Photo Credit: John Thompson
On paper, the idea behind the Chicago-based act The Eradicator sounds more than a bit thin: Base a punk band on a five-minute skit performed by the Kids in the Hall comedy troupe once on their television show in 1989. Sure, the skit is pure comedy gold, with Bruce McCulloch as “The Eradicator,” a ski-mask-wearing squash player wreaking havoc on the corporate lackeys who make up the rungs of the D-squash ladder at the local gym. But is that enough inspiration to account for a 10-inch EP, a 7-inch single, an LP and even a Christmas album?
Astoundingly, the answer to this question is a resounding “yes.” Anyone who has heard McCulloch yell “ERRRAADDDICAATTOR!” at the top of his lungs knows the character was a punk at heart, while his failed attempt to climb the D-squash ladder infuses the character with a surprising amount of emotional depth and pathos. “I always loved it [the skit],” notes The Eradicator founder Andy Slania (who, like his inspiration, always performs in a ski mask), “but especially over time… There’s a lot to unpack in a short amount of time.” And Slania, through such songs as “My Mighty Scream,” “One Rung at a Time,” and the wonderfully titled “Wake, Hydrate, Squash a Pusshead, Stretch, Sleep, Repeat” really makes the character his own. Such songs are raging sing-along punk anthems that make you forget you’re singing about a character that is now more than 30 years old.
And Slania is the first to admit that he is playing a character, which allows the audience to be in on the joke and just have fun with the concept. “It’s definitely a character that I am playing,” he says, “and it allows me to completely be outside of myself, which the mask also helps with.” Such a feeling of freedom may be behind Slania’s decision to release The Court’s Closed on Christmas, an album which includes covers of Minor Threat’s “In My Eyes” and the Descendents’ “I’m the One”—only redone with squash-related lyrics, with the former recast as “In My Court” and the latter retitled as “I’m Not the One.”
So, does that mean that punk legends like Ian MacKaye and Bill Stevenson now know of The Eradicator? “I actually reached out to Dischord and they were very nice about it and requested copies of it,” explains Slania. Following his request to Epitaph Records for permission to use the Descendents’ song, Slania received an email from drummer Stevenson, also requesting copies of the album. “Never in a million years did I think I’d get that type of request,” exclaims Slania, “and I’m guessing they probably didn’t either!”
Slania is excited to bring The Eradicator to Milwaukee, where he will be backed by a band featuring Steve Maury and Danny Walkowiak from local favorites Direct Hit. Expect to hear fan favorites like “I’m a Squash Man” (do yourself a favor and Google the video for the song), but also new songs from Peak Eradicator