Ravenheart Music: Interviews

INTERVIEW RAVENHEART – CORNERSTONE

Date: 10th of Jan. 2009

Steve Wachelhofer/Michael Wachelhofer/Anja Schirmer


It is a real honour for me to be given this opportunity to interview my friends from Austrian rock band Cornerstone. This band are an awesome outfit whose AOR sound takes me back to the 80's. Firstly guys and gal, can you tell me more about the history of the band etc?
Steve: We have begun to perform cover-Versions of REM, SOUL ASYLUM and THE CURE in the livingroom of Mike’s former girlfriend in 1997 (*laughs*) …that was it. After a time a friend of Mike – Markus Bousska – joined the group, he has played drums, so the band was born, we have started, to write own songs. At the beginning Mike was the leadsinger, but – let me say it this way - there are some thing in the band, he can do better than singing…(*both laughing*).

Michael: yeah, so a singer joined the band, we have changed the name to “Cornerstone” in 1999, and started to perform. After four years – members came and gone – I haven’t seen a sense anymore, to be in a band…but we had good luck, and the “reborn” Cornerstone has started their work in 2004 – and now we have an interview for an english magazine with a really nice guy, that’s really great! 2007 was a great year, 2008 even better: we have signed a contract with an american label, we were on tour through UK and Austria, and got some really positive response from the international press. That’s cool (*haha, haha* -> should be a Beavis & Butthead laughing ;-)

I can be a nice guy..hehehe... BUT even I get a little annoyed when those unfamiliar with the genre always compare femme fronted bands with Evanescence (nothing wrong with Amy Lee's band I hasten to add), and then associate female fronted bands with the gothic genre (which in many cases they are not linked to that genre at all). For those totally unfamiliar with your band, how would you describe your music in general?
Steve: Yeah, I really like bands like Evanescence, Nightwish, or Within Temptation, but Cornerstone has absolutely nothing to do with them musically. Our influences are bands like Toto, REM, Cranberries, even The Smiths…a german mag has written shortly, that Cornerstone is “a kind of AOR-rock like Journey, Toto and Asia with Female-fronted vocals”. Which makes me wonder first, but it’s a great pleasure for us, because all of these bands are really great!

Michael: Honestly I have to say, I don’t really see ourself as a metal band. It’s interesting, that the press and folks see our music this way, but the “real” Metal bands would say, that Cornerstone is a “poppy, REM-like Rockband”, and I think they are right. Steve and me have written a handful of heavier songs (like “Changed” or “Something In The Way”), ok, but we have also written songs like “Crises”, and this is a Piano-driven ballad, so our styles are quite different. For me it’s interesting, that our “experimental-songs” – “Ready To Go” and “Fade Away” - are these songs, which folks like the most. The plan was, to arrange two typically 80-ies AOR-songs…and these are more or less the hits now! So we’re planning to write more of these stuff, because I really like this kind of songs, Steve always want to play solos, so it will work!

I have the Renaissance release of your album  'Whatever' and the re-release of that album on Atom Records, re named 'Head Over Heels', with just a slightly tweaked running order. I understand there was problems with Renaissance. Are you able to fill us in with the issues with that label?
Michael: Yeah, Renaissance…the problem with them was, that they have made promises, promises, promises…and nothing ever happened! We haven’t got any Airplay or press-presence, because they haven’t arranged anything. They have screwed us with the sales, and has promised us a tour through US, which was the reason, why we have signed the contract - but NOTHING ever happened. They weren’t even available on the phone, so we have decided to quit the contract. Even today I don’t understand, why they are signing bands, produce CD’s, and then make absolutely nothing for them, to increase sales? This is stop making sense for me! The CEO of our new label is a fast friend of mine, and so we have signed there. ATOM is a quite small, but very fine label – and they are always honest, so that’s quite cool.

