Element of Crime
Sven Regener: When it comes to lyrics, the law of the jungle prevails
Sven Regener, frontman of the band Element of Crime, on stage in Berlin. photo
© Christophe Gateau/dpa
How does Sven Regener write songs? First the music, then the lyrics or vice versa? The author and musician provides information.
The writer and songwriter Sven Regener sees differences between literature and music when it comes to writing lyrics. “For the books you need a basic idea to start with, and then the small things actually come about by themselves,” said Regener (“Mr. Lehmann”) of the dpa in Berlin.
“It’s different with songs, there’s always the music first and then I have to find the lyrics when the music is ready. There’s something very spontaneous about it.” With his band Element of Crime, the singer recorded ten songs for the album “Morgens um Vier” which will be released on Friday (April 7th).
Regener does not record anything for his work. “I don’t have any notebooks, I don’t have anything to write down ideas and use them later,” said the 62-year-old. “The ideas either come to me en passant of their own accord or they don’t. Notes don’t help there.”
When he has a first idea for the lyrics, he’s always really happy. “It always comes spontaneously when I’ve been thinking about a melody long enough,” said Regener. “It is a completely unregulated zone of consciousness. Therefore it is pure wilderness. The law of the jungle reigns there, only the strongest ideas survive there.”
The lyrics have to clear another hurdle. “Everyone in the band should be able to stand behind every song,” says Regener. Drummer Richard Pappik doesn’t see much of a problem there. “We are happy about the texts, we are fans of the texts,” he told the dpa.