First of all how are you?

I am doing GREAT!

For those who don’t know yet, tell us who are the current members of the band?

At this time the permanent members would be Andre on vocals, Brian Noonan on drums and myself (Ray Luokka) on guitar. I played bass on a few songs and a good friend of mine Don Wolfe played on the others. We recently brought in a hot guitar player named Brent Taritas to track a few solo's and if he wants in, he is in.

How did you guys find each other and decide to make such wonderful music?

Brian and I have played in bands together since we were in high school, but after years of the music industry kicking us in the butt we decided to join corporate America and get REAL jobs. After being away from music for quite a while, I got the hunger back and started writing songs again. As fate would have it Brian and I crossed paths and it was only a matter of time before we were writing songs again. The cool thing is we were writing music to please ourselves, which made it VERY enjoyable and easy. Shortly after, we decided to write songs and submit them to other artist in hope that they might dig one of our songs enough to want to record it. Our first attempt to submit a song was to vocalist Rob Rock whom we bumped into at ProgPower in Atlanta. I simply walked up to Rob and handed him a CD with our song "Without Faith" on it and told him if he liked the song it was his with NO strings attached. Rob was very nice and said he would check it out, but after I walked away I seen him lay it down on a table and walk away. That was the first and last time we tried to submit a song to anyone. After that humbling experience we decided why not just record a CD on our own and bring in various artist to perform on it. About a month after we started tracking the material in our home studio, I bumped into Mike Stone of Queensryche at the Guitar center. Mike and I have known each other for years and after a little catching up, Mike offered to sing on a few songs for us. We originally entered Mike's recording studio with the intention of recording 4 songs, but due to his busy, busy schedule we were only able to finish two "Eyes Open" and "Without Faith" before Queensryche went back on the road. We were hoping to finish tracking the other two songs when Mike returned, but Queensryche decided to start working on Operation Mindcrime II and it was at that time that we realized that Mike just did not have the timeto be bothered by us.

Lets be honest, would you rather work on the follow up to one of the greatest Albums ever or help out two dudes calling themselves WiszdomStone?

LOL .. Brian and I kept working on new material and auditioned many many singers until we finally came across a guy named Jim Mahr who had a very clean high voice much like that of Michael Sweet of Stryper. We tracked a song called "The Blade" with Jim, which was the first song we ever recorded on our own. Jim was really professional and did a great job. After catching one of Andre's shows with a local cover band, we asked him if he would be interested in singing on a few songs for us and he said he would give it a try. The first song we sent Andre was "Unforgiven" and we found out very quickly that Andre had "IT"...We posted a rough un-mastered mix of "Unforgiven" on our Myspace page and soon after our friends list starting growing more rapidly then ever. We received numerous messages asking to buy our CD that did not exist, so we decided to put out a 4 song EP. Though the production
on the EP was not very good, peepzzz seemed to like the songs.
 

Originally Brian and I wanted to put out a CD much like Avantasia that would feature many different vocalist, but after working with Dre' we knew we wanted him to be the voice of WiszdomStone. After a short phone call with Andre it was official. WiszdomStone had a voice that would give it an identity of it's own. Brian and I continued writing and tracking new material over a period of about two years and finally had enough material for a FULL length CD, but many peepzzz were getting impatient waiting for the FULL length release, so we released a second EP. Our second EP "The Battle Rages" consisted of 5 songs. "Unforgiven, Take This Cup, The Battle Rages, Floods And Fires and The Sky Is Falling" The production on the second EP was much better and soon after it's release WiszdomStone started receiveing much more airplay on internet radio and college radio stations. Though we have received interest from several record labels we chose to finish the FULL length CD on our own, so we would not have to compromise one note. Our first FULL length CD "RISE" is officially finished and is now in the hands of the very capable Philip Colodetti (Kamelot, Edguy etc...) for mastering. We plan to shop the CD to labels for about a month and if we can not reach a deal we feel is FAIR we plan to release the CD as an independent. We all agree that we would prefer to sell less CD's as an independent then have someone steal all the hard work we have invested.

Why did you choose this name for the band?

