1980s
At the beginning of the 1980s, there is a musical enrichment in the scene as more and more bands flourish, despite the extensive censorship on forms of art that in the later years gradually stopped. One example of this era is that of Mousikes Taxiarhies - Μουσικές Ταξιαρχίες (Greek for Musical Brigades) with frontman Tzimis Panousis. The lyrical content of the band for the time was considered to vary from humorous and lightly satirical to all-out criticizing towards the political life of Greece—nevertheless the band played music with rich musical content; a mixture of many influences besides rock such as reggae and funk.Pavlos Sidiropoulos went on through the deacade by forming the band "Aprosarmostoi" and produced some of his best albums with them. In early 1981 a new band Fatme was formed who combined very creatively elements from Greek popular music roots and rock for the very first time.Their frontman was Nikos Portokaloglou who is still a recording singer/songwriter of great acclaim.
Even though Vasilis Papakonstantinou started his career in the 70s, it wasn't until the beginning of the 80s that he gain huge popularity and became one of the most successful Greek rock singers. Vasilis Papakonstantinou is still active and he continues to release successful albums.
With the second generation, the scene produced also some of the finest electric guitar players such as Christophoros Krokidis and Spyros Pazios who to date are still active in various projects. During the mid-1980s, a band called The Last Drive appeared, whose outstanding performance both in Greece and internationally deeply influenced the scene. In 1985 it was the great birth of the modern Greek rock as it is known today and this thanks to a bands from Thessaloniki: Trypes with their first album and two years later in 1987 a trio-band called Mora Sti Fotia - Μωρά στη Φωτιά (Babies on Fire), whose name was inspired by the song's title "Baby's on Fire" by Brian Eno. The band plays a combination of new wave, punk, soft and hard rock).
Other sub-genres of rock emerged during this period: Heavy metal, Punk rock and Indie rock gained popularity. Greek metal bands such as Spitfire (Traditional Heavy metal) and black metal sound pioneers Rotting Christ and Varathron, emerged in the 80s.
Read more about this topic: Greek Rock