Not to be conflated with fellow Greek countryman Evangelos Odysseas Papathanassiou, whose “Chariots of Fire” theme has become ubiquitous Muzak the world over, this particular Vangelis is also a composer of dulcet tones, yet one whose body of work has hovered just under the radar outside of his native country since the 1980s. Discogs lists nine studio albums credited to Katsoulis, which span from 1986’s Minimal Suite to his most recent, 2011’s Pictures from Inside.
But the first time most 21st century listeners might have heard Katsoulis was on the fascinating compilation Into The Light: A Journey Into Greek Electronic Music, Classics & Rarities, which was released less than two years ago and now fetches ludicrous sums online. That comp introduced Greece’s fertile, if unheralded music, scene and heretofore-unknown artists like George Theodorakis and Costas Charitodiplomenos, all of whom blur the lines between ambient, avant garde electronic composition, and New Age drifts in a heady manner. While Vangelis’ contribution didn’t quite break the two-minute mark, it showed an intriguing voice at work.
All three aforementioned genres appear in Katsoulis' oeuvre, and this handy introduction to his work shows this composer’s wide range. The track included on that comp, "Improvisation" opens side two of this album; it's a dizzying mix of crisp percussion, pillowy synth chords, and finely minced “choir” presets that could easily be mistaken for something off of R Plus Seven. The track suggests that what might have scanned as New Age softness back in the '80s now offers up a glimpse into the 21st-century avant-garde.
The eleven tracks compiled here are ephemeral and lovely, if not always memorable. Four of them first appeared on his 1987 album The Slipping Beauty (the title a play on Tchaikovsky’s “The Sleeping Beauty”) and the title track reveals the kind of shimmering poly-rhythmic tones that bring to mind the likes of Philip Glass. Yet, on “Earth Beat”, heavy drums mix with featherweight keys and a foreboding synth note that sounds like the ominous opening bit of Michael Jackson’s “Beat It.” There’s flute trills on “The Eternal Return”, mixed into a bass glissade, screwed-down vocal growls and hand drums that give the track a strange feel of being both airy and dark. The electric bass on “Longing” sounds like Katsoulis is doing his best overly-busy-solo-Sting impression, but the violin melody remains evocative.
In the composer’s notes, Katsoulis writes that his work is closely related to the processes of time, and one particular aspect fascinates him most of all: “Beauty, which being subject to decay, has such a fleeting nature.” The most intriguing moments on The Sleeping Beauties are those that both comment on time and also take their time revealing their quirks and charms. The nearly ten-minute “Enigma” is an odd mix of what might otherwise scan as interstitial music on an afternoon talk show, now dilated into long form modern composition.
The two pieces that close the set also hover in that expanded space. The previously unreleased “Imago”, from 2012, builds from a rippling keyboard line that is a sonic speedball, at once mimicking the brightness of steel drums and the pensive moments of an '80s cop show. Soprano saxophone, violin, guitars, keyboard and percussion comprise “Epilogue”, each element cycling as new timbres are introduced. It’s an evocative piece, one that showcases the type of minimalism that informs not just Steve Reich pieces but also waiting room music, each in its own manner soundtracking the passage of time.
