CHRIS HILL GIANN’S 1ST SOLO EP “THE CALM BEFORE THE STORM”

Christoph Hillermann-Giannoutsos is a Hamburg born, Nuremberg based Greek-German artist and singer / songwriter who has currently released his first demo EP The Calm Before The Storm.

The Calm Before The Storm is his solo project Chris Hill Giann, while being also involved in bands like The Acubed, Why Giraffes Why? and The Les Gras Rowdys.

He also works as an actor and appeared in several TV series and movies.

What 1st drew you to music?

When I was 6 years old I started taking piano lessons and I used to practice in the house of my grandparents where I grew up. In school, I joined the orchestra classes after I began to learn clarinet. For over 10 years, I was also part of the school choir. Many years later, I started getting professional singing/vocal training lessons at the university of Nuremberg. Always I wanted to learn to play the guitar. So I started to teach it to myself when I was 15. I´m still not the best guitarist. Singing and playing piano are my big strengths until today.

Do you have a preferred or chosen genre?

There is no specific genre I prefer because I like to try many different things and do experiments with combining the genres. Alternative, Folk, Grunge, Psychedelic and Indie Rock are my favourite genres, but my currently released EP has more of singer/songwriter elements or Indie Folk/Pop in combination with instrumental piano recordings.

Do you write your own music, or do you collaborate?

All of my songs were written by myself and I usually do everything alone when it comes to songwriting. On my first EP, there is one song, Spirit in a Frame demo, where I collaborate with Anatoliy Kobrynskyy. One of my best friends who is actually one of the best guitarists I know. His lead guitar solos are just perfect. Both of us are also members of the band The Acubed. We are currently working on our first studio album with that project.

How would you describe your music?

My music is a mix of melancholic, romantic and sad songs but with a lot of hope. I’m speaking of my recent EP because it’s really melancholic and actually very personal. My next EP will be actually very different and even genre-wise completely in another dimension.

What is your creative process like?

The ideas for song lyrics or melodies come very unexpectedly on a irregular base. Sometimes I´m walking down the streets and I have this melody in mind. So I’m picking up my phone and recording that melody by singing or whistling. But mostly songs are coming from nothing when I’m at home and picking an instrument. When I’m playing guitar, the songs are just flowing like a waterfall. After I find the perfect chords for the new song I just start singing and lyrics are coming instantly out of nowhere. It’s the same process when I’m sitting in front of the piano. Sometimes when I want to write a song for a person that goes through a difficult time, I’m trying to empathize into that person. These emotions I feel lead to the resulting song I compose.

Why this EP? Why now?

The Calm Before the Storm consists of six demo songs which I wrote in 2018 and 2019. I recorded them all in 2019 and partially in 2020 before the pandemic took place. This EP means a lot to me. Not only because it’s my first, also because it has a deep personal meaning for me. It represents the silence or innocence before something 'big' happens. Events like that are not bad necessarily. Maybe there are incidents that are awful and tragic. But afterwards you are grateful. I believe in fate. So this album represents fate for me. It’s about falling in love, failed relationships, anxiety & depression and most importantly of all: hope.

Where there any challenging aspects to this project?

When I recorded this EP, I never expected it to be released in a pandemic like we have right now (in 2020). These are weird times and I was struggling a lot with myself in the first half of this year.

Has your musical journey had a deliberate direction, or did it simply evolve in whatever direction it found?

I think it’s still evolving in so many directions that I have to figure out which direction it will lead me. I’m pretty excited to see what will be around the next corner!

What do you enjoy most about being a musician? What do you hate most?

I love the creative freedom. It’s just creativity and art in general that gets me right in the feels. I’m really passionate about the things I really love. And music is one of my big passions.

I don’t really hate anything. But I really dislike the idea of artists who don’t write their own songs and release overproduced albums written by 15 songwriters while the singer gets the only credits. This is the case in mainstream pop music these days. But it’s called business. Actually it’s not a recent problem. Elvis Presley never wrote a song alone by himself in his lifetime by the way. And I still love him!

Would you like to travel to other countries to perform your music? If so, what would be your first stop?

Now that I’m from Germany and having family members in Greece, I guess one of my first stops for a gig would be Greece, especially the capital Athens. I would love to perform in the UK and the US one day. Actually I would love to travel all around the world. But let’s see how the things will develope in the future with the recent pandemic going on.

Other than fame & fortune, is there something you hope to achieve through music?

I just hope that I can reach out to many people that feel the same emotions as me when I wrote these songs.

Tell about a magical moment or positive experience that has happened during your music career.

Well, it just meant a lot to me when people sent me messages that they’re touched by my songs. That was really overwhelming for me.

What music do you listen to for fun?

My absolutely favourite band Queens of the Stone Age is always helping me when I need it (especially the albums 'RATED R' and '…Like Clockwork'). What I actually do listen to for fun a lot is for example Iggy Pop, Tame Impala, Mac DeMarco, Khruangbin, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard and Arcade Fire.

Who inspires you musically?

My biggest inspirations are Josh Homme (Queens of the Stone Age -*mastermind), John Frusciante (guitarist of the Red Hot Chili Peppers and a genius solo artist), Damon Albarn (Blur, Gorillaz, The Good, The Bad & The Queen) David Bowie, Nick Cave, Tom Waits, Father John Misty, Beck, Thom Yorke, Leonard Cohen, George Harrison and Johnny Cash.

If one artist were to perform at your party, who would get the call?

Definitely Confidence Men! But I would also love to see Jody Wisternoff or JUSTICE. My biggest hope is still that Daft Punk are going on tour again one day in the future. Best dance music ever.

What advice would you have for someone wanting to follow in your footsteps?

Just follow your dreams and try your best as you can. Never give up! And don’t care about the opinion of others that don’t support you. One day you gonna show them your real talent.

Also you really need strong nerves and patience (and mostly a lot of luck) to get the attention you deserve. But the best thing is to be optimistic. Always look on the bright side of life!

How do you feel the Internet has impacted sharing your music?

It’s a great opportunity for new artists in general. So actually it’s really helpful to connect with people through this way.

What is your favorite/best outlet to connect with your followers Instagram, Spotify, FB, Twitter, iTunes? How would you want them to follow?

Actually you can find me on all of these platforms. But the most active I am on Facebook and Instagram. It would mean a lot to me if you also subscribe me on Youtube & Spotify!

If you can have fans remember one thing about you, what would it be?

Well, it would be a great honour if someone would remember my real name!

Christoph Hillermann-Giannoutsos (Yeah it’s a difficult one… I know haha)

But let’s focus on "Chris Hill Giann". That’s a lot easier.

What does the future hold for you?

My next EP is already finished and coming soon! This second EP is called Time Travel Tiger and is more of an Electro/Indie/Synth-Pop album inspired by artists like David Bowie and Depeche Mode. It sounds like it went through a time machine straight from the 1980s.

Also stay tuned for my band projects! We are currently working on the first studio album with our band The Acubed. There are also plans with my alternative rock band Why Giraffes Why?. A lot of demo songs were recorded and a live gig session was filmed and will be released on Youtube soon.

Did I forget to ask something? Something you would like to say, that I did not address.

I just wanna thank everyone who supported me so far. You are always welcome to send me messages and I’m also very open for collaborations. Music connects people. Or art in general. And that’s what I love about it. This is why I’m happy with these things I do. Thanks for reading this interview. See you guys soon hopefully!

Thank you, Christoph Hillermann-Giannoutsos for your time and music. - mySound Music