy D. was leaving the island for studies abroad, the position of drums was taken by an old friend Alexandros Yohalas at the beginning of the Fall of 2005.
Just before the full lineup was formed and Nikos Liannidis joined the band as the second guitarist, he later introduced the term Extreme Hardcore to the Greek scene and what it represents. Spyridon, Fotis, and Kostas, with the help of Anastasios K. (who, after Demo 2, left as the second vocalist) and, in some cases, Jim K., began composing studio tracks with fully DIY equipment, which were released within a period of less than six months through three more maxi-singles. During this time, as they composed and released music from the studio to the outside world, there were also studio meetings in the form of a full band for jamming and preparation for upcoming live shows.
By the end of 2005, they had released the following three maxi-singles: “Ο Εκμεταλλευτείς Των Πιστεύω Σου Μοιράζει Ψεύτικα Χαμόγελα” (The Exploiter of Your Beliefs Gives Out Fake Smiles), which contained two full experimental punk tracks with rap and experimental compositions with sounds. These tracks totaled to about 13 minutes and 80 CD copies were released. “Έτσι Μεγαλώνει Μία Κοινωνία” (This is How a Society Grows), where the compositions were simpler, with rock and rap influences and much more radio-friendly, although it still maintained the DIY recording style. 70 CD copies were released. “Ότι Ασκεί Εξουσία” (Whatever Exerts Power), which contained 3 tracks and could clearly be described as a punk/hardcore rap socio-political release. This was distributed locally in a limited number of 45 CD copies. All 4 maxi-singles, along with the 2 demos, essentially shaped how the sound would evolve for the future. The music was progressing at an incredible pace during that period.
By February 2006, with all the previous releases in their DIY discography, discussions began about their first live party. Subsequently, Christos joined the band for backing vocals to enhance the show. And so, on 26/02/2006, the first historic live performance took place on the island of Corfu, with 6-7 tracks ready, playing each of them three times. The audience didn’t stop breaking chairs in the venue, throwing sodas on the floor, and generally creating a wild party atmosphere. This event marked the beginning of countless concerts in public spaces initially, anti-drug festivals, and other DIY events that took place during those years on the island of Corfu.
Throughout this period, the composition of their first full-length demo continued, which would later be titled ‘Αντίθετοι Στις Μόδες Σας’ (Opposed to Your Trends). It was released in September 2006 with 10 tracks in 250 numbered copies. The lineup by then was: Spyridon Gkogkas vocals, Fotis Karaoulis guitars, Jim K. Retab bass, Nikos Lianidis guitar, Kostas Kaloudis keyboards/noises, Alexandros Yohalas drums, and Christos backing vocals.
By December 2006, they had composed and recorded another track, ‘ΠΟΡΝΕΙΑ-ΟΠΛΑ-ΝΑΡΚΩΤΙΚΑ-ΧΑΟΣ’ (PROSTITUTION-WEAPONS-DRUGS-CHAOS). This marked the beginning of a small shift in their sound towards something more extreme, with great promise in both sound and energy. The track was recorded exclusively in a live version and was released as a promo song hand-to-hand on CD.
Having entered 2007 with full force and having played a multitude of dynamic concerts, the band decided to re-release the full-length demo ‘Αντίθετοι Στις Μόδες Σας’ (Opposed to Your Trends), adding ‘ΠΟΡΝΕΙΑ-ΟΠΛΑ-ΝΑΡΚΩΤΙΚΑ-ΧΑΟΣ’ (PROSTITUTION-WEAPONS-DRUGS-CHAOS) as the eleventh track. They started producing CDs with an extra sticker for the cover this time, with a target of 350 copies to meet demand. During the year, the band continued to write new music, evolving into something even more extreme. The lyrics were now in English, and the lineup went through some changes. As a consequence, the production of the re-release was stopped at 89 copies, instead of the initial plan of 350.
