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| photographer: Sigrid Cardona |
The Generators started off in 1997, electrifying the air waves with attitude and spunk.Their songs have been featured widely for commercials, related to skateboarding, paintball, BMX, to name a few and the band has performed with the likes of Dead Kennedys, Anthrax, Bad Religion and Agnostic Front.
Life in the punk genre hasn’t been easy in spite of the wide usage of their music, commercially and their ability to produce great music and awesome live shows. But now, 15 years down the wire, they have come a long way since their timeless first album, ‘Welcome to The End’. Their 8th album, ‘Last of the Pariahs' came out last year, and featured a headstrong and vibrant track list, including the song, ‘You Against You.’ To promote the album, The Generators are on their West Coast tour which began on the 4th of October. Doug ‘Dagger’ Kane, is the leading voice of the band, and by his side are Mike Snow and Sean Romin on guitars, Greg Millan on drums and Manny Murders on bass. Band Bucket was fortunate enough to interview Doug, who spoke on behalf of the band.
Before The Generators came about Doug and Sean were part of the band, Schleprock. He states, “ I think both Sean and myself have come a long way from those early Schleprock days. I know the both of us are grateful for still being able to make music, and get our music out there to as many fans as we can. I know the both of us have learned a lot about life, music, and friendship over the last 20 years. When we both started sharing the stage decades ago, we were at times out of control. The partying, and the chaos came before the music, and the friendship. So lots have changed for us, and for the better.”
Some of the band members share a history that dates back to before The Generators came about, while some are relatively new. But through thick and thin, through the changes in the music scene and the wavering wire that runs through the genre of punk the band has constantly proven themselves setting the bar high for themselves and other upcoming bands.
“In one way or another we just do what we do,” says Doug.“We love writing, and performing our music. We have a great time being creative, and watching the band's popularity grow every year.”
He goes on to say,”We kind of put our music out into the world and hope that people get to hear it, and will like it, and become a fan of the band. We are not complacent with our music, we try to do the best we can, and always try to keep it interesting. Its not always the easiest thing to do after releasing as many records as we have. We do not want to become a parody of ourselves, so we do try to push ourselves the best we can. Even though we are considered a Punk band, we do not want to feel like we are ripping the fans off by releasing the same record over and over again. It's important to me to know that I am always trying to get better at what we do.”
When asked about the highs and the lows of being in the band, Doug compares being in a band to being in a marriage. “We all know that half the times marriages wind up in divorce. To be in a band with 5 people can e extremely tough, as everyone has there own idea of how things should be done so it's really difficult to find the balance between everyone sometimes. The Generators have some great moments where we were sharing the stage with bands that were truly inspiring to us like The Damned, or Stiff Little Fingers, or when we even show up to town, or city far away from home, and to see a line of kids around the block that are trying to get into a sold out venue to see us. Those moments can be so worthwhile, and give you all the reasons to keep doing what you are doing."
Although pinpointing any particular low point is not so easy he goes on to say, “ What I can say about that is it's hard to witness a band member bring his outside trauma into the bands world. It has happened to me, as well as other band members. Its not a pretty thing to watch, and it usually winds up ruining a tour, or a recording session. We live in a real world, and shit happens. So I try my best these days to keep all lines of communication open, and to let my band know that we are all here to help one another. It should be a family before it's a band. It's not about one guy when
you do this stuff. You have to be a team player to make it work.”
you do this stuff. You have to be a team player to make it work.”
Coming back to the music they make, Doug hold all the albums of The Generators in great value.
“They all are different as well. The first record, 'Welcome To The End' was the funnest to make, but if I was to look back, and say what was the best record musically? I would maybe choose 'Between The Devil, And The Deep Blue Sea'. That record took the band musically to places it had not been before.”
And when it comes to their live performance, Doug says that it all comes down to the energy of the crowd. “It really just depends what kind of mood I am in, I guess,” he says.“If I feel like I want to get the crowd dancing and singing along, then I would say ‘City Of Angels’ is one that I enjoy performing. When things become aggressive at some of our shows and I feel like feeding off that energy, I like singing songs like ‘Dead At 16’, or ‘Fallen World.” Even though his habit of changing the set list may drive his band members nuts he believes,”its all about reading the room, and the crowd. When the game is going on, sometimes you have to change up the playbook.”
On speaking about attaining recognition and approval from their fans, Doug states,”I think when people get to discover The Generators, they normally become a fan. How ever it was meant to go down with us well that is how it's going down. If it takes 20 years for people to discover us then I guess it's gonna be twenty years. We have been down in the trenches forever, and it makes you tough.”
He feels that it’s all about doing what you love and loving what you do.“You just have to love what you do, for the good and the bad. You have to have commitment, and there is even a kind of discipline to the whole thing as well. If you don't have what it takes, then you are in the wrong place. You have to be able to accept that people are going to love you, and half the time they are gonna think you suck. Especially in the Punk Rock scene, you got to have tough skin to hang in there, and keep at it. So I try not to get bogged down with wondering why we have not grown into a big band. Its a day to day thing, and I just try to focus on the moment as best as I can.”
Additionally, this lead singer is one proud member of the Generators. And why wouldn’t he be? The band have constantly come out with some great music. When it comes to their latest album, especially, he says, “I do not believe that record has gotten one bad review. 'Last Of The Pariahs' was a straight forward Punk/Rock N Roll record. We did not try to hard to get experimental with the song writing. I wanted to make a more straight forward album, and I think that is what we did. I thought if we could also get back to our roots a bit while not ignoring what the band had matured to become with our sound, then I believed I pulled off what I was going for. I love the new record, it's a fun record for me to listen to as well as to play.”
For their latest tour, the band will be hitting smaller towns, taking a few detours to perform in different venues. When asked about how and why they planned such a tour, this is what Doug had to say: “We just want to get out there, and do what we do. We are hitting some smaller cities along the way that we normally would not go and venture into. I have always known that sometimes its the places off the beaten path that are the best places to go play at. I remember back in the early 1990's going, and playing underground bomb shelters in a small town in South Dakota that were packed with hundreds of kids stage diving, or going to play in a warehouse in Cheyenne Wyoming with hundreds of kids singing your songs. Those kinds of places are going to be normally packed with energy. “
It’s a different side to touring, and Doug feels that sometimes,“People in the big cities can tend to be jaded as they have bands going through their practically every night of the week. So we are looking forward to playing some of the out of the way places that we have never have visited.”
So what can fans expect from The Generatos? Doug says, “With the new record we are currently starting to work on I think we will be trying to stretch out a bit from the last record, when it comes to the song writing. Its tough because I never like to repeat the same record over and over again."
According the front man, “I think you have to try, and keep it interesting. I do think the new songs will be a bit more modern sounding, and I hope we can achieve to bring something new, and different to the table. I still feel we can do that after 8 records, and I do have a good feeling about it after working with the other guys on the new material. I think we are going to deliver a good, powerful, melodic record in 2013.”
There you go, these guys from Los Angeles, will be bringing you something fresh and exciting in the coming year.
With a last few words for the readers Doug says, “Thanks for tuning in, and you can find out the latest about what the band is up to at www.the-generators.com for news and tour dates. Once again thanks so much!!”
So if you’re in town, be sure to catch The Generators on their West Coast tour.
To stay in touch with all that is going on in the band check out:
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