Photo courtesy of Rebecca Lader
Spirited New York hardcore group Regulate emerged on the scene in 2013, unleashing a fury of no-bullshit hardcore that they’ve continued to strengthen with each release. Coming through with an explosive energy on their debut LP, In The Promise Of Another Tomorrow (2018)—a massive stepping stone for the band–Regulate really began to engage listeners with their ferocious instrumental attack and Sebastian Paba’s raw, gritty vocal approach.
With a few years and a pandemic having elapsed since then, Regulate came together with a patient mindset and a noticeably stronger sense of chemistry on a new collection of songs that make up their latest, self-titled LP. With Flatspot Records at their side, vocalist Paba, in many ways, feels Regulate have entered a new era of the band.
“I feel we were all really patient while putting the record together. There was no deadline; we hadn’t hooked up with Flatspot Records yet, so we didn’t have anyone trying to put things into action,” explains Paba. “We had more than enough time, and we used all of our time productively, so we were able to let the songs breathe and kind of evolve on their own.”
Paba recalls getting together to demo songs, to write, to practice, and to play, at that time, being the biggest part of his social life. “We were getting together at a time when the only people I was seeing were my family and my dogs. I look back on the time spent putting this record together, before even recording any of it, very fondly. It’s always going to stick out in my mind as good, happy times. There were days where you were just inside all the time but looking forward to tomorrow when you get to go to New Jersey to track a new song and just hang out and see your friends,” says Paba.
He continues, “It didn’t feel like a task… None of us were doing shit, so we all had time, and we were all looking forward to seeing each other and coming to the table with all of our ideas. It was super fresh and it was always a good time.”
On the new record, Regulate took the opportunity to expand the scope of their sound. This includes adding more rock-centric elements, experimental effects, singing, and harder-hitting hooks, all while toughening and tightening their hardcore foundation.
Vocally, Paba verbalizes thoughts and observations that are very real to him or that hit close to home surrounding his personal life. He touches on societal issues we’re all being exposed to, either in real life or through the media, senseless police violence, class inequality, men’s mental health, and other deep-rooted feelings that he brings to the forefront of his writing.
That said, Paba’s vulnerability came with some slight nerves of what people close to him might think, but that didn’t stop him from being 100% open in his writing.
“There’s a couple songs on the record that, lyrically, have content that I was a little bit nervous about in terms of feedback from people that I know. Personally, I don’t feel comfortable really putting myself out there in many spaces, so to have the opportunity to do so through music is such a privilege and such a platform, and I want to take full advantage of that.”
“I want (listeners) to feel a range of emotions and have different thoughts because the record itself covers a lot of different feelings and emotions. I put all of myself into the record lyrically, and I think that will show. I want it to feel real to them, and I want it to be raw to them.”
A more personal track off of the album, “In This Life And The Next (H.H.C),” Paba wrote about his grandfather, explaining, “I actually wrote the song while my grandfather was still alive, and he passed away in-between the time that I wrote the lyrics to it and when I went back into the studio a few weeks after.”
He continues, “That song was very fresh and raw when I wrote it and tracked it. I was in the thick of the emotion, and I felt super vulnerable when writing that song. But, I mean, I like that. It’s kind of like exposure therapy when you’re the vocalist of a band. If you choose to write deeply personal lyrics, it’s exposure therapy.” On top of that, it’s one of the tracks where, musically, Regulate showcase some of their new ideas.
Further adding a melodic contrast to some of the album’s hardcore ragers (“The Crime,” “You & I,” “Work,” “New York Hates You”), comes the unbelievably catchy “Hair.” The track sees Paba singing his heart out over music that has a more alt-rock appeal and pop-inspired feel to it.
“I enjoyed the challenge of having to tackle a different vocal style… I was really looking forward to being able to sing and show people that Regulate is able to pull off this sound. There’s no other hardcore band who has put out a song like ‘Hair,’ like, no pure hardcore band, and we went full-force with it.”
“Doing songs where I’m screaming or yelling, that doesn’t feel like I’m working through it; it feels like ‘I got this; I know what I’m doing.’ With ‘Hair,’ it was a lot of takes, and when you’re done with one line, you have to go back and do the harmony for it or go back and do an ad-lib. You’re working. I was in there sweating, grinding through it, and I really enjoyed the challenge of it.”
Paba makes it a point to be as open and honest as possible, whether it be questioning why it’s not “manly” to openly express emotions in the band’s first single, “Why Can’t We?”—derived from Paba’s newfound perspectives from therapy—or being fully immersed in the present moment of a live show in the opening track, “In The Moment.”
After listening to the self-titled LP, Regulate’s transformation becomes evident. They took risks, which helped take their sound to new heights. Heights that have allowed the band to see a much clearer vision of who they want to be.
“Hardcore is such a young art form; we don’t know what it’s gonna be like in 50 years, and that really excites me,” exclaims Paba. “A lot of the inventors of the genre are still around, and there’s gonna be a day when they’re not… Once all the OGs, are gone, how much staying power is there? And I think about that for myself, too, like, I want it to be there forever, you know what I mean? I guess in terms of the path that we’re on as a band, I’m not sure, but I know we’re entering a new era of the band, and along with that comes the new path… I’m ready for it.”