Remme and 10 Questions with TotalNtertainment
Following Dutch singer-songwriter Remme’s first foray into the music world with the January release of his debut single “get older”, he returns this spring with his second single “hunger”, showcasing one thing above all: his range. As movingly as the piano ballad “get older” underlined the cool days of winter, the guitar-led “hunger” now emphasises the spring in a refreshing and carefree way. We got to speak to Remme about Lockdown, his new singles and more.
1. Hi Remme, thanks for your time. Hope you’re well… how are you keeping busy during lockdown and what is life like in Holland at the moment ?
The situation in The Netherlands is getting better and better. The lockdown gave me a lot of unexpected time to write new songs, I built my own DIY studio at home so it’s always possible for me to record stuff. I probably would have been in Berlin by this time to work in the studio, but now I just send the guys my files and they make it sound great. All I need is a laptop and a pair of speakers. The vocals that you hear on my new single ‘hunger’ are actually recorded at my improvised home studio during quarantine, I put my 2 mattresses against the walls and with a blanket over my head the vocals actually didn’t sound too bad;)
2. Remme will be a new name to our readers, can you tell us a little bit about your background and life ?
I grew up in Eindhoven, a city in The Netherlands with a small-town feel. As an only child there was not much to do in the house, so I started making music at a very young age. One day I picked up my dad’s old guitar and I started trying to play along with songs I heard on the radio, I really loved it. I was about 12 years old when I went to guitar lessons for the first time. I met Isa, who was teaching guitar at that time. After about 1 or 2 years of regular guitar lessons he asked me to write a song for and I decided to give it a go. The guitar lessons turned into songwriting lessons, and I would bring song ideas that I made at home so we could finish them together in ’class’. When Isa moved to Berlin a few years later to work in the studio, he invited me come over and record some demo’s. My first single ‘get older’ was one of the first songs I ever wrote.
3.You started writing music at the age of 12, what was the first album or musician that made an impact on your life and what was so special about that artist or album ?
‘Rumours’ by Fleetwood Mac has always been one of my favorite records of all time. The 11 songs on that album are all amazing, they still feel so modern and fresh even though I’ve probably listened to them over a thousand times. When I was a kid, my parents used to play this record at home a lot and ‘Dreams’ is my favorite song from the album. At a very young age I also became obsessed with the music of Jeff Buckley. He had the most amazing voice and he inspired me a lot in the way I sing as well. I think the contrast between his high and low voice is very interesting and beautiful.
4. You’ve recently put out singles “get older” & “hunger”, how do you think you’ve changed as an artist since you started writing ?
I don’t think I’ve changed that much. I started writing songs about 8 years ago and I’ve always done it in the same way. I start off by singing/playing random things that pop into in my head, just ‘jibberish’. Listening back to the recordings I made on my phone I notice that a lot of the ‘random’ words and sentences actually do make sense in a way, I think they come from my subconscious mind. I reflect on it overnight and I try to polish it within the next couple of days.
The only difference between my writing process now and then is that actually finishing songs took so much time back in the day. For example, songs like ‘get older’ and ‘hunger’ took me a couple years to write, nowadays I try to finish songs right after writing them. I think the feeling and vibe of a song when you record it for the first time is always very special.
5. On the subject of getting older what do you think are the best and worst things about growing up ?
To be honest, I had a wonderful time growing up and I consider myself very lucky with that. I had all the time to work on my music and I was able to seize opportunities, that’s also what my song ‘get older’ is about. When I was about 16 years old I started traveling a lot between my hometown in the Netherlands and the studio in Berlin. A lot of things happened in a short time and sometimes I found it really hard to live in the moment and to enjoy everything, just because it all seemed to happen so fast. I’m still growing up and maybe everyone always is in some kind of way. I want to give myself time to develop as a person and as an artist.
6. What is your favorite memory from your childhood and what did you want to be when you were growing up?
I remember dressing up like Michael Jackson and dancing to his music in front of my family on birthdays. I have always been a very introverted person but for some reason that always disappears when I perform.
As a kid I never thought about what I wanted to become in my later life. I was always very interested in music and writing songs just got more and more serious over the years. It all felt very natural, I guess music kind of happened to me;)
7. Looking ahead then, what are your plans for the coming months and into 2021 ?
I’m really excited to shoot my second music video this month, the song is called ‘lose touch’ and it’s about a girl who pushes me to the limit. It’s one of my personal favorites and I absolutely can’t wait for people to hear it. Besides writing and releasing music, I absolutely cannot wait to be back on the road again with my band. After our first gig last January things started to take off and we were getting better and better, so I want to finish what we started!
8. If you had the chance to collaborate with any artists living or dead who would you choose and why ?
Lately I’m quite into old work of Bruce Springsteen. One of his first albums ‘Nebraska’ is really amazing and I find myself listening to it a lot. Chris Martin and Frank Ocean are also artists I look up to, they all have the ‘full package’: besides being amazing singers and performers, they are also incredible songwriters. That’s something I aspire and I’m writing songs almost everyday. I really love the idea of collaborating with other artists in the near future!
9. Just for fun: Would you rather shoot spaghetti out of your fingers or sneeze meatballs ?
I would rather shoot spaghetti out of my fingers!! That way I can keep singing, and by the way – i’m vegeterrible:)
10. Thanks for your time and good luck with everything. Do you have any final words for our readers / your fans ?
New music is coming real soon!! 😉
He has already taken his first steps as a live performer, playing at the Eurosonic Festival and impressing as support for James Morrison in Paradiso Amsterdam back in October 2019. The planned support slot for Lola Marsh has unfortunately had to be cancelled but new and additional dates will follow soon.
For more information head to www.remmemusic.com
