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Project Regeneration Vol. 1

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Project: Regeneration Vol. 1
Studio album by
Static-X
ReleasedJuly 10, 2020
Recorded2004–2005, 2013–2014, 2019–2020
Genre
Length39:17
LabelOtsego Entertainment Group
ProducerUlrich Wild
Static-X chronology
Cult of Static
(2009) 		Project: Regeneration Vol. 1
(2020) 		Project: Regeneration Vol. 2
(TBA)
Singles from Project: Regeneration Vol. 1
  1. "Hollow (Project Regeneration)"
    Released: February 6, 2020[4]
  2. "All These Years"
    Released: May 15, 2020[5]
  3. "Bring You Down (Project Regeneration)"
    Released: July 15, 2020[6]
  4. "Dead Souls"
    Released: September 22, 2020

Project: Regeneration Vol. 1[7] is the seventh studio album by the American industrial metal band Static-X. It was released on July 10, 2020,[8] by Otsego Entertainment Group and distributed by The Orchard Music, a subsidiary of Sony Music. It is the band's first studio album in eleven years following Cult of Static (2009), their longest gap between studio albums to date, and their first album not on Warner Bros or Reprise Records. The album includes part of the last recordings of deceased frontman Wayne Static, who died in 2014, with his role being filled by a new frontman credited as "Xer0". Project Regeneration sees the return of the original Static-X line-up—bassist Tony Campos, guitarist and programmer/keyboardist Koichi Fukuda and drummer Ken Jay—and was produced by Ulrich Wild, who has produced and/or mixed all but two albums by the band in the past.[9]

Background and development

Static-X frontman Wayne Static died in November 2014 after an accidental drug and alcohol overdose.[10] At the time of his death, he and the founding members of the band were estranged. Before his death, Static was working on demos that he sent to a producer, who was a mutual friend of Static and Campos; when he rediscovered the recordings after Static's death, he contacted Campos and sent the material to him,[11] but Campos felt it was "too soon",[12] and did not revisit the recordings until 2016[13] when Tripp Eisen contacted him with the idea to reunite and begin writing music for a Static-X reunion and album. Eisen made Campos aware of the three fully completed, mixed and mastered extra songs from the Start a War album.[14] Campos additionally found material on DA-88s[13] while he was looking for live backing tracks for the then upcoming tour;[15] because of the recording technique of the DA-88, vocals and instruments were recorded simultaneously on two different tapes, but some tapes were lost or too damaged to be recovered.[13] Some tapes also included guitars and programming; one of them, entitled "Turn It On", was eventually reworked into "Terminator Oscillator".[16]

Although the band originally intended to recruit guest vocalists to contribute to Static's compositions, the band announced in June 2019, "We unexpectedly uncovered even more unreleased tracks left behind by Wayne... many of these had isolated vocal performances!" Consequently, the band took more time to complete the record, which "will now have fewer guest vocalists and more complete songs featuring lead vocals by Wayne Static", with the exception of Ministry's Al Jourgensen.[17] The album also includes new compositions without Static's involvement, such as "Otsego Placebo", which was originally intended for Vol. 2., but come mix time, it was "closer to the finish line than many of the other songs".[16]

Tripp Eisen contributions

The former lead guitarist Tripp Eisen has claimed twelve of the songs on the albums were co-written by him during his time in the band and has accused the current band of attempting to release his work in a heavily altered form to try to avoid paying him royalties. Eisen also stated that a "legal dispute" was the reason for the album's delay.[18]

The band has since confirmed they are using some of Eisen's contributions when responding to a fan query on Instagram but said Eisen had no involvement in the studio whatsoever and that his contributions to the album are previous composition credits only. Eisen has publicly claimed a new song is on the album ("Road to Hell", now titled "My Destruction") and additional previous compositions with Static beyond the three that are credited.[19][20] Volume 1 ultimately included three songwriting credits to Eisen, listed only as "T. Salvador" in the CD's notes. The aforementioned "My Destruction" was not one of the three tracks credited to him.[21]

Release and marketing

On October 23, 2018, the bassist Tony Campos, lead guitarist Koichi Fukuda and drummer Ken Jay announced that they were reforming to tour for the 20th anniversary of Wisconsin Death Trip and would release Project Regeneration, featuring compositions and vocals recorded before Static's death in 2014. Along with the announcement, the band shared a trailer for the album featuring clips from an upcoming music video and snippets of five previously unreleased songs. The band made several bundles of the album available for pre-order, with fans who pre-ordered the album able to have their name featured in the liner notes.[9] Matt Zane will direct several music videos for songs from the album.[8]

