Hailing from Germany, Giant Rooks have cemented themselves as a powerhouse in the German indie-rock scene and beyond. Renowned for their electrifying performances and captivating collaborations, the band’s rise has captured the hearts of millions.
Giant Rooks’ fanbase has undoubtedly expanded globally within the past few years. Their music resonates deeply with audiences across the globe, connecting with listeners from all walks of life in Germany and beyond.
Comprised of Frederik Rabe (vocals, guitar), Finn Schwieters (guitar), Luca Göttner (bass), Jonathan Wischniowski (keys), and Finn Thomas (drums), Giant Rooks began their musical journey in 2015. Since then, the band has achieved over 200 million streams on their debut record, Rookery (2020), toured the world, and sold out hundreds of shows, expanding themselves larger than the German indie-rock scene.
Marking the release of their sophomore record, How Have You Been?, in February, the quintet completes the North American leg of their extensive five-month headlining tour next week in Dallas, Texas. Wasting no time, the band will be joining in support of Louis Tomlinson’s “Faith in The Future” tour across Latin America. This return to the road was not unfamiliar, as they had previously supported the cherished singer-songwriter in the States for a handful of shows last year.
Renowned for their electrifying and infamous rendition of “Tom’s Diner” and captivating collaborations with rock band AnnenMayKantereit, Giant Rooks have surged into the spotlight, garnering the admiration of millions. Their journey has been nothing short of meteoric, marked by a trail of successes and a growing fanbase.
Amidst this whirlwind of acclaim, The Knockturnal had the privilege of sitting down with band members Frederik Rabe and Finn Schwieters. Our chat occurred just hours before their highly anticipated second sold-out performance at Brooklyn’s historic Warsaw music venue.
As we arrived, we were greeted by hundreds of eager fans who had eagerly queued for hours before the show, their excitement palpable as they awaited the opening of the doors. Kicking off the show in advance of Giant Rooks, the support act and pop-alternative band Friedberg, consisting of Anna Friedberg (vocals, guitar), Emily Linden (guitar), Laura Williams (drums), and Cheryl Pinero (bass) electrified the stage, garnering hundreds of supporters that night.
Enveloped by a sea of devoted fangirls, I took note of how each fan was clutching sunflowers as a homage to the band’s ethereal anthem, “Pink Skies.” These floral tributes were eagerly thrown onto the stage during the performance of the song, spreading so much love and admiration for the band in front of them.
With two successful studio albums up their sleeves, Giant Rooks’ future is promising in the music industry.
Check out the full interview and photo gallery from the show below!
THE KNOCKTURNAL: Your first album, Rookery, was released amid the pandemic. For How Have You Been, could you tell me what differed in the writing/creative process between your first and second albums in terms of the songwriting evolution?
FREDERIK RABE: I think we tried to reflect on ourselves and got a little more confident… But it was a process throughout the course of many years/ Three years of writing this album, of writing How Have You Been? We were lost after the release of our first album, Rookery, and we lost our identity a little bit and our DNA. It was a tough time finding the new Giant Rooks sound, and so it took us quite a while
THE KNOCKTURNAL: Being that you’re in a band, you all have so many different musical inspirations, your first concert experiences, your first music experiences. Who do you think inspired you all collectively, or do you have any inspirations that inspired you all collectively as a band to this sound for this new album?
FINN SCHWIETERS: I think we’ve all been listening to a lot of Beatles for this album, so there was quite a huge influence…David Bowie. We really dig into the old records. It’s always interesting because I think each one of us brings his own, and everyone has his own influences. In the end, the way Luca plays the bass and how Finn plays the drums and all…creates this Giant Rooks sound. That was also the realization we had. It’s special enough that we are a band, and we just have to do what we did before, and then it will sound like Giant Rooks, and it will evolve anyway because we are in our 20s and we’re constantly changing anyway, so we don’t really need to think about it too much.
THE KNOCKTURNAL: I read that you guys wrote about 100 songs for this record. Given that you’re all musicians with so many different tastes in music and artists, how do you select and finalize 14 songs that represent you guys sonically and cohesively as a band?
FINN: It can get really hard, to be honest. Especially when we start a new song, it’s often quite easy because usually everyone feels like, “Okay, this could be a great idea.” But then, when it comes to the finalization, it can get really difficult. For the new album, we would argue about maybe some masters and how loud some bass should be or anything that probably no one else would recognize, but we would talk about it for hours and hours and hours. I think it’s part of the process. In the end, we created an album that we all love and are all really proud of.
THE KNOCKTURNAL: You guys have played so many shows over the past year. You also opened up for Louis Tomlinson on a handful of shows last summer. Now that you are back headlining your own shows in the US again, where there are fans outside camping for hours, what has it been like bringing this album to life on stage and interacting with fans who have been waiting so long?
FREDERIK: Yeah, that is probably the best part of our job, I would say. We love spending time in the studio and being creative, writing new songs and producing them. But it can get lonely and boring from time to time. I feel like being on the road and seeing all these people singing along to our songs every night. Every night is so different. I feel like it always depends on the venue. It’s always so special, and we are very, very grateful for this opportunity to play shows all around the world now. Honestly, it sounds a bit cliché, but it’s our dream that came true, and we worked many years for that. We just want to say thank you to each and everyone for showing up every night.
THE KNOCKTURNAL: How do you build a setlist? Fans have their fan favorites. There’s always debate online about what songs are going to be played. How do you guys pick the perfect tour setlist, given that you have a new album out, your older music, and your fan favorites?
FREDERIK: We probably spent three months preparing the set in Berlin in our rehearsal space, and we basically played every song from the record. Then, after playing every song, we decided which was the best. That was basically the process. Our New Year’s resolution was never to play the same setlist; we had already failed.
THE KNOCKTURNAL: For each show, you wanted to change it?
FREDERIK: it makes it more exciting for us. We started playing shows on January 5th or something. I think we failed on that day or the day after. It was crazy, but it was a very ambitious plan.
FINN: We found a setlist that feels and works really great. Then to… You don’t want to change it. It’s a performance, so why would you change that? I think what we tried to do with the tour and with that setlist was to create special moments and have a theater performance happening. This isn’t as spontaneous, maybe, as well. That makes it difficult because we are a rock band, and there are certain rock aspects of the show, but we also have this theater performance aspect to the show. You know what I mean?
FREDERIK: At the same time, we have so many moments where we can be very free and improvise a little bit. I feel like it’s probably the mix of both worlds.
THE KNOCKTURNAL: How do you make sure that your performances stay exciting and creatively satisfying for you guys on stage while singing these familiar songs every night?
FINN: To be honest, it’s always exciting because there are maybe a few hundred people, maybe a few thousand people, showing up and wanting to see a show. That’s a crazy thought. It’s crazy to think about that. Each individual coming to the show, and of course, you want to bring them the best experience. It’s just what we love, and we love doing this since we started this band. It’s what we’re living for.
FREDERIK: Since it’s our big dream coming true now, we feel like we’ve got to play each show as if it were our last. There’s definitely a lot of adrenaline and a lot of energy in the room. We can’t wait for tonight.
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