By Christmas 2007, there were four new tracks. Two of these were recorded in the basement where the rehearsals took place, using DIY equipment, but with completely altered mindsets regarding the musical direction the band wanted to take and how they wanted their message to be spread. The band’s message through their lyrics, from the beginning up until now, was the driving force for them to keep going! The new demo ‘Myspace Demo 08’ was released exclusively through the MySpace platform, which was flourishing at the time and helped the band make new contacts and land their first concerts in clubs as well as self-organized venues throughout the country. The lineup at that time consisted of Spyridon Gkogkas vocals, Fotis Karaoulis guitars, Nikos Lianidis guitars, Kostas Kaloudis keyboards/noises, George Miliotis bass, and Greg ‘Sledgedrummer’ Dimitrogiannis drums.
From there on, the band began a long two-year search to figure out where and how to record their first official release, while also playing concerts with major names in the scene. Specifically, they co-organized the first three historic ‘Groove Your Neighborhood’ Festivals with the crowd favorites Vodka Juniors and Panx Romana, organized concerts for legendary Greek acts like Septic Flesh and Rotting Christ, as well as Antidrasi in their home of Corfu, among others. They also traveled to many cities across Greece, sharing the stage with bands like Tankard, Deathbed (NL), and many other local and international groups.
By the end of 2010, the band decided to release a promo CD titled ‘Your Entropia Has Arrived’ in a limited run of 50 copies. The aim was to secure more events through it and possibly a record deal for the complete release of the album. The promo CD was officially presented at a Release show with guest bands that each left their mark on the local HxC scene. It was an intense vibe, embraced by the fans who followed the band. The lineup for this promo, as well as for the full album that followed three years later, was: Spyridon Gkogkas vocals, Fotis Karaoulis guitars/bass, Nikos Lianidis guitars/bass, Greg ‘Sledgedrummer’ Dimitrogiannis drums.
In the following years, the band played relentlessly at local shows, major festivals, and embarked on two mini-tours: ‘Unamed Tour’ in 2011 with black metal band Aherusia, and the ‘Tentacles Over Greece Tour pt.1 – Your Entropia Has Finally Arrived’ in 2013. They promoted their rising work across the country, establishing themselves as the ‘Architects of the Northwest Extreme Scene.’
Just before the release of the full album, the track ‘Unbowed’, produced by Petros ‘AnotherFace’, was left off the upcoming album, and was released through the compilation ‘Μοναδικές Επιτυχίες Σε Περίοδο Κρίσης Vol.2’ (Unique Hits During a Crisis Vol.2) by Underground Union, which was based in Crete at the time.
The next major step for the band was the release of their first official studio album through the hardcore punk label Angry Owl Records and Nervous B.D. Style Produxxxions in September 2013. The production took place at M.I. Studios by Lambros Kritsimas, music arrangement and supervision by Spyridon Gkogkas. The Cover of the album was hand drawn by DemiseArt grafix. This came at a pivotal moment when Fotis and Greg were about to start their mandatory military service, and Nikos had to leave the band for personal reasons. Despite not playing any concerts for about six months, the project proved successful. The reviews that came in were excellent, and the album sold out in less than a year! As a result, at the following concerts, there were no copies available for sale.
November 2014, and the band welcomes Nikos Lefas on the guitar. The soldiers were slowly preparing to become good citizens, so the process of new recordings began, as the first significant milestone of 10 years approached! The team picked up speed, and by December 2014, they managed to release, initially in digital form, a maxi-single EP with three tracks (two brand new compositions and a bonus track that had a similar style to their first demo, rock/hardcore rap, with music production and orchestration by Jerry Gkogkas). The EP is titled ‘Ten Winters After’. Produced by Petros ‘AnotherFace’.
The maxi-single EP release was accompanied by a lyric video for the song ‘Ten Years After’, featuring many intense shots from the band’s 10-year journey. It was also released in physical form a few months later, through Angry Owl Records and Nervous B.D. Style Produxxxions on CD, prompted by the first show held for ‘Hardcore Help Foundation’ in Athens during the early months of 2015, with all the proceeds from the CD, went to the purpose. The lineup during that period was Spyridon Gkogkas vocals, Fotis Karoulis bass, Nikos Lefas guitar, and Greg ‘Sledgedrummer’ Dimitriogiannis drums. At the end of 2015 they released another lyric video for the song ‘through The Eye Of Shockwave’, the 2nd track of ‘Ten Winters After’, in the same vibe as ‘Ten Years After’ song. With the refreshed lineup, the band catches fire and continues to book shows once again, initially in Corfu and Athens where the members were residing. They set up concerts for big names and continued composing new material.
