Competition: "Rootsman Fyah" burn for their band project

Created: 04/02/2022, 02:00 p.m

By: Cordula Meffert

Rootsman Fyah: In the booklet you can see the ten band members.

In fact, the reggae feeling is the defining thread that runs through the diverse stylistic influences of their music.

© Photo: Denis Spiess

Kempten/Isny – For two years, ten musician friends met regularly in a rehearsal room in Isny.

This resulted in the band project "Rootsman Fyah".

At the beginning it was just about being able to make music together even in times of the corona pandemic.

"Too few clichés for the pop producer, too 'beautiful' for the jazz policeman and too loud for the patron of classical music", is how the band members themselves describe the musical style of Rootsman Fyah.

In fact, the reggae feeling is the defining thread that runs through the diverse stylistic influences.

"We all come from different genres of music and also listen to different music privately," says Andreas Schütz, pianist and one of the ten musicians, in an interview.

And that's exactly what he finds exciting: "When we develop songs, we don't run the risk of accidentally using clichés.

Every arrangement is a conscious decision, it is not a given that something will be played in a certain way.”

Diversity of cast

Their very own style was able to develop slowly, there were neither specifications nor deadline pressure, they worked out the songs together piece by piece.

This freedom and the diversity of the line-up characterize the band's characteristic sound: Two singers provide multilingual lyrics, the rhythm section provides the basis and the four-part wind section provides the timbre.

Andreas Schütz sees the band musically broadly based in a mainstream sound that should appeal to many.

In the summer of 2021, the musicians moved from the rehearsal room to the Dreamshelter recording studio, where they recorded their first EP within two months.

Five songs are on the mini-album, four of their own and one rearranged cover song.

But: "We don't want to be a cover band," emphasizes Andreas Schütz.

Rootsman Fyah: Concert on May 20th at the Parktheater

That's why they are now under "positive pressure" for the first time, because at their debut concert in the Kempten Park Theater on May 20th, they have to fill 100 minutes with their own songs.

The

is giving away tickets for the concert (see below).

The follow-up appearances are already fixed.

Schütz himself is surprised at how great the demand is and is pleased that Rootsman Fyah have already been booked for ten open-air performances this season.

The question of the band name remains: Roots - English for roots - reflects the homeland of the band members, because they all come from the Allgäu or have a strong connection to the region.

"Fyah" means fire in Jamaican slang - they all feel that, they burn for their project, in which everyone is involved beyond the musical.

Everything selfmade

For example, when designing the CD and the cover: "Our saxophonist is an organic vegetable farmer, we designed the cover photo with his vegetables and then used them to cook a curry." For the group picture, each band member was photographed individually and from the recordings designed a collage - a group photo was not possible due to Corona.

Whether taking photos, cutting videos or designing the website - the Rootsman do everything themselves and pay attention to professionalism.

You keep track of everything from the press kit to the technology, the lighting sequence and the sound instructions for mixers during performances.

"Always, always with the Rootsman Fyah Style", they sing in a good mood in the first song on their EP.

This positive view of the future is thrilling and it will be interesting to see where the band's journey will take them.

Competition: We are giving away tickets for the concert

If you want to win one of five tickets for the "Rootsman Fyah" concert on May 20th in the Kempten Park Theater, fill out the competition form and enter the

.

The closing date for entries is May 1st.

The legal process is excluded.

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