L.A. Beat

North Bay based country rocker Cory Marquardt likes his country music with an edge.

 He just returned home from a week writing in Las Vegas with producer Kevin Churko who is best known for working with Ozzy Osbourne, Hinder and Five Finger Death Punch than he is for working in the country milieu though he has also worked with Shania Twain.

“ If you’ve ever seen Eric Church live, that’s the kind of sound I wanted to record,” he said, adding he spent a week with Churka.

“We wrote for two days and recorded for two,” he said, noting the two songs they wrote “ Blame It On The Double” and “Outlaws and Outsiders” will likely be on an upcoming EP or full length CD.

“We’re both drummers, so we connected that way. And I got to sit and talk with him. He had a lot of good stories about Ozzy and Zakk Wylde and Vinnie Paul who he recorded the Hellyeah’s with,” he said.

“ He’s a very humble guy and he’s a Canadian. I think he’ll take me to the next level. It’s very exciting. It’s country edge,” he said.

 He returns to Lethbridge, April 10  to play Coyote Joes  on a Sunday as part of his  “Don’t Count Saturday” tour.

“This is my first headlining club tour,” he said, adding he has opened for the likes of Toby Keith and  Brantley Gilbert.
“I learned a lot from watching them and now I’m headlining my own tour,” he said.

He  has several singles on the radio including “ “21,”  This Man” and his best known song “Smart Phone,” though for kicks, he recorded a cover of  Justin Bieber’s hit “ Sorry,” even though he’d rather explore the heavier side of country rock.

 

“Some artists got together to record pop songs, so  I decided to cover ‘ Sorry.’  I just recorded it in my garage and out it on Youtube because I thought it would be fun. And the reaction so far has been so far so good. People really liked my version of it,” he said, adding he hasn’t received much  negative feedback.

“ I’ve done worse things,” he chuckled.
He didn’t know when the new CD would be out as he is still supporting his debut  CD “ This Man.”
“We’re looking forward to getting out a six track Ep and we’ll go from there,” he said.

He noted his best known song “ Smart Phone” has a special place in his heart.
“ It’s the very first song I wrote in Nashville. I wrote it with Rob Crosby and  Jason Deere. I thought it would be a hit. It got a lot of great feedback on Youtube from people like Travis Tritt, Eric Church and Mark Chestnutt. It’s definitely something a lot of people relate to,” he said.

He was last in Lethbridge last year on the Outlaws and Outsiders Tour with  Aaron Pritchett and King and Cash and is excited to return.
“ It will be 70 minutes of in your face country rock music. It is where you will want to be if you want to have a party,” he promised.
The show begins at 8 p.m., April 10. Tickets cost $20 in advance, $25 on the day of the show.