After quitting the contract with Renaissance, we were free, to release, whatever we want to release – but we won’t folks get confused, so we decided to rename the album, create new artwork, and Re-Mix the stuff. To be honest, I wasn’t very satisfied with the Mixdown and the voice on “Whatever”, so it was a good possibility, to correct this failures. Anja’s voice is great, and fits better to our style of music. We’ve got Airplay on Radio ARFM, and they have played one of our songs between Rick Springfield and Night Ranger, and I only have heard a very small difference in sound quality, which makes me quite proud!

And is there any reason why 'Breathing For You' does not appear on the Atom Records release?
Anja: the reason was, the boys have choosen the songs for the new release, and “Breathing For You” was the weakest song of the album. Beside the fact, that I’ve got some problems with my voice (knots on my vocal cords), the refrain is so extremly high-pitched, that we have decided, to kick the song off from the album.

I also observe a new vocalist - Anja? What happened to Alexandra?
Michael: Alexandra was with us for four years, Cornerstone was like a family. But then she has decided to leave. Which was a good decision for both sides at the end of the day – Alexandra’s voice was VERY special – they were many people, who has decided, NOT to come to our shows again, because they are “Really like the music, but the voice is quite nervy”. It’s always hard to lose a friend, but musically it was better for both sides.

Steve: Alexandra fell in love with our former Manager…but this fellow hasn’t worked correctly, and so we decided to kick him out of the band. She was loyal to her boyfriend and left the band, too. Shit happens. We wish her good luck and all the best for her future. Cornerstone is mainly Mike and me, so I think it isn’t so important, WHO will sing the songs, as long it sounds well. I see a similarity to Toto: Porcaro, Lukather and Paich always sounded like Toto, no matter, if Kimball, Frederiksen or Williams did the vocal work.

I agree! What got you into the music business in the first place, and what would you class as your influences?
Steve: big influences are certainly REM, Alanis Morisette, Cranberries…but also more heavier stuff, like Toto, Guns’n Roses or Metallica. Steve Lukather is a big influence for me, especially his solo-guitar playing.

Michael: …not forget Beatles and Alan Parsons Project. This are big unfluences for me, and all this influences together are Cornerstone.

Are there any songs on your recordings you really like, or any that perhaps you dislike or are not really too keen on?
Michael: I REALLY LOVE “Fade Away”, because for my ears the arrangments to this song is nearly perfect, and it sounds like a typically AOR-song, which I really like. Recording” Crises” was a horrible experience, because I haven’t recorded it with my own equipment – it takes us two days to recorded it well! Two days playing the piano all the time!!! The only song I can’t hear anymore after all the years is “Changed”, because this was the first song, we have ever written – and we have played it VERY often after the years, so I can’t hear it anymore (*laughs”)

Steve: My Favourite is “Changed” (*laughing*), but I really like all our songs. But even today I wonder, why I’ve gotten writing credits on “Crises” – this is 100% Michael’s song, I have worked on it for 10 minutes or so (*laughing*), the rest was Michael’s work!

Was the studio experience like while recording your album?
Steve: We have really enjoyed working with Kristian Ignatov and Horst-Dieter Steinhoefler, who did “Head Over Heels”, but we have recorded a demo in 2006, and this tonmeister was an idiot, so we’ve recorded and mixed, mixed, mixed for five months (!)…and at the end we have changed the sudio, and they have remixed the stuff, but as Eddie Van Halen always said: “You can’t polish a heap of dog-shit”. At the end we have paid 12.000 Euros (approx.. 11.000 Pounds) for a demo, which has sounded terrible and weak. The most expensive demo of all times (*laughs*)

Michael: But after a while we were signed at an american label, and we have re recorded the album. “Head Over Heels” really sounds great now, it’s available wordwide at amazon.com, Itunes, CDBaby, Play.com and so on. I’m quite satisfied with the production quality. I enjoyed the studio work, too.

