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Giganten

In my German class this semester, each student is required to give a five-minute presentation on a topic of interest, so indie rock enthusiast that I am, mine was on the Hamburg School. In the midst of all my compiling information and music, I stumbled across a band out of Hamburg known as Fotos.

According to last.fm, the band’s most-played song is “Giganten,” so naturally I gave it a listen. And in spite of the fact that after one listen, the song didn’t strike me as anything particularly interesting or innovative, I found myself humming the tune to myself later in the day. And I couldn’t stop thinking about that long-haired, dreamy-eyed toothy German fellow singing in the video. I guess you could call me smitten.

It has been a couple weeks since I’ve discovered Fotos, and I admit I probably listen to that song an average of ten times a day. I’ve since listened to their other music, and while it’s not the best thing I’ve ever heard, those guys certainly know how to write pop music. I’m impressed.

Nerdy rambling alert: one thing about this song that I’m particularly drawn to is the way the chorus lingers on longer than makes me comfortable. To me, it’s the equivalent of an unresolved chord. The tension of the loud lines that just run into one another instead of resolving back into the reassuring steadiness of the verse is simultaneously the most annoying and most fascinating part of the song.

I’ve since contacted the band and corresponded with Tom (read: the aforementioned long-haired, dreamy-eyed toothy German fellow) and it looks as though there’s an interview with the band in the near future. Which of course I’ll post here. But in the meantime, here’s a little something to entertain you.

I think it’s safe to say that I have a ridiculous crush on this band.