INTERVIEW: CORECASS

1. How was your introduction to music? does it run in the family? was it in school, a particular friend or concert?

My mother introduced me to music. I got lessons from an early age on and she always very much encouraged me to play some instrument.

I took no offence to that but from time to time changed my mind on which instrument I actually wanted to play (harp, drums, bit guitar). Since my mother was a piano teacher herself piano was always kind of accompanying everything.

2. Name one artist, living or dead, that influenced your music-making the most.

There is no such thing as the most influencing artist for me. It all is the sum of everything finally. There is just one concert I was at when pretty small which i still have in mind as an event of big impact on my affection for music: an open air show of Jan Garbarek. He also had a very impressing female drummer with him. Finally it was the whole concert that engraved itself into my memories.

3. How would you describe Hamburg's music scene? do you get together or collaborate with local musicians?

I did not yet collaborate with other musicians in Hamburg so far. But thats also due to the fact that I am sort of a lone wolf when it comes to making music.

Even though I generally love to work with other people and the flow that comes with it, too. Actually I am only here since 2017. So I am still getting familiar with everything.

4. Which is the one venue or place on earth you'd like to play live? if you could choose how would that happen? any guest musicians? any other media involved (art installations, film, etc)?

On earth is hard to say. There is one pretty close and not at all impossible to reach: UT Connewitz in Leipzig, an old cinema – very beautiful old place with great charm.

I lived in Leipzig for quite some time and saw lots of shows there. It would be a pretty personal experience for me playing there.

5. What is your favourite instrument of choice or piece of recording equipment? and why?

Thats hard to say since I use so many different things. What I always used since the starting of CORECASS was harp as the base of everything because I am most familiar with it. V O I D on the other hand is very much influenced by a church organ which was a longtime dream of me to play and record.

On my new album which I am working on right now I am rather focused on piano since it is my most favourite instrument sound wise. I'd love to also do stuff with Cello, too. That one I just won't be able to play myself.

6. Name one artist that you'd like to collaborate (producing, recording, mastering...) and why?

Hildur Guðnadóttir. I simply love her work. What she did for the show Chernobyl is just breathtaking.

7. What is the fundamental idea or concept behind your album V O I D?

At the beginning there was not something like a concept. As it is typical for my workflow things just grew and took shape. The whole album is the result of a very organic working process in which everything just built upon each other.

To let things grow could be named as a principal "concept" of mine. In the end V O I D became bigger and more massive than originally pictured by me – which was also due to the organ. When I realised the three V O I D parts are way too dense and need space to "breathe" I felt the need to "place" it somewhere. That was when the other parts in between came into being. I envisioned a place, a surrounding, a somewhere and somewhen. All in all It is my most complex and wholesome work so far.

8. How challenging was it to piece together? any grievances or internal turmoil?

The biggest challenge was to play and record the church organ. I didn't do both before and it stressed me out a bit. I recorded the rest of the instruments in a studio which was new to me as well since I did all my other records at home before. It was perfect having the time and space there and not being alone with the whole process.

The mixing I did myself again and it was the most difficult mixing so far. It took me quite some time and was accompanied by doubts and everything. But in the end that always is part of the deal. Creative work never runs smoothly.

9. What is your opinion on streaming platforms vs the physical record experience?

It is nice to find new stuff but it is horrible for musicians since you get payed very very badly. Also the quality suffers quite a lot and people just get used to it. Therefore it somehow destroys the music industry while it enriches it at the same time.

Whenever I like something I try to get a copy of it on vinyl. A record on vinyl is a wholesome little piece of art if you ask me, even if not unique. If you really want to support a musician you have to buy the physical records or visit their shows.

10. What is the most important change that the Covid-19 pandemic brought to your life as a musician, considering that you've released an album in 2020?

I found more time concentrating on my music because I couldn't work at my other jobs which are related to event management. So that means way less money (and sort of a struggle came with that) but the chance to get things done.

On the other hand concerts get cancelled, time stays vague. It is depressing pretty much... and hard to keep on moving when no end of this is in sight. It is hard to imagine that it is only one year since I was in the  studio to record V O I D. It feels like ages, a totally different time back then.

CORECASS instagram, official website, bandcamp

The track 'VOID II' taken from new album V O I D is featured in MIX #57.