Tomorrow Germany will select its entry for Eurovision Song Contest 2016 during the show “Unser Lied für Stockholm”, which will take place in Cologne.

Woods of Birnam with their atmospheric pop entry “Lift Me Up (From The Underground)” is one of the 10 lucky finalists. ESCBubblehad a chat with Christian Friedel , singer and main songwriter in the band.

Hello Christian! Congratulations for making it to Unser Lied für Stockholm! How did you decide  to enter the contest this year?

The radio station MDR Sputnik, based in the region of Germany that we live in, has put us forward for the race. Out of 150 participants 10 were selected and we were fortunate  enough to be one of them.

You are new artists for our readers, can you please tell us more about yourself: what should we expect from the band Woods of Birnam? In what musical style do you perform?

We are five quite different musicians from Dresden and mostly play atmospheric pop music. For the German national selection, we went for one of our danceable pop songs influenced by music from the 80’s and also Michael Jackson. Currently we’re working on our new and second album entitled “Grace” and “Lift Me Up (From The Underground)” is the very first impression you guys get to hear. In difference to our first album, which is a lot more melancholic, we decided to straightforwardly celebrate pop music this time, drawing  inspiration from different decades and musicians.

Every artist has something special, people say “he/she/band hast it”. How can you  describe “it” about yourselves?

With Woods of Birnam it is definitely the gathering of the individual musicians. I also work as  an actor. I treat my voice like an instrument and kind of let it fly in some of the songs by the  use of excessive effects. This atmosphere blended with these great and passionate  musicians, that’s what makes the difference within the WOB (Woods of Birnam) sound.

It will be about myself coping with a great loss and trying to dance away the pain much rather than plunging into sad balladry.

Can you please tell us about your entry song for Unser Lied für Stockholm? What’s the main message of it? 

We are a band from Dresden – a city that unfortunately has mostly made the news of the world press in rather negative ways recently. To be able to send a life-affirming, positive and  open minded sign from Germany into the world really means a lot to us. The song’s message is relatively simple: Don’t waste your life, come back out of your emotional hole and enjoy this one chance! I think that the framework of the album will make this even more understandable. It will be about myself coping with a great loss and trying to dance away the pain much rather than plunging into sad balladry. “Lift Me Up (From The Underground)” is probably the most danceable song by our standards. One can hear the 80ies and one hopefully feels a bit of a Michael Jackson groove in it.

Can you tell us something more about the team behind this song?

Philipp, our guitar player and I composed the song together. The lyrics were written by  myself and the native speaker Duncan Townsend. The single was produced with Olaf Opal (Juli, The Notwist), who will also be responsible for the album production. It was mixed by the Swedish hit producer Michael Ilbert (Pink, Taylor Swift, a-ha,…) and mastered at Sterling Sound Studio, NYC, by Tom Coyne.

What is your inspiration for singing?

For me singing is a feeling of freedom, of making the soul audible. When I’m singing I feel like I am at home.

How would you describe your ideal song that you would like to perform?

I guess, your own songs are the most ideal ones, because at best they can lend shape to your  own personal feelings in a distinctive sound. And when you succeed in making a danceable  song out of tough and burdening things, then you can really feel the complexity of life in a beautiful way.

Thank you, Christian, for your time and your answers! ESCBubble wish you and your band Woods of Birnam good luck on Thursday!

Give a listen to Woods of Birnam’s entry: “Lift Me Up (From The Underground)”:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LSkjtchjkM