In fact, some songs he and the guys in Rehasher – bassist Gui and guitarist/vocalist Geis, both from Army of Ponch, and drummer Jake, who plays in an insane “drunk grind-core”-sounding band called Savage Brewtality along with Gui and Geis – recorded for their debut full-length on No Idea, ‘Off Key Melodies’, have been lying around for up to six years. And according to the frontman, there are a bunch more songs in the vaults – and some in a vein not many would expect from this fellow, describing them as “slower, Stone Temple Pilots/Smashing Pumpkins-kind of songs” that he hasn’t any idea what to do with.
In any case, Rehasher is somewhat of anomaly. As seen, it’s an alternate creative outlet for Roger, but the band is noteworthy for other reasons as well, namely the ideals behind it. There’s an endearing freshness, even a sort of naiveté and simplicity to the band’s outlook and WHY they’re creating music. Oddly enough they’re NOT “trying to be a priority at a record label,” or even touring on a large-scale, for that matter, as Roger discusses. These are just four friends, “drinking buddies”, all of whom play in (and tour with) other bands, playing the kind of music they want – for themselves. And if other people out there hear their record or see them live and like Rehasher, well then, that’s all the better. And these guys are D.I.Y. to the core, running their own Website, printing their own t-shirts. Even the record was produced and recorded at Roger’s house (yes, he has a studio), something he’s never done with his own material before. “We’re having fun in an old-school kinda way,” he declares. “I make music and play music because I love it and because it’s an outlet, it gets something out of my system.” THESE are the reasons to do anything in life! And because this is true of Rehasher, they become even more admirable in my eyes.
Essentially, then, there’s not much thought or scheming behind Rehasher, who don’t take themselves all that seriously or put any pressure on themselves. Why, the band wasn’t even “formed” consciously. It just happened naturally. Turns out Roger was recording a small band from Virginia about six years ago and became friendly with the members, some of whom ended up moving to Gainesville. Then, together with Roger, they all agreed to record some songs from their old band, Home Team, and some Roger had written. After that, it progressively moved to the next level with the guys deciding to write some more songs and playing shows – solely for enjoyment’s sake, mind you.
“I wasn’t really LOOKING to form it, bit I was having fun with these guys,” the frontman explains, adding with a laugh, “It wasn’t actually, ‘I’m starting a band this week. I need to find a guitar player and a drummer.’…It was more like, ‘Hey, why don’t you come over? We’re gonna hang out and screw around with some guitars, it’ll be fun.’” And that’s exactly the way it has remained.
Even the process of recording ‘Off Key Melodies’ follows this nonchalant, laid-back manner. I ask if they planned on putting more songs than the 10 that appear (the final track is a great, Rehasher take on David Bowie’s “Suffragette City”) on the finished product. Roger reveals they didn’t go into recording thinking, “‘Okay, we’re gonna have this many songs on the record,’ or we didn’t have extra songs that we didn’t record or anything. It’s just what we were doing at the time.” The record took some time to come out and its release got pushed back because the guys were busy touring with their other projects and since Rehasher wasn’t the label’s priority, “there was no hurry,” Roger reassures. Plus the guys wanted to wait to get a local artist, Stenvik Mostrom, to do the artwork. “It was always kinda done in the sense of it’s gonna be cool when it’s done and we’re all gonna be stoked and nobody’s in a hurry, and if it never comes out, we’ll still be stoked,” he concludes.
Well, they did finish the record and it did come out, and there is no doubt fans of the guys’ other bands will totally dig ‘Off Key Melodies’, which is a fine piece of fast, catchy, melodic, and just plain charming punk rock, though the record’s creation was more for personal reasons. “It’s definitely a release,” he concurs. Anyway, because they’re a “tiny” band, they probably won’t be doing widespread touring in support of the record, though if a good-looking opportunity came about to open for a band, they’d be up for it, but, they’re not the type of band that are looking to be out on the road all the time, considering their other commitments. In the end, Roger verifies, “We’re having a good time.” And when they do play shows you can be sure it’s fun. “We goof around and do shots of Jagermeister onstage, and have a good time.”