Static-X — Project Regeneration: Volume 1

Following the death of Wayne Static, in November of 2014, it seemed as though any hopes for new Static-X material were permanently dashed. The band's 2009 album, Cult Of Static (review) would stand as their final offering, issued 10 years after their incredibly successful debut album Wisconsin Death Trip (review). The 20th anniversary quickly approached, with the remaining band members announcing a reunion tour and new material featuring Wayne's vocals.

The premise of the album, which later expanded into a two-part effort, is titled Project Regeneration and features a blend of demo material, voice recordings salvaged from tapes used to provide backing tracks for live performances, and new compositions. There has been an ongoing war of words, between Static-X and former guitarist Tripp Eisen (link) — who was dismissed from the band in 2005, following a conviction for sex crimes involing minors. Eisen did not collaborate with the band on any of the new material, however he is credited with music and song writing on 3 tracks. The band have stated that none of Eisen's performances were used.

In the place of Wayne Static is an "enigmatic" new frontman, who goes by the name 'Xer0.' Any similarities in appearance, stature or vocal tonality to Edsel Dope is coincidental and should be ignored, as should any performance credits! This mysterious, masked individual — whoever they might be — does a very good job blending in with the recordings of Static's voice. There are only a couple of tracks that are obviously a different singer, without any contributions from the deceased frontman, and Xer0's tone is close enough to the abrasive rasp Static routinely employed.

There are no guitar performance credits for Wayne Static on Project Regeneration: Volume 1, which surprised me. The playing and engineering perfectly recreates the distinct feel that his rhythm playing gave Static-X songs. It's impressive how well everything sounds like a classic Static-X record, updated for modern sensibilities. The sense of groove remains intact and the band's sound profile is retained completely. Even if you wanted to assume the most cynical motivations behind this project, the quality of the work and the attention to detail is strong counterargument. The album is rich and full in sound, weaving loops and keyboards in with sick grooves and huge, chunky guitars. Even with all the electronic elements, the material retains a human energy — a bounce that is atypical of music that is written and recorded against on a grid.

The strongest cuts on Project Regeneration are, ironically, the ones that credit Eisen: "Hollow," "Bring You Down" and "Something Of My Own." From what I understand, these were demos cut between Shadow Zone (review) and Start A War (review) and have been re-worked with re-recorded and modified instrumentals. They are by far the most complete and developed songs on the record to feature robust performances from Wayne. The placing of these tracks helps maintain the illusion of Wayne's presence throughout the album. There is no point where things sound cobbled together or recycled; the volume of material the band was able to salvage appears to be considerable.

Clocking in at just under 40 minutes, Project Regeneration: Volume 1 is a homerun as far as I'm concerned. It manages to provide a hearty dose of everything a Static-X fan could ask for in a new album. Posthumous releases have always been viewed with a lot of deserved skepticism, but this effort seems genuine and sincere. The attention to detail and amount of labour that went into making this record is evident in the quality of the end result. As a fan of the band since I downloaded a low-quality MP3 of "Push It" in the summer of 1999, this album overshot even my loftiest expectations.

This is more than simply a throwback album; Project Regeneration: Volume 1 services long-time fans of Static-X while also delivering an industrial nu metal record that feels relevant in 2020. I remain skeptical of what a second volume could possibly entail, but this initial offering was an excellent way to remember the deceased Wayne Static.

Summary

Far more than just a "lost tapes" album, Project Regeneration, Volume 1 sees the original Static-X reunited, issuing 11 new tracks built out of salvaged demos and sundry recordings. For 39 minutes and change, Evil Disco is back. This project is a masterful homage / memorial in addition to a solid album I'd be happy to have under any circumstances. Posthumous releases are always dubious, but this one delivers the goods.

Album Information

Release date: July 10th, 2020
Record label: Otsego Entertainment Group

Wayne Static — programming, lead vocals (tracks 2, 3, 5, 7, 9, 12)
Koichi Fukuda — guitar, keyboards, programming
Tony Campos — bass, backing vocals
Ken Jay — drums
Edsel Dope — guitar, lead vocals (tracks 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 11)
Al Jourgensen — additional vocals (track 12)
Nikk Dibbs — additional programming (tracks 5, 6, 11, 12)
Tommy Shaffner — additional programming (tracks 1, 10)

Track Listing

1. Regeneration
2. Hollow (Project Regeneration)
3. Worth Dyin' For
4. Terminator Oscillator
5. All These Years
6. Accelerate
7. Bring You Down (Project Regeneration)
8. My Destruction
9. Something Of My Own (Project Regeneration)
10. Ostego Placebo
11. Follow
12. Dead Souls

Link: spotify.com

—by Derek

Published: July 29th, 2020.