In autumn 2016, the first official compilation cassette tape, titled ‘The Entropia Years’, was released through Angry Owl Records. It was distributed in 50 collectible cassettes in a special package with stickers and a postcard and contained all their studio recordings from 2009 to 2014. Essentially, it was everything written during the second five years of their existence.
By 2017, with the band tightly bonded, they began recording new material. The initial idea was to release a mini album, but this quickly changed when they received an offer to collaborate on a split with the Brazilian band Undergust, who were beginning to gain recognition through their numerous releases. Thus, four of the tracks they started working on were included in the split album ‘Annoying
Truths For Humanity’, which was released in 100 copies, also with the stamp and support of Angry Owl label and Nervous B.D. Style Produxxxions. Produced by Petros ‘AnotherFace’. This marked the release of their first official DIY music video for ‘The Real Outcast’, which took things a step further and helped them secure even bigger gigs. During this period, the band performed numerous shows across the country, including local festivals, sharing the stage with the modern hardcore legends Nasty and embarking on another domestic mini-tour ‘Tentacles Over Greece pt. 2 – Annoying Truths For Brutality’. Towards the end of 2017, Fotis decided to step away from the band for personal reasons.
The first appearance of 2018 found the gang at the Metalhead Meeting in Romania. The band was invited to close the festival, playing after metal giants such as Kataklysm, Children Of Bodom, Epica, and Soulfly. Their return to Greece saw them hailed as local heroes. At bass, Haris P. joined the band, having also helped during the ‘Tentacles Over Greece pt. 2 – Annoying Truths For Brutality’ tour. Bookings for the fall and the following year were already being made, alongside attempts to compose new material. Just before the fall shows, Greg ‘Sledgedrummer’ for personal reasons, left the band, and for the next six months, his spot was filled in by his brother Thanos and later Eleni Nota, both known in the local metal scene for their contributions to other bands.
2019 started strong with several local events and the first recordings for their next album. Some new and some older ideas from 2016-2018 period had come up again, keeping the best parts. The pre-production and recording were handled by Spyridon Gkogkas and Nikos Lefas, with each of them contributing their ideas to create as honest a result as possible for the pre-production, with the help of their sound engineer Jerry Gkogkas.
Due to the lack of a permanent drummer at the time, and with Haris P. having to leave the band to move abroad, the recordings were temporarily paused so that they could complete the concerts that had been booked from the previous year, with the highlight being their headline show in Berlin, Germany, alongside the Cypriots Infected Syren and local heroes Rumata. Returning to Greece shortly after the summer of 2019, Bill ‘Surge’ Palaiologos was enlisted as the drummer for the band. This marked the beginning of a new phase for the composition of the album that had started its pre-production the previous year. By the beginning of 2020, the band gave a powerful show at An Club along with the legendary Antidrasi that celebrated their 35th anniversary. There were many plans ahead until the pandemic changed everything, and they had to rethink how to meet and perfect the songs until their final recording.
This continued until the end of the summer of 2020, when the recordings for the band’s second studio album were completed by Spyridon Gkogkas vocals, Nikolas Lefas guitars/bass, and Bill ‘Surge’ Palaiologos drums. The recording was done at Music Art Lab studio with Jerry Gkogkas as the sound engineer. Mixing and mastering were done by WD in the Netherlands, known for his work with bands like Manu Armata, Chelsea Smile, and others, music arrangement by Spyridon Gkogkas and Nikos Lefas and supervision by Spyridon Gkogkas. The Cover of the album was hand drawn by Mr. Penny aka Chosen Soldier.
The album was released digitally in November 2020, and a few days later, it was also made available in physical CD format. Two different versions were released: one handmade edition with photographic paper in a digi-sleeve format, crafted by the band’s founder, Spyridon Gkogkas, at his workplace after his shift, and another in a classic Jewel case. The first edition was limited to 100 numbered copies, and the second edition had another 100 copies. The album was Released and distributed through the Angry Owl label and Secret Port Records. Despite the challenges faced during the creation of this album, the reviews were once again excellent, and it opened many doors for the band’s future path.
