Between touring and recording, singer Chris Chameleon gets personal about his new CD Firmanent and give us a glimpse what is next for him.
Firstly,
congratulations with Firmanent charting on iTunes! Must be an amazing feeling?
Yes it is a very pleasant feeling. My job relies on
validation & none of it goes to waste.
Why did it take you
so long to release a new English CD?
Ja, it is a bit of a long time. I guess my only excuse is
that I have been rather busy. Between tours to Europe, the UK, Dubai, Qatar,
Australia and West Africa, as well as the 4 Afrikaans albums, three dvd’s and
Boo! album I have made in the last 8 years I have battled to make time for a
solo English album. I mean to not wait this long before the next one.
From start to finish,
how long did it take write and record the album?
A difficult question. ‘Starburst’, the last track, is a song
I started writing in 1989; it could never find shape until this album. Other
songs, like ‘High', where written in half an hour. A song like 'Don't You
Worry' was re-written three times over a period of 3 months & deals with
three key events over a period of 40 years. The tracking itself lasted 2 weeks
& the mixing about 1 month.
I understand you can
speak 4 languages, care to share with my readers which those languages are?
I'm fluent in Afrikaans, English, Dutch & German. I have
a reasonable understanding of Zulu but not yet good enough to claim it.
How easy or difficult
was it to write the lyrics for the CD? Maybe anyone that inspired you or were
your muse?
Songs like ‘Starburst' or 'Don't You Worrry' where very
difficult. 'Prickly Pear' was instant. I find I'm becoming ever more particular
about accuracy of expression and the value of words, which doesn’t really aid
the swift completion of lyric building.
You worked again with
Theo Crous. When did the partnership started and why do you think your two gel
when it comes to music and recording your music?
We've been working tigether since 2005. ‘Firmament' is our
7th album together. Why? For the same reason that in a world of 7 billion
people couples choose each other and stick together: the marriage works. We’re
very different people, with different views on life and the world, different
interests and pursuits. But when we sit down to make music we understand each
other, we communicate much without saying a word. We are a good example of how
diverse people unite around the wonder of music.
What the main drive
of the theme of the album and why it is titled Firmament?
Thematically the album deals with the awareness I've been
feeling regarding my place in the world. ‘Firmament' means 'the universe' which
sounds spacious & airy but it also contains the word 'firm' which I rather
like.
Tell me the story
behind the track Hurt and especially the moving video for the song and what
impact you would like the video to have on its viewers?
I was a professional actor before I managed to perform music
professionally. Acting has always been an important part of my expression and
music videos are an ideal vehicle for my thespian aspirations. I liked the idea
of showing a person developing through personages and some personal suffering
towards a new sense of self. That’s what the video is about. After I had made
the video the Orlando massacre happened. I dedicated the video to the victims
of that horrible piece of modern history.
What is next for
Chris Chameleon?
I am in studio at the moment, recording my next Afrikaans
album, in between touring ‘Firmament’. I will tour Europe again in February and
March.
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