All throughout our lives we gather Wiszdom until that final day when we say goodbye to this world. On that final day when they carve our name in stone, we will have reached the final destination of our earthly Wiszdom. That is what "WiszdomStone" stands for.
"Knowing The Lord leads to Knowledge, Knowledge leads to Wiszdom, Wiszdom leads to Understanding"
 

What does it mean or represent for you (WiszdomStone)?

I guess the name WiszdomStone is symbolic for what we strive for in our personal lives.
 

Who came up with the idea for the cover artwork ?

The logo was designed by our friend Russ Bednarek. We wanted a logo that at a glance would be easily identified. If you look very closely you wll see that the "W" and "S" take the form of a headstone. (The WiszdomStone)

I'm hearing a variety of styles on “The Battle Rages”, what would you say your main musical influences are?

Very early we were influenced by bands such as Iron Maiden, Queensryche, Sabbath W/Dio, Priest, Scorpions, Accept etc...More recently bands like Nocturnal Rites, Edguy, Kamelot, Tad Morose, Rob Rock etc...
 

Do you find it difficult as a Progressive Metal outfit to find unique ways of expression?

I do not think we have ever attacked a song trying to be unique. As far as expression, I think our music allows us the freedom to capture many different moods and feelings and I think that is what we want the listener to experience in our music.

Can you describe us the songwriting?

We try to write music that EVERYONE can relate to. If you listen closely and read our lyrics you will see that we visit fear, pain,sorrow, hopelessness, happiness, anger etc...EVERYONE experiences these feelings at one time or another. In the end we choose to show that no matter the situation there is HOPE.

Is there any particular song from the Ep which represents you mostly or do you think is kind of your personal favorite?

It is hard to pick one song that I like more then another, because they all hold a special place in my heart for different reasons. I can say that "Ths sky Is Falling" has brought a tear to my eye. The message in "The Sky Falling" is a simple one. No matter what your situation NO one can take away what is in your heart and soul. I believe the lyric reads "You can crucify, you can take my life, CAN'T
kill the HOPE inside of me." Your physical body can be imprisoned, but your soul is ALWAYS free.

You guys had the opportunity of working with people like Casey Grillo (Kamelot) which is awesome but tell me how this experience was for you?

Tell us about the others who also were performing during the recording sessions. Yes, we have been very blessed with the help from some pretty marquee names such as Casey Grillo (Kamelot) whom I will say is one of the nicest most sincere people I have met in years. Working with Casey was very easy. We sent him the song we wanted him to play on (The Mourning Loss) and he sent it back and it was puuuuurfect! Working with Mike Stone (Queensryche) had other benefits. Mike has been in the music industry for years working with such artist as Queensryche, Peter Criss (Kiss), Bret Michaels (Poison) etc...and I soaked in every bit of advice Mike had to offer. My favorite being "A recording session is never finished, we just run out of time." There are other lesser known names we worked with such as Brian Bolle and Brent Taritas who I believe could sit down and play with any guitar player in the world and hold their own. We had a few guest vocalist come in and sing on our 8 minute Epic tune "The Mourning Loss" Dave McBee who sounds a little like Russel Allen and Dawn Mahuta who brings a little bit of a Within Temptation sound to her part as "Guidance" We also had the help of some great local friends, Mike Henzig (Guitar), Don Wolfe (Bass/keys) and the YoungBlood of Justin Hernandez (Guitar) & Marius. (Keys)

How much time did you have to spend in the studio in order to bring “The Battle Rages" to life?

The Battle Rages took much longer then it should have, do to many factors. First I started losing the dexterity in my left hand due to some crazy neurological disorder (Focal Dystonia) and then our recording studio flooded and after all of that, I ended up in the hospital with numerous blood clots in my lungs. My recovery from the blood clots took nearly a year, but after I was in the clear again we were able to concentrate and wrap it up.

Do you guys prefer to get involved in the recording process or prefer to leave such duties in more 'expert' hands?

We decided very early that we had more time then money, so I enrolled in a recording class, bought some inexpenisve recording gear and went at it. That also has a lot to with the amount of time it took to finish "The Battle Rages" We would record in our home studio and then take all the traXXX to a local recording studio to mix the songs. Often the engineer would look at us like "You want me to do what with this?" LOL So there was a huge learning curve, but in the end I am glad we did it on our own. Recording in a home studio allows you to be more comfortable when performing. When you are in a larger studio where time is money you often rush and compromise the performance.