Due to the pandemic and health restrictions, the band was unable to perform any live shows during the period when the album was released, resulting in over two years without any live performances. In the first months of 2021, the Russian magazine Bunker featured a photo of the band on its cover and published a comprehensive interview with the band. The highlight of the interview was a question asking, “Will it take another 7 years for the next full studio album to come out?”
Then, just before the summer of 2021, the band was invited to contribute a track from their new album, specifically ‘Against Their Ethics’, to a new compilation organized by the collective ‘Noise To Help’ in collaboration with ‘Dedication Records’. All proceeds from this compilation went to support the refugee camp set up in Moria. This collaboration quickly formed bonds of friendship between the members of Noise To Help and the band Psycorepaths.
As a result of this connection, the first release by ‘Noise To Help Records’ after its establishment was the reissue of the two Psycorepaths studio albums ‘Your Entropia Has Finally Arrived’ and ‘The Northwest Revenant’ on green and red vinyl, respectively. Both albums came with downloaded codes for digital versions, and the first 33 copies included these releases on CD as well. This edition truly encapsulated the history of the Greek extreme hardcore scene, from its beginnings to its evolution.
In 2022, the shows are back in full swing, at a hopeful turn. The first performance and informal presentation of the latest album took place where we last left off, with a return to An Club Athens in the last days of May.
Summer came, and plans for the next moves started taking shape. Giannis Skaltsas was introduced to the band to cover the bass position. A busy winter followed, with more frequent jam sessions and participation in the first Metal Solidarity Festival on October 8th, held at the Agricultural University of Athens, which was overwhelmed by the crowd’s participation. The festival culminated in epic proportions, with the band delivering an intense performance on stage and the audience giving it their all beneath it. The journey continued in December at Fuzz Club, opening for the legendary Nile, and receiving fantastic feedback and much love from the audience present.
2023 has become synonymous with tour life and how it’s not supposed to be! A tour with Suffocation in the Baltic, backstage parties, local shows, and participation in the Metalhead Meeting alongside giants like Life Of Agony, Pantera, Vile Valo, Last Hope, and others! In the fall of 2023, Bill ‘Surge’ decided to leave the band for personal reasons, and his spot was filled by Angelos Blackhead. Known for his tenure with Meet The Maker, he was recommended by the band’s sound engineer, Alex Bilalis, as the most suitable person to take over Bills’s position, and so it happened. The next show was a local hardcore fest with a renewed lineup at a packed ‘Bad Tooth,’ where the band literally couldn’t make it through the crowd to get on stage.
2024 arrived, and the band started booking their first shows of the year, along with initial thoughts for an epic birthday party from the founding member. During the first months, the band recorded their musical comeback under the name ‘God Mode’. The final touch on the track was made with the help of Alex Bilalis, who also handles the band’s live sound, while the final production was done by Stu at Studio6, known for his collaborations with bands such as Stampin’ Ground, Malevolence, Slaughter To Prevail, among others.
The new track was released in the summer of 2024 on all digital platforms and debuted with an aggressive music video, directed and produced by Sokos and his team at ‘Sick My Duck Sound Vision’, known for their cinematic videos for local bands like ‘Okwaho’ and ‘Agoriastonilio’, among others. The single was also released in limited physical copies of 50 mini CDs, as a bonus preorder for the God Mode merch.
During 2024, the band played everywhere from self-organized venues to medium-sized stages, with the absolute highlight being the 20th anniversary party. It was accompanied by a brief video-presentation of what had happened, which was just a small piece compared to all that had been accomplished over these 20 years. The introduction was reminiscent of an NBA show entrance. Former drummer and friend Greg ‘Sledgedrummer’ took part, along with plenty of shots for those who were drinking. George Stamkos and George Mavromichalis were chasing people to interview them with their cameras for the mini-documentary that followed afterwards. It was a sold-out party, with an endless moshpit, balloons, and a magnificent cake for the finale, featuring the great Cthulhu.
In 2025, the band is ready for action with new material being written, evolving into the next phase of ‘Extreme HxC’ first introduced in 2006 as a definition in the band’s music. However, before the recordings of the new material begin, the band already has two powerful shows under its belt, as well as a performance with the Californians Touché Amoré, and is preparing the ground for whatever the future holds! Full Assault – No Drama! Go!