Touted as a "true solo project," The New Regime consists solely of 20-year old Ilan Rubin, drummer of Nine Inch Nails and previously Lostprophets. No mere time-keeper, adept multi-instrumentalist Rubin wrote and recorded every note of bass, drums, guitar, piano and vocals on The New Regime's 2008 debut, Coup.
Accomplished beyond his years, Ilan has played professionally since the age of nine. Opening Woodstock '99 with his first band, F.O.N., a then eleven-year old Rubin found his way into the Guinness Book of World Records as the youngest person to play the historic festival. He went on to drum for Denver Harbor (Universal), completing his high school degree while touring the country in a van. Next stop for Rubin was Lostprophets (Columbia), playing on Liberation Transmission—their third full-length, and a number one debut on the UK charts. In the last three years, Ilan has played for sold-out crowds and festivals all over the world—Download, Reading/Leeds, Rock am Ring/Park, Fuji Rock, Summer Sonic, V Festival and more. In late 2008, Trent Reznor invited Ilan to join Nine Inch Nails mentioning that Ilan had “blown him away” after watching him at Reading/Leeds Festival in 2007. Rubin then blew the rest of the band away in November when he was asked to rehearse with Nine Inch Nails on their “Lights In The Sky” tour following Josh Freese’s departure.
In between helping write the latest Lostprophets album and a string of sporadic tour dates, Ilan nurtured the idea of his own project: "All of the material was written and recorded on Lostprophets downtime—and to be honest, I had never really sung before." After acquainting himself with the role of singer, he wrote and recorded seven songs in his garage. "I started showing it to people—not telling them who it was—and started getting some really positive feedback. So I decided to continue with it."
The aura of mysterious genesis is a concept Rubin planned quite thoroughly: "I wanted people to listen to it and make up their minds based on the music—not who it was by, or what band I'm in." An equally enigmatic viral video followed, fusing The New Regime's music with imagery of protest, uprising, urgency and change. Quickly spreading via music sites and blogs, The New Regime received major radio and press attention within a week of the video's release.
With several more songs in hand, Coup became a reality. Drawing his influence from the greats—The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, and Queen, to name a few—Ilan set out to create an eclectic, yet thematically dark album. Coup feels much like a procession—each song marching forward, inviting all who listen to join in its crusade.
Ever evolving, Ilan's vision is unobscure: "All the songs on the album are there for a reason. I never want to be categorized or pigeonholed into a sound—where if I did something different, a fanbase would feel abandoned." It is this ideology that assures the music is limited only by the imaginative inventiveness of it's creator, and that the world will be better off under the watchful eye of The New Regime...
