Artist description It's hip-hop, metal, funk, jazz, alt. rock, punk ... it's Corner Stone

Music Style Rap Metal ... with a brain

Musical Influences The Roots, RHCP, Jane's Addiction, Afrika Bambaataa

Similar Artists The Roots, RHCP, Rage Against the Machine

Artist History Corner Stone is a group of stylistic nomads. As soon as you settle into one of their laid-back funky tunes like "Isn't It Amazin'", they break left and smash full throttle into one of their heavy pit bangers like "Witcha". Their CD "Corrective Action" encapsulates the thoughts, feelings and overall attitudes of the band's members. Despite only sharing a few influences here and there, Corner Stone's tracks on an individual basis come across as cohesive, fluid and unforced. Corner Stone has been steadily working their way up into being one of the top tier bands in their hometown of Vegas since debuting in February of 2001. They've become a consistently good draw in addition to snagging Band of the Month honors on the lvlocalmusicscene.com site and a full-page article in local publication City Life Magazine in June of 2002. Their song "Witcha" has gotten rave reviews on GARAGEBAND.com and was the 4th most requested song of 2002 on local radio staion KOMP's "Homegrown Show". And their song "Isn't It Amazin'" was included on the lvlocalmusicscene.com Vol. 4 compilation in addition to receiving crossover airplay on pop station KLUC. Corner Stone has appeared on UNLV's "Totally Band in Vegas" television show and has also captured the attention of Budweiser and has become part of their "True Music Live" program. With a relentless promotion ethic, wonderful support from fans, local promoters and radio, the band is looking to leave the nest and start exposing the rest of the world to what they're all about. And that is ... good music regardless of what category it's thrown into.

Group Members Randall Logan : lead vocals, saxophone Scott Herhold : guitar Rocky Meisner : bass Jason McNelis : drums Ryan Puskarich : guitar

Instruments Vocals, guitar, bass, drums, turntables, saxophone

Albums Corrective Action

Press Reviews Online Archives for the Las Vegas CityLife. June 05, 2002 Building a foundation: Cornerstone breaks the hip-hop/rock mold By Pj Perez "Is this going to be one of those things where you start off talking about how much rap-metal sucks?" It's a valid question coming from Randall Logan, lead vocalist and lyricist of local hip-hop act Cornerstone. The crunchy guitar riffs and heavy drumming of his band may sound, on the surface, like many other unfairly pigeonholed rap-metal bands. But the second that Logan drops his unmatchable rhymes over funky beats and charged guitars, it becomes clear that Cornerstone stands high above the rest of the rap-metal herd. The band likes to call its sound "live hip-hop." It lives up to the label. Cornerstone has made impressive headway in the short time it's been playing clubs. After forming in the fall of 2000, the band underwent some line-up changes, but it has remained consistent since July '01. At first, Cornerstone nearly burned out, playing fifty shows in less than a year's time. "A lot of the local bands were really helping us, putting us on shows," Logan says. "It made it so much easier to be a new band. And now, what's kind of cool is that we're in a position where we're kind of doing that for other people. Whoever says the local scene doesn't stick together, I don't necessarily agree with that." Cornerstone is releasing their debut CD, a self- produced effort titled Corrective Action. This eight-song album highlights the five-piece band's battle-tested sound, professionally engineered and co-produced by Matt Breunig at Up Front Recording Studios. From the distorted funk of "Every Word I Say" to the R&B radio-ready "Curious," Cornerstone bounces with energy and musicianship, qualities often lacking in more seasoned acts. The band spends a lot of time polishing its music, not necessarily to please the masses, but because of the pride the guys take in each song. "People have been asking for CDs since we started, even when we were still pretty horrible," says Logan, "Now that we've got everything together, the CD has come out to be something that we're really proud of, and we know that the people want it." Though its music is equal parts hip-hop and rock, Cornerstone hates being described as a rap-metal band. But unlike many of its contemporaries, it can justify its distaste for the label. The music is definitely live hip-hop, with many of the choruses and hooks based on the scratches and juggles of DJ Dialect (a.k.a. Bryan Lloyd). Logan's rapping is quick, smooth, and real-he's a rapper who has always liked rock, not the other way around, like most modern-day "rap-core" bands. His lyrics are meticulously planned, sometimes delivered so fast that it takes three or four listens to really get what he's saying-but the feel of the song is obvious from the start. "I don't know lyrics to one song from beginning to end," says Jose Paredes, Cornerstone's guitarist. "I know a little bit here and there. But you don't have to know the lyrics to the song to know what the song is about, because from the first word to the last word, he's on it the whole song. It's all one topic, and it's all fresh." Cornerstone doesn't slack on the rock side, either. Paredes crafts deep sounds, both heavy and funky, using an array of effects and pure invention. Mike Lopez holds down the bottom end on bass, flowing from slaps and pops to thumping grooves. Josh Grant manages to tie everything together with his solid drumming, setting the foundation for Cornerstone's trademark flurry of sound. The band hits hard on songs like the angry "Pull" and the evil-girlfriend rant, "Witcha." With continued support from local radio stations KXTE 107.5-FM and KOMP 92.3-FM, a new CD on the way, and good friends in the local scene, Cornerstone seems ready for the next step: national exposure. Despite the poor track record of Las Vegas bands trying to breakout, the boys of Cornerstone are confident they have what it takes to succeed. "I'm trying to contact radio stations around North America," Logan says, "just trying to see if I can get a response. If we can get airplay out here, then we're more than happy to go out there and play. There's only so much you can do in Vegas,and [it] gets smaller and smaller. It kind of wears you down. I think the CD is going to be a step up. If they want it here, they're bound to want it somewhere else."

Location Las Vegas, Nevada - USA

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