It has been clear since the beginning of March that the dark rock band Lord Of The Lost from Hamburg will represent Germany at the Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool. In an interview with the news agency spot on news, singer and frontman Chris Harms (43) reveals why the band did not believe in success in the preliminary round, how they are now preparing for the ESC final on May 13th and what personal connection he has to them the music event.
Chris Harms: We’ve slowly understood what’s in store for us. Since we firmly expected not to get any further anyway, we didn’t really think about the ESC final beforehand. Of course, the joy is all the greater now because it really came as a surprise. We were the favorites in many pre-polls, but we didn’t take that seriously because all of Ikke Hipgold’s measurable values and figures spoke against LOTL progressing. Normally I’m not one for surprises at all, but in this case it’s a little different. We are overjoyed to have this opportunity!
Harms: “Nervous” might be the wrong word. I was more worried. Unfortunately, as a sound engineer and generally very interested in technology, I also know too much about all the little things that can theoretically go wrong and that keeps me busy. First and foremost, technical errors can affect your own monitoring situation, which means it can negatively affect what I hear through my headphones. And that in turn can mean that you sing shit because you don’t hear yourself well. And no TV viewer will ever know or understand that, you may just be a failure. Actually nobody wants to be like that.
Harms: Luckily, as a songwriter and producer, I have the openness to learn something from every act. And that all acts have worked hard for this participation and deserve the same respect is beyond question anyway. But if I judge purely on the taste, then Anica Russo was my favorite. Simply because her genre, her song and her voice correspond most closely to what I also like to hear privately. And I’ve actually been listening to their songs every day since the preliminary round.
Harms: I still refuse to speak of a victory. Because where there are winners, there are also losers. And none of the others lost in my eyes. The others just got fewer votes and didn’t get any further. Apart from that, the bottom line is that we have our fans to thank for this advancement. Just like our #1 album earlier this year. If we want to talk about a win here, it’s the victory of our fans. That is a gratitude that cannot be described by specifying any parameters.
Harms: Who are “the people”? Certainly not everyone has had enough of pop or hits, but 40 percent of the people who voted would like something more unusual for this year than the other acts who, and I say that with all due respect, tend to fall into the genres fall, which Germany has sent to the ESC in recent years.
Harms: Ever since I was a child, the Grand Prix has been one of the annual television events. And since I’ve been making music since I was five years old, taking part in the ESC is a big childhood dream come true!
Harms: I’ll be watching and listening to all of this year’s contestants, along with a reaction video of my first impressions, because it’s a matter of respect to engage with my peers beforehand. But I won’t analyze what show elements have been offered by who in recent years or this year. LOTL are what LOTL are and we will do our thing as raw and authentic as we are. No other artist can and should change that by convincing ourselves that we somehow have to adapt or desperately keep up somewhere. I am convinced that only authenticity makes an artist credible and that the audience for the most part has a subconscious and fine feeling for it.
Harms: There really shouldn’t be any question about hosting an event of this kind in a country that is actively under attack or not. I find this decision logical and reasonable.
Harms: Nothing directly. But a lot indirectly. In 1960 five young men from Liverpool came to Hamburg St. Pauli. Three of them, and a fourth, whom they met in St. Pauli, then became world famous as the Beatles. This year a couple of guys from St. Pauli are going to Liverpool. This is a completely unimportant, but nevertheless very nice coincidence.
Harms: We have had international stage experience for over ten years and were already familiar with big stages and festivals before Iron Maiden. But of course this tour with Maiden did a lot for us and gave us a good backbone to handle the theoretical time stress that arises in large productions. Apart from the fact that this tour was a big highlight of our career!
Harms: Last at least is a very realistic goal.
Harms: I don’t allow myself to think of that, it feels excessive and undermodest.