On February 6, 2020, the band released the album's first single, "Hollow (Project Regeneration)", their first single in 10 years. According to Tony Campos, "Hollow (Project Regeneration)" dates back to the recording sessions of Start a War, but was not released on the album or any album after due to the music not being fully realised. The band later replaced the instrumental tracks underneath the vocals under the advice from the producers to avoid resembling the original demo material.[22] The band also announced that they were expanding the album to two volumes because of the number of recordings they had found.[23]

On May 15, 2020, the band released the album's second single, "All These Years", with an accompanying music video. The band also announced that the album's standard release on streaming and CD had been pushed back to July 10, 2020, with the vinyl edition pushed back to August 14, due to manufacturing delays associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. Tony Campos, speaking to Loudwire, said, "The album is 100% complete. We are just waiting for the manufacturing to resume. We have been given word that all is finally in production, so we are excited to get this out to the fans."[24]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic84/100[25]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[26]
Blabbermouth.net8/10[27]
Consequence of SoundB+[28]
DriveTribe[29]
Sonic Perspectives8.5/10[30]
Sputnikmusic3.7/5[31]

Project Regeneration Vol. 1 was met with critical acclaim from music critics. At Metacritic (a review aggregator site which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 from music critics), based on 4 critics, the album has received a score of 84/100, which indicates "universal acclaim". Sputnikmusic called it a "labour of love"[31] and DriveTribe called it "a brilliant mix of the fast industrialism that made Wisconsin Death Trip so awesome and the more alt-metal stylings of Shadow Zone and Start a War".[29][unreliable source?] Reviewers also noted the late Static's presence on the record, writing that "despite the breakup and the very founder's death Static-X is still a Wayne Static project through-and-through",[30] and "although a fair amount of the music was re-written or heavily re-worked by the surviving band members, Wayne's sheer talent still clearly shines through".[29]

Concluding the review for AllMusic, Neil Z. Yeung claimed that "Respectfully done, Project: Regeneration Vol. 1 is a fun and technically proficient reminder that Static-X were ahead of their time and perhaps a little underrated. Through this cathartic process, the album serves as a love letter to Static and their loyal fan base, a respectful tribute that both honors his legacy and adds an unexpected new chapter to their discography."[26]

Track listing

Project: Regeneration Vol. 1 track listing[32]
No.TitleMusicLength
1."Regeneration"Xer0, Koichi Fukuda, Tom Shaffner1:00
2."Hollow (Project Regeneration)"Tony Campos, Xer0, Ken Jay, Fukuda, Tripp Eisen, Wayne Static2:41
3."Worth Dyin For"Campos, Xer0, Jay, Fukuda, Static3:26
4."Terminator Oscillator"Campos, Xer0, Jay, Fukuda, Static3:13
5."All These Years"Campos, Xer0, Jay, Fukuda, Nikk Dibs, Static3:56
6."Accelerate"Campos, Xer0, Jay, Fukuda, Dibs2:48
7."Bring You Down (Project Regeneration)"Campos, Xer0, Jay, Fukuda, Eisen, Static3:35
8."My Destruction"Campos, Xer0, Jay, Fukuda, Eisen3:29
9."Something of My Own (Project Regeneration)"Campos, Xer0, Jay, Fukuda, Eisen, Static2:52
10."Otsego Placebo"Campos, Xer0, Jay, Fukuda, Shaffner4:20
11."Follow"Campos, Xer0, Jay, Fukuda, Static3:08
12."Dead Souls" (featuring Al Jourgensen[13])Campos, Xer0, Jay, Fukuda, Static4:44
Total length:39:17

Personnel

Static-X

  • Wayne Static – programming, lead vocals (2, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 12), lyrics (2, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 12)
  • Tony Campos – bass, backing vocals
  • Koichi Fukuda – lead guitar, keyboards, programming
  • Ken Jay – drums
  • Xer0 – rhythm guitar, programming, lead vocals (3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 11), lyrics (4, 6, 8, 10, 11, 12)

Additional personnel

Charts

Chart performance for Project: Regeneration Vol. 1
Chart (2020) Peak
position
Scottish Albums (OCC)[33] 95
US Billboard 200[34] 48

