"Oh, you guys are.. party rock. You like people to drink beer and have fun at your shows..", a wasted wannabe singer declared at the end of his short but hilarious audition for the band. Thus was born The Regenerators, a Saint Paul, MN all-star cast of rock 'n' rollers hell bent on bringing out their brand of multi-generational shame based music.
Guitarists Eric Berg (aka Slee-Z-E) and Brad Johnson (aka Dirty Dick) both being long time friends had been looking to form a band with all the punch of metal and the fun of punk. Eric emerging from sci-fi punk band Invasion Earth, with his supernatural bluesy solos and Brad, fresh out of the legendary shock rock band Impaler, wielding his Shreddy Krueger licks give birth to a fun frantic style all their own, hooking the listener in to a world of booze, sex, jetpacks and chainsaws. They found a drummer in their friend and fellow local legend "Boy" Bill Covert, former Vile and Mondo Trasho bassist who put down the four strings to deliver the meat and potatoes to the party. Former guitarist for The Ominous, Tom Carlson (Tomtastic, Tombie) would wield the heavy axe and bring forth thunderous bass riffs that climb and explode, complimenting this ensemble cast and pissing off Brad because he won't turn down. Having found the thunder they only needed the lightning. Auditioning several singers (Lemmy was unable to participate due to scheduling conflicts and we never actually met him so that's made up) they chose former Pair of Sevens frontman and patriarchy advocate Aaron Holland (Vinnie Volts/#Douche Bag) a crooner who wails his guts out and flails about as it strapped to an electric chair.
The album, Caffeine and Chrome, holds within it all the raw dirty hunks of rock that snag you by the short and curlies and drags you into the world of actually having fun listening to music again. Songs like "Into The Woods" (a love letter to The Evil Dead trilogy) holds all the punky angst you could ever hope for while delivering the goods with quirky lyrics, booming bass and drums and a solo that swallows your soul, while "Friday Night Lights Out" takes an objective view at abusive relationships between two violent lovers and the destructive cycle that locks these people in. From Satan and The Rocketeer to break-ups and gambling this is one of the last bands on Earth that isn't selling misery through music but promoting revelry and joy to lovers of the genre. When they ask you "Do You Wanna Take A Ride?" forget your seatbelt, throw away your helmet, grab on tight, forget your friends are watching, and headbang your way to musical Valhalla.