A question for Anja. In what is still regarded in some quarters as a male-dominated domain, is there ever a problem with you being taken seriously as a rock musician?
Anja: honestly I have to say, the boys do all of the press work, promo and so on, so the spotlights are not on me primary, which is VERY ok for me. My job is to sing, and I try to do it on the best possible way. I haven’t got any problems in the scene so far.

Have any members of the band been involved with any other musical projects, that you would care to perhaps let us here at Ravenheart Music know about?
Anja: I did cover versions and we have played on parties, before I have joined Cornerstone, but this was in Germany, and it wasn’t very serious (*laughing*).

The female fronted rock/metal scene here in the UK could be stronger, although it is ok and is growing. What are your expectations of the femme rock/metal scene as a whole in the UK, Europe and across the USA?
Michael: I think, bands like Nightwish or Evenescence has helped developed the scene. In the Eighties and early Nineties, there was nothing (except Bangles or similar). But then bands like “Breeders” and “Hole” started, and everything has changed. But I have to say, I don’t see the “Female Rock Scene” as a own “scene”. There are different styles of music, some bands have male, some bands have female fronted singers.

And what is the scene like in Austria..home of my friends at Napalm Records? Michael: honestly I have to say, in Austria there is no place for our kind of music. There are some silly german-singing pop artists, who sing about their last date, hand-helding with their boyfriend and buy some icecream. Then there are Austrian Folk-music, you know, the guys with the Leather-trousers and the yodels, and a quite small Heavy Scene. But Austrian Heavy Scene is REALLY Heavy…Death Metal, Black Metal, and in my opinion most of the bands are really weak. That’s one of the reasons, why we want to make it in the states and in UK: for the Pop-scene we are too heavy, for the HM-scene we are to poppy. In UK and US are big AOR-scenes, in which our music fits in perfectly.

Musically and spiritually, who or what are your inspirations?
Michael: most of the lyrics describe stories out of my life, releasionships, jobs…things, that are happened to me, but most of the lyrics are more dramatically, than the real facts were (*laugh*). Big Influences for me are Morrissey, Mike Mills (REM), Survivor, lyrically. And I love reading Fantasy-books – Dragonlance, Lord of the Rings, that’s an inspiration, too, believe it or not (*laughing*)

When you are not making music, what music do you all listen to in your leisure time, and what bands would you class as your favourites?
Michael: REM, Toto, Asia, Survivor, Alan Parsons Project

Steve: Metallica, Guns’ Roses, Queen, Foo Fighters.
Anja: I hear more Electronical stuff. And I really like Jason Mraz. Honestly! (*laughing*)

Are there any further plans in the pipeline to tour Europe or the UK in 2009?
Steve: Yup. We are planning to come over to UK in April, the tour is already in booking process! And we are planning to do a tour through US in July. It looks VERY GOOD at the moment.

Michael: and we’ll do a few gigs in Austria, too, but the last experience of our Austrian Tour has teached us, not to do an Austrian Tour again. We’ll more concentrate on UK and US in the future.

And if given the chance, what band/artist would you just love to tour and
hang out with?
Michael: REM would be cool ;-) Or a US-band called “Rott”. You know them? (*laughing*). I’d love to meet Molly!

Steve: I’d love to jam around with Steve Lukather! But honestly I have to say, most of the bands, with which we have performed, were cool! We did a gig with the new band of IRON MAIDEN-founder Dennis Stratton in London, they call themselevs REMUS DOWN BOULEVARD, and they were really cool, and great musicians.

All I can say is good luck in all your furture endeavours. We at Ravenheart wish you all the very best for the future.  Finally is there anything that you would like to say to anybody across the world via this website?
Michael: First of all I have to say: thank you for the interview, Dave! And: check out our site, www.cornerstone.co.at, and I hope you’ll enjoy it!

Steve: …and buy the album! We are a poor band, I have to buy new shoes (*laughing*)

Thanks guys and the lovely Anja for the wonderful interview experience. Take care!!