Giant Rooks

Biography

Giant Rooks are a German indie rock band from Hamm, Germany founded in 2014. They are best known for their EP Wild Stare, their album How Have You Been? and their top-100 charting cover of "Tom's Diner" by Suzanne Vega.
In 2019, they won the 1Live Krone Award and the Preis für Popkultur in the months following the release of their EP Wild Stare. Their debut album Rookery was released in August 2020.

History

The band was founded in 2014 by cousins Frederik Rabe (vocals) and Finn Schwieters (guitar), later joined by fellow schoolmates Jonathan Wischniowski (keyboards) and Finn Thomas (drums). This lineup was soon completed by the addition of a mutual friend, Luca Göttner (bass).
In December 2015, they released their debut self-produced EP The Times Are Bursting The Lines. This was followed by another EP New Estate in January 2017, which earned them critical acclaim. The release was supported by hundreds of shows all over Europe, eventually landing them a record deal with Irrsinn Tonträger of Universal Music.
In April 2019, the EP Wild Stare was released with its title track being a top 20 radio hit in Italy and the EP racking up more than 50,000,000 world-wide streams on Spotify soon after its release.
Giant Rooks announced the release of their debut album ROOKERY on August 28, 2020. Radio X DJ John Kennedy played the band's single "All We Are" on his X-Posure radio show, on the album's release. They went on tour in North America with fellow German band Milky Chance in 2021.
On the Official Singles Chart Top 100 of 25 March 2022 to 31 March 2022, the band achieved their first UK hit when their version of Suzanne Vega's "Tom's Diner", with AnnenMayKantereit, charted at number 63. They had concerts in the United States in late 2022.
In 2023, Giant Rooks were one of the openers for English singer-songwriter Louis Tomlinson on the North American leg of his Faith in the Future World Tour, joining at the Nashville concert through the end of the leg before embarking on their own headliner.
In February 2024, the band released their sophomore album How Have You Been?, peaking at number one in Germany.

Artistic influence

The band has cited that "artists like Bob Dylan and Bon Iver" have influenced their music the most. Other influences they have named include James Blake, Celeste, and Joy Crookes.

Members

Frederik Rabe - lead vocals, guitar, percussion
Finn Schwieters - lead guitar, backing vocals
Luca Göttner - bass guitar, backing vocals
Jonathan Wischniowski - keyboards, synthesizer, backing vocals
Finn Thomas - drums

Nominations

2022: MTV Europe Music Awards (Best German Act)