Congratulations on the release of “Why (Don’t You?) how does it feel?
Thank you very much. I am glad the track is finally out.
What’s the story behind the song?
The main idea is that the narrator addresses her/his nemesis, whose identity is not reveled throughout the song, and pleads a ceasefire so that she/he can continue living her/his life in peace. This brings us to the point where we can start thinking who the actual enemy is. My guess is that it is the narrator’s own self.
It’s got stunning production values behind it, what was the easiest part and hardest part of composing it?
Thank you. We used Artgrid for this one and we congratulate and thank every filmmaker (see video credits) who made this incredible footage.
This is a great way of giving multiple lives to these works instead of one single feature, and also an easy way to protect the environment by not wasting resources on building up a set, getting the costumes and props or putting together a crew for each music video.
The hardest part for Christian, the director, was to pick the sequences to use and to edit them to make it tell our story.
The video is uber cool with its futuristic cinematic look, what was your favourite part of putting it together?
I really liked coming up with the story and hiding the visual Easter eggs concerning the universe we created around the album.
You have an album coming out in April, “ALICE”. On a scale of 1-10 how excited are you about it?
11?
What’s your favourite track from it?
Wow, that is a bit like asking a mother, which is their favourite kid.All of them, of course. But between us, I really like “running”; it is sort of like the conclusion of the record, like the ending scene to a drama, my drama. Even though it is not the last track, the following track, “keep holding”, is pretty much the ending credits to the movie, while “why” sets the tone.
What did you learn from recording it?
Maybe I got to understand better where I was standing in my life.
You are an artist from Switzerland how did it all begin for you?
With my father’s violin which I wasn’t able to play (it’s not easy to make it sound nice!) so my parents got a tiny keyboard at the age of 5 I think.
What did you listen to growing up?
Mostly classical music as I studied classical music for more than 15 years.
Your sound is very striking, how does a writing session usually start for you?
Thank you. I just sit down next to the piano and let the song come to life when I’m in an inspired mood. You feel the electricity crawling up your spine when that’s the case.
You have never been afraid to tackle big topics in your songs like the social status of women in “Perfect”, and climate change with “Miracle”, how easy do the lyrics come to you?
I write the words the same time as I compose the melody and the harmonies (chords), so if something doesn’t come naturally, I don’t force it.
COVID had a major impact on the creative industry, what kept you motivated?
My day job. I was obliged to show up in the hospital every single day as if nothing had changed.
The last couple of years have been a time to reflect what did you learn about yourself?
We actually had a lot of work in the hospital so we didn’t have as much free time as one would imagine. One thing I might have learned, even though it may sounds cheesy, that nothing is granted and life is about constant change.
Did you pick up any new skills?
Maybe a little bit of crisis management?
What are you listening to at the moment?
To the birds chirping outside. Hard to beat that.
What are you looking forward to next?
For the world to get back to “normal”. But I’m afraid that’s a far stretch.
