A Fucking Fun Interview With Rockin' Matthew Wheeler Of The Cornfed Project
Interview By: John Wisniewski
In this interview, Matt ‘Cornfed’ Wheeler the vocalist and guitarist of The Cornfed Project speaks about how his inspirations write his music, his favorite bands, and working with Bar Rum Records.
Punk Globe: When did The Cornfed Project form, Matthew?
Matthew: Started as most bands do, in a couple of garages, back in 2006 or so. Rough go of it till we could secure a solid drummer. In 2008 we got a lineup that would ultimately launch the band.
Punk Globe: Do you have any favorite bands?
Matthew: I pulled a couple from each member, and I don’t know what I expected, they all looked the same lol. Kiss, Cheap Trick, AC/DC, Bronx, Hellacopters, Supersuckers, The Hangmen. And I would like to mention a couple of Rum Bar Records label mates as well, The Legendary Swagger and The Streetwalkin’ Cheetahs.
Punk Globe: Tell us about the song “Long Time Ago”.
Matthew: “Long Time Ago” was one of the first songs I wrote for this project, so one of our oldest songs. Story goes…I worked with a guy who had gotten a divorce, and his ex was acting out pretty publicly. Once the dust had settled, she started coming around and trying to rekindle the relationship. I overheard him on the phone say “That was a long time ago, you gotta go”, and that situation stuck with me, and that was fuel for that song. An early EP we recorded of the song, had a really cool Hammond B3 organ, part through the song, played and recorded by my friend Jason Freese. When we re-recorded the full length,we went without it to have a streamlined feel to the album and get the songs as close to our live shows as we could.
Punk Globe: Will you be playing any live shows?
Matthew: We love to play live, and honestly that’s where the band really shines. If you love our music then you will absolutely love our live shows. We have a couple of things in the works for the fall, but currently, we are in the bunker, working on our next full-length album. Really happy how it’s coming together. Some of our best stuff to date.
Punk Globe: Who named the band?
Matthew: I named the band by accident! I was putting together an album of my own. Before there was a band. I put together 10 to 12 songs and put it out to friends, to check the temperature. I dubbed it “The Cornfed Project”. (My nickname is “Cornfed”…and this was my project.) It wasn’t a “band”. Very early on we didn’t have a name, and the first couple of junk gigs we just used it. Didn’t think about it really. It was a placeholder. Once we started gaining steam, I asked the guys, what were we gonna call this pig, ’cause it wasn’t ever supposed to be the name of a band. But, it served us well, and the locals just called us “Cornfed”.
Punk Globe: What’s in the future for the band?
Matthew: We have recently been taken under the wing of Rum Bar Records. And that has breathed new life into us, and we couldn’t be happier. They really love music, and do so much for the bands, with getting music to the right ears. So as I mentioned earlier, we have a new full-length album on the way, and are stoked that we are working with a label, to distribute it properly. Look for it within the year! Past that we will do what we have always done, keep rock alive, by sweating all over every stage we can find…
Punk Globe: Could you tell us about writing the songs “Who I Am” and “I Don’t Care”?
Matthew: I love these tunes! And two of our busiest on the album for sure. “Who I am ” is our closer to living normally. Huge rock anthem song, with a really fun dueling guitar part, after the solo, and all the hey-hey-heys you can eat. I wrote it as a song that could feature everyone live. Our “pyros” at the end of the show, so to speak. Lyrically it’s about the bad luck guy. No matter what, you can change the situation, or the location, but you can’t change the man. The common denominator in every bad situation… that guy. “I Don’t Care ” is about as punk as we get. Really fun song to play as well. Super busy and punchy. I remember I was listening to”Imperial State Electric ” and was digging the riffs on the album. I wanted the main riff through the verses to be almost like a hiccup, like listening to an argument. That played into the lyrics…
That is ridiculous, to be honest. Imagine a guy who would be telling off a guy who has everything, but he got the girl at the end of the day. He may be a loser, but he got the girl and still has all of his hair…So take that.
Punk Globe: How are your songs constructed? Do you start with a riff, then work off it?
Matthew: I do all the writing. We have a couple of songs that we have flushed out together, but ultimately I bring the ideas. And to be honest,the guys have been preferring the songs to be pretty much complete before bringing it to them. But what happens after that is kind the magic for me. I have surrounded myself with the most amazing players. I bring the song, and it comes out the other end, as a “Cornfed” song. I’m not a songwriting machine, to be honest. I throw away ten times what I bring to the table. And some are good songs, but they just aren’t “Cornfed” songs. I write what I would want to hear if I went to a show. And I feel like I need to protect the brand. I would have 5 amazing songs that are us, thru and thru, then 10 songs then 10 songs that are all over the place. So that takes me a little longer to produce. So to answer your original question, I wrote a song with a hook in mind. And then pick up the guitar and write around it. I have an idea for the “feel” for the song, and then dive into what I need to make that happen. I have a saying…”Don’t bore us, get to the chorus”. I love catchy choruses of pop music, so I take that idea and twist it to do my bidding, in a sweaty rock sort of way. I have no interest in musical masturbation. I don’t care how fast you can play, or how high you can sing. If I don’t remember the song, what’s the point? Give me a killer riff, a catchy hook, wrap that golden nugget in a bowl, and I’ll give you smiles for days.
Punk Globe: Thanks so much for the interview Matthew