What is your best memory with the band during the last year?

I don't think there is one memory that stands out more then another. I cherish every step of the journey. I have often told Andre during a long recording session that it is the journey that is most memorable not the destination. I will say hearing the final mastered copies of our first FULL length CD "RISE" early this week brought great joy to my soul.

About the “Unforgiven” video clip, do you like the final result?

NO, I have to say the "Unforgiven" is pretty raw. Originally Casey was to add a story line to the video, but I never followed up with how we wanted the story to unfold. I did learn a lot during the video shoot and promise that if we shoot another video it will rock.

Are there going to be more video clips releases from the album?

I am not sure, but I would thinks yes. We have been so focused on finishing "RISE" that we have not talked about anything else. Like I told you earlier, we were not experts when we were working on "The Battle Rages" so after finishing the EP we started working with a young engineer "Jeffro" and he made us go back and re-track anything he did not think was good enough for a pro caliber CD release. We did as he asked and it sounds HUGE! Do you think that Unforgiven can become in the main song of
“The Battle Rages”? Unforgiven seems to be the most commercial song, but "Floods And Fires" is receiving great reviews as well. All the songs from "The Battle Rages" will be on the "RISE" CD, but there are differences.
We re-tracked ALL the material for the "RISE" CD, so Mike Stone's guitar solo on "The Battle Rages" is only available on the EP.

What would you like or do you want to communicate through the lyrics?

More then anything, we prefer to send a message of HOPE and STRENGTH. We acknowledge the dark side in our music, but in every song you will here some message of HOPE, GUIDANCE, STRENGTH etc...

How would you describe the WiszdomStone fans and what kind of crowds do you hope to attract during the band's upcoming tour?

I think we are very lucky. Because of our roots I think the peepzzz who grew up with Iron Maiden, Queensryche, Sabbath W/Dio, Priest, Scorpions, Accept etc can dig what we do, BUTT the good thing is that we did not stop growing musically. Kids that are into Nocturnal Rites, Edguy, Kamelot etc...Will definetly be able to relate to our music as well. For instance our song "The Sky Is Falling" has bits and pieces that you might find in Dio era Sabbath or an Iron Maiden tune. Nowtake "Floods And Fires" kids who dig some of the newer bands such as Soil Work, Bullet For My Valentine etc...might relate due to the drop tuning of the song. And for those fans of Epic music such as Avantasia, Kamelot, Within Temptation we have "The Mourning Loss"

Can you name a few of the albums that are responsible for your musical upbringing?

Operation Mindcrime, Heaven And Hell, Pain Killer & Number Of The Beast. Anything with Dio, Bruce Dickinson, Halford or Geoff Tate on it.

Do you have any interests outside the band? How would you generally describe yourself as a person/people?

I LOVE simple things like hanging with my friends and playing sports. Most weekends you will find my 9 year old niece and myself at a shopping mall or watching some Disney.

What are your plans for the immediate future and how far do you think this band can evolve, taking into consideration the current state of the music industry?

I guess we have NEVER looked too far into the future, but I would LOVE for a record label to offer us a FAIR deal, so I could pass on a little responsibility and relaXXX a bit. I believe in our music, so my thought is if we can get it out there for the masses to hear, peepzzz just may like it.

Are you looking forward to set some tour dates, maybe?

Originally this was only to be a studio project much like Avantsia, but we have received message upon message asking to see a live show, so who knows what the future might hold.

Is there anything you would like to say to the readers out there?

The word is yours... I guess I will keep it simple. I would like EVERYONE to just take a few minutezzz to shut out the busy world around them and simply
look to the sky and marvel at what a beautiful world we live in.
"Time waits for NO one, so live life to the fullest!"
Thank you and best wishes for all of you ;)

THE WORLD IN WHICH WE LIVE IN IS A VERY SCARY PLACE,
YET IT IS A BEAUTIFUL PLACE...HOW YOU CHOOSE TO EMBRACE
IT IS UP TO YOU.