References

  1. ^ "THE WEEKLY INECTION: New Releases From INTER ARMA, ENSIFERUM, and More Out Today – 7/10". Metal Injection. 10 July 2020. Archived from the original on July 12, 2020. Retrieved July 11, 2020.
  2. ^ "From blockbuster hard-rock collabs to heroic dance-punk epics: here are this week's essential guitar tracks". Guitar World. 10 July 2020. Archived from the original on July 11, 2020. Retrieved July 11, 2020.
  3. ^ "Static-X's Project Regeneration Vol. 1 properly cements Wayne Static's legacy: Review". Consequence of Sound. July 10, 2020.
  4. ^ "Static-X Debut New Track "Hollow" From "Project Regeneration" Album". ThePRP. February 6, 2020. Archived from the original on February 7, 2020. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  5. ^ "Static-X Releases Official Music Video for Brand New Song "All These Years," Featuring Vocals by Wayne Static!". Instagram. Archived from the original on 2021-12-25. Retrieved May 15, 2020.
  6. ^ "STATIC-X Releases Official Music Video For 'Bring You Down'". Blabbermouth. July 15, 2020. Retrieved July 15, 2020.
  7. ^ "Static-X "Project Regeneration Volume 1" CD". Static-X. Retrieved February 9, 2020.
  8. ^ a b "STATIC-X 'Project Regeneration' Director MATT ZANE Discusses His Involvement". Blabbermouth.net. October 24, 2018. Archived from the original on October 25, 2018. Retrieved October 25, 2018.
  9. ^ a b Blistein, Jon (October 23, 2018). "Static-X Plot Reunion Tour, New Album 'Project Regeneration'". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 25, 2018. Retrieved October 25, 2018.
  10. ^ "Wayne Static cause of death revealed". Alternative Press. March 13, 2015. Archived from the original on March 15, 2015. Retrieved February 27, 2016.
  11. ^ Bad Ass Productions. "Static-X Interview 2019 Tony Campos". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2020-07-06. Retrieved March 8, 2020.
  12. ^ "Static-X Bassist Tony Campos on 'Project Regeneration' + Honoring Wayne Static". July 16, 2020.
  13. ^ a b c d e Childers, Chad. "Static-X Triumph Through Emotional Journey Saluting Wayne Static on New Album". Loudwire. Archived from the original on July 6, 2020. Retrieved July 6, 2020.
  14. ^ "Tripp Eisen: Static-X Violate Wayne's Memory By Tweaking His Songs". Loudwire. October 17, 2019.
  15. ^ VoicesInMy Head. "EP 2: STATIC-X AND DOPE INTERVIEW @GREEN BAY DISTILLERY DECEMBER 3, 2019" – via YouTube.
  16. ^ a b "A conversation with Xer0 on Static-X's return with 'Project Regeneration Vol.1' | Metal Insider". 31 August 2020.
  17. ^ Yücel, Ilker (June 10, 2019). "New album from Static-X to feature even more material recorded by the late front man". ReGen. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  18. ^ a b "TRIPP EISEN Accuses STATIC-X Of 'Violating WAYNE STATIC's Memory' By Altering Songs They Wrote Together". Blabbermouth.net. October 16, 2019.
  19. ^ "TRIPP EISEN Says He Has 'Six Or Seven Songs' On New STATIC-X Album 'Project Regeneration Vol. 1'". Blabbermouth. June 13, 2020. Retrieved 2020-06-15.
  20. ^ "TRIPP EISEN Accuses Former Band Mates of Patently Deceptive Songwriting Credits on Project Regeneration Vol. 1". Blabbermouth. July 14, 2020.
  21. ^ a b "Static-X". Facebook.
  22. ^ "Watch Video For STATIC-X Song 'Hollow' From 'Project Regeneration' Album". Blabbermouth.net. February 7, 2020. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
  23. ^ "Static-X's "Project Regeneration" Album Has Been Expanded To Two Parts, Band Debut "Hollow" Video". The PRP. February 7, 2020. Archived from the original on March 2, 2020. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
  24. ^ Childers, Chad. "Hear Wayne Static on New Static-X Song 'All These Years'". Loudwire. Archived from the original on May 17, 2020. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  25. ^ "Project Regeneration, Vol. 1 by Static-X Reviews and Tracks - Metacritic". Metacritic. Retrieved 10 July 2020.
  26. ^ a b "Project Regeneration Vol. 1 - Static-X | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. July 10, 2020. Retrieved August 13, 2020.
  27. ^ "CD Reviews: Project Regeneration Vol. 1". Blabbermouth.net. July 15, 2020. Retrieved July 15, 2020.
  28. ^ "Static-X's Project Regeneration Vol. 1 properly cements Wayne Static's legacy: Review". Consequence of Sound. July 10, 2020. Retrieved July 11, 2020.
  29. ^ a b c Percy, Robert (July 10, 2020). "Review: Static X - Project Regeneration Vol. 1". DriveTribe.
  30. ^ a b "Static-X – Project: Regeneration Vol. 1 (Album Review)". Sonic Perspectives. July 9, 2020.
  31. ^ a b "Review: Static-X - Project Regeneration Vol. 1". Sputnikmusic.
  32. ^ Project: Regeneration Vol. 1 (CD sleeve). Static-X. Otsego Entertainment Group OEG001CD. 2020.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  33. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 17, 2020.
  34. ^ "Static-X Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
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