André Hommen presents both his first and last album ‘More Than This’ on his uncompromising label These Eyes. The nine-track LP, set for release on July 3rd, is a melodic journey that showcases a producer who has fine-tuned his remarkable talent over a long period.
Founded in Cologne during 2017, André Hommen created These Eyes with a clear mission statement to release underground electronic music accompanied by his vision for unique design and an ethos for quality. With a back catalogue of selected EPs from the likes of Marc Romboy, Jonathan Kaspar and Clavis, ‘More Than This’ is the first album to be released on the label. To mark the occasion, we spoke with André himself to talk through the album and what he’s been up to lately.
Hello André, thanks for taking the time to talk with us! How have the last few months been for you given the current global situation?
Thank you for having me here. Well, the last few months were quite challenging as for everyone but luckily I had a lot projects going on so that I was able to focus on these projects and also focus on the album release. Therefore I have always been busy with the right amount of work, however I am hoping that we all can go back to normal shortly.
Your first album, More Than This, is set for release very soon. Tell us, where did the inspiration for the album come from? Is it something you have always wanted to do?
Yes, I have done EP’s, remixes, mix-compilations and other stuff but the album was missing so far, therefore I decided to do my first but also last album as I only want to do this one album. The inspiration came over the last few years as the album is actually done since almost 1,5 years at this point – so I am very happy that we’re finally all set for the release.
Tell us, what was the writing process for the album like? Were there any challenges you faced during the process?
Actually it was done track by track and at some point I had so many tracks that I decided to build around an album release. Obviously some tracks had to be changed into that certain album-direction but overall I think it’s a nice vibe from start to finish.
The album has a brilliant flow from the beginning through to the end. How did you decide on the running order of the album?
Thanks, glad you like it. Well I had the tracks done and selected for the album, so the running order was also done quite fast as I loaded up all tracks into my iTunes and then tried around the best flow. Therefore we go from a nice opening track “Eins” into the more peak-time tracks “Mirror” and “Current Issue” into some more techno-orientated tracks like “Waste Your Youth” and “Emphase” back to some more deeper tracks like “Cohesive” and the very last track “More Than This”.
Do you have a favourite track on the album, or perhaps a track that you enjoyed making the most? Can you explain why?
I actually like all tracks from the album but especially “Mirror” as absolute peak-time track and also “More Than This” as the last track as it brings the whole journey down to the end. But overall I really enjoyed making all of the tracks.
With the years of experience and knowledge gained through your career, what would you say is the most valuable piece of advice you could offer to an aspiring artist?
I think the most valuable piece of advice is patience. If you really want things to happen, you can make it happen if you have the right patience.
Given the current global situation, what are you looking forward to doing the most when things begin to return to normality?
I am looking forward to go to a nice warm place close to the sea. I think this is what I am missing the most right now and luckily I am going to Ibiza in a couple of days so I am really looking forward to that.
To round off, with These Eyes continually going from strength to strength, is there anything you can tell us yet about what’s in store from the label?
I do have some very interesting releases coming up by artists like Jonathan Kaspar, Yotam Avni, Ben Westbeech and more. Plus – you heard it here first – I will drop remixes of four album tracks by the end of this year.