Jannis Anastasakis (b. 1984) is widely regarded as one of Greece's most distinctive guitar players and free-improv artists. Known for his unique and profound approach to effects (he is also the owner of JAM pedals) ) and his innovative use of the guitar as an ambient sound generator, Jannis has developed a highly personal sound that sets him apart from other musicians in the country. His ability to craft fresh and groundbreaking sonic landscapes takes his music from ambient to psychedelic, pushing the boundaries of conventional sound.
He has collaborated with great artists such as: Arve Henriksen, Eivind Aarset, Christian Fennesz, Gilad Atzmon, Thodoris Rellos, Savina Yannatou, Floros Floridis, Michalis Siganidis, Lena Platonos, Harris Lambrakis, Haig Yazdjian, Dionysis Savvopoulos to name a few.
Projects & Collaborations :
2003 : He joined the progressive rock band “Intravenus” and in 2011 they released their first album, titled “Oiseau”
2005 : He started making his own analog guitar effects under the brand “JAM pedals”. JAM pedals today are considered to be one of the best boutique pedal companies in the world with internationally renowned artists using them, including : Bill Frisell, John Scofield, Nels Cline, Marc Ribot, John Medeski, Lee Ranaldo, Fred Frith, Eivind Aarset to name a few...
2012 : Having found his own personal sound and musical direction, he forms his own personal experimental project “Elektronik Meditation”, combining sound and vision, with Deniz Angelaki performing live painting during the concerts. Together, they have released three independent albums titled, “Live CD/DVD”, “Purgatory” and "Vigeland".
2012 : He is playing alongside one of the most renowned songwriters, “Dionysis Savopoulos”, a tribute to the music of Manos Hatzidakis, for a series of concerts all over Greece, including performances at the legendary Herodion theater in Athens, the Megaron concert hall, and the Roman Theater in Patra.
During the same year, he is also called to join “Haig Yazdjian Group”, with whom they perform all over Greece, Cyprus and abroad. Haig is an internationally acclaimed artist, both as a composer and an oud virtuoso, with collaborations that include Ara Dinkjian and Loreena McKennitt.
2013 : He forms an experimental project with “Thodoris Rellos” (of Mode Plagal), one of the greatest sax players in Greece and they release their debut album "HORSELOVERFAT" in 2018
2013 : He organizes and participates in “Deteriorate Sound Festival”, an ambient-noise-experimental festival, in Athens, taking place once a year.
2013 finds him touring with Elektronik Meditation project in Oslo, Norway and in Istanbul, Turkey (Impro Festival).
In 2014 Elektronik Meditation collaborate with Arve Henriksen for a live performance in Athens, Greece and same year they participate in LPM (Live Performers Meeting) in Eindhoven, Netherlands.
In 2015 Elektronik Meditation released a new album, live recorded in Emmanuel Vigeland Mausoleum (Oslo, Norway)
In May 2015 Elektronik Meditation performed live in “Onassis cultural center” in Athens, featuring Thodoris Rellos (sax, flute) and Nikos Sidirokastritis (drums).
Jannis Anastasakis did also an opening act for Ben Frost in his performance in Athens.
Since November 2015, he has been performing monthly at TV control center (Athens) in a one-of-a-kind event called 'Sound of Color.' The event brings together a variety of musicians and visual artists to create an improvised audio-visual experience (Eyal Maoz, Gilad Atzmon, Harris Labrakis, Nikos Sidirokastrits, Fotis Siotas, Guido de Flaviis, Giannis Notaras, Floros Floridis, Yorgos Dimitriadis, Antonis Anissegos, Kostas Theodorou, Sebastien Marteau, Ilan Manouach, Dimitris Klonis... )
In December 2015 Jannis Anastasakis organized and participated in the 1st Avant-Garde-Guitar Festival in Athens. He also collaborated on stage with Eivind Aarset (Norway).
In March 2016 "TV BOON" trio is formed with Floros Floridis (reeds, electronics) and Yorgos Dimitriadis (drums, electronics). The trio did a small tour in Greece and they released one CD.
He participates on Stella N.Christou's, "NI-KO" which was released in May 2016
In August 2016 he participates in one of the biggest projects happened in Greece, the "634 minutes in a Volcano", where 15 musicians improvised for 10 hours and 34 minutes in Nisyro's volcano.
In 2017 he collaborated on stage with Christian Fennesz.
He participated in the recording and live performance of Lena Platonos' latest album.
In 2017 he forms an impro trio with Savina Yannatou & Harris Lambrakis and they perform all over Greece & Cyprus.
2018 finds him releasing his debut album released on vinyl & CD, with Thodoris Rellos, titled "HORSELOVERFAT"
He also contributed to the making of the album "Drums to heal society" by Billy Pod
In December 2018 he collaborated for second time with Arve Henriksen on stage in St.Paul's Anglican church in Athens.
In 2019 he collaborates with the National Theatre of Greece for the music theatrical composition by Theodore Abazis, "The man who laughs"
In 2020 Jannis was invited to perform with Michalis Kalkanis group & Haig Yazdjian for a special 2-nights concert in Ancient Epidaurus Little Theatre.
In 2022 & 2023 Jannis did some touring outside Greece (South Korea, France, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal and Cyprus)
In 2024 Jannis collaborated with Spyros Polychronopoulos and recorded "NYFIDA" album & sound box which is released by Lawrence English's ROOM40
also collaborated with Michalis Siganidis for the "Dead Slow" album, released by Defkaz (in limited Vinyl).