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Single : Still I Can See
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Rainer Andi Wolf
Artist Bio:
The Ballads of the Big Bad Wolf
This isn't the same old fairy tale you remember. That old story has changed. In this new version, Little Red Riding Hood is an Indie music fan. With her iPod in hand as she strolls through a dense forest in Austria, only to be surprised by the “wolf!” In this instance, the “wolf” isn't dangerous; he's musically gifted - and very much a human. He lures not with canines, but melodic love songs. Our “wolf” is none other than Rainer Andi Wolf, an Austrian singer and songwriter with a knack for composing power ballads. With a style inspired by the pop songs of the 1980s, Rainer Wolf is writing his own musical fairy tale that is coming true! It's time to learn more about the ballads of the big bad "wolf."
Instincts: A Musical Pack
Rainer's pedigree is a very musical “pack.” Music was an inherited instinct in his breed. His grandparents both played musical instruments. His father played Jazz piano, and his mother learned Classical piano as a teenager. For Wolf, however, the most vital musical influence would come from his uncle Gerhard who played clarinet, sax and piano. Rainer says, “When I was around ten, I was introduced to the world of music by my Uncle Gerhard when he showed me some simple chord progressions.”
Rainer began playing guitar at age twelve until his family purchased a piano for his sister to take lessons. When his sister wasn't practicing, Rainer would sneak in and play on the piano. For our “wolf” it was more natural that he trained himself. He would bang on the keys, and learn to play by ear. Sheet music wasn't important, it was about his ears. As a “pup”, our wolf was vivacious as he fed on a love for creative composition and disdain for authority. For Rainer, the music came naturally; it was part of the Wolf family which is indeed one musical pack!
A Lone Wolf Stays Wild
Rainer grew up listening to an era of music filled with fantastic melodies. Groups like The Beatles, The Beach Boys and ABBA filled the airwaves, and he loved the hook lines, arrangements and recording styles that they featured. The mainstream music of the seventies and eighties from bands like Queen, ELO and Chicago amazed a young Rainer - as well did solo artists and writers such as Phil Collins and Billy Joel. The 1980s was an era known for its power ballads and love songs, and Rainer knew he had the talent to create these same types of songs. It was his talent with love songs and ballads that would first lead Rainer into a professional studio.
In 1985 his musical aspirations would come to fruition when Rainer performed his self-produced song “Rust” in an Austrian film called Storchenfarm. In 1987, Austrian producer Christian Seitz invited him into the studio to produce some of his songs. On Christmas Eve, 1989 he had a performance on the popular Austrian charity event called Licht Ins Dunkel. It was at this event that his single and video for “I Saw Your Face” sold thousands of copies - all to benefit children with cancer. Despite the early successes, Wolf was unwilling to give up being an Independent artist. He had negative feelings about having a record company taking away his creative control. The “wolf” would stake out his own creative territory and stay a lone Wolf in the wild.
The Wolf's Raw Diet
Originally Rainer conceptualized himself as a studio project working out of Vienna. Using his initials, he planned to call it R.A.W. after Rainer Andi Wolf. Unfortunately, an American Wrestling company, WWE, had already taken the trademark. That didn't matter, however, as Rainer would continue to pull from a “raw” diet for his creative inspiration. He writes all his own melodies, but will team up with co-writers for his lyrics. He often will co-write with lyricists Willy Bell, Lionel Lodge, and Paula Macheiner.
Wolf survives on a diet of human emotions for song ideas and story lines. Wolf says, “A lot of the time my song ideas or melodies come from an experience with someone I love, or don't love anymore…or people with troubles in their social environments.” Rainer will speak out through his writing, whether it is someone throwing stones in a glass house, or the theme of broken dreams. His songs speak out against war, against violence, and favor nature. As most performing artists however, it's the sound of the applause that drives him. The positive feedbacks from the crowd letting him know that they love his work. These are the things that keep Rainer on the hunt for a new melody, a new idea, and are all part of the “wolf's” raw diet!
Howling at the Moon
Rainer Wolf isn't interested in the fame and fortune of Pop or Rock music. He does what he does because it comes natural and he loves it. His goal is to compose successful songs, specifically ballads. He's composed around one-hundred and fifty songs in his catalog, and has arranged and recorded about thirty five of them. At present, ten of
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