Raining Pleasure
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Raining Pleasure is a four-piece band that hails from Patras, the largest town in southern Greece. Having recorded their first demo in the early 1990s, Raining Pleasure quickly became a major Greek indie band.
Their debut album, 'Memory Comes Back' (1996), was released for the respected indie label Lazy Dog and received enthusiastic reviews upon release, as did its follow up, 'Nostalgia', released in late 1998.
In Spring 2001, Raining Pleasure linked with EMI. The band recorded and released an EP ('Capricorn'), before returning to the studio to prepare their third full length album, their first for a major label.
In December 2001, Raining Pleasure's major label debut 'Flood' was released to critical acclaim. The album spawned three airplay hits in Greece, the biggest of which 'Fake' has become a pop and rock radio staple, and is successfully being used in TV spots for Greece's leading telecommunications company. 'Fake' was followed by the hits 'Capricorn' and 'Only Through You'.
Rock N Roll Magazine 2002 readers' poll voted the group the best Greek rock act of all time, a humbling vote of confidence for an act that has existed for just over 5 years.
Raining Pleasure concert tickets have sold out quickly across Greece for three summers running, having shared festival stages with the Cure, The Pixies, The Dandy Warhols and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club among others and having sold out theatres across the country.
Their major label debut album, 'Flood', performed exceptionally well on the charts, spending 15 weeks on the international chart where it peaked at No.1 before chart regulations necessitated the album's move to the local repertoire chart where it peaked at No.5 (an unprecedented feat for a Greek act performing in English). The album spent well over a year on the Top 40 Artist Album Charts and has been certified Gold.
In 2004, the group's album 'Forwards & Backwards' was introduced by the double A-side single 'World' / 'Identical Twins'. Vocalist Elly Paspala contributed a vocal track on 'Identical Twins'. Both songs were airplay hits.
In March, the band's cover of ABBA's 'Dancing Queen' was featured in the successful Greek film 'Hardcore', and remained in the airplay charts for over six months. In September the group scored another hit with the album track 'Love Me, Love Me, Love Me'.
In Winter 2004, the band embarked on its first tour of Germany and entered the studio to record a new version of the classic album by Manos Hadjidakis and the New York Rock & Roll Ensemble, Reflections.
Reflections was released to immediate critical acclaim. The album was introduced to media at a concert at St Paul's Anglican Church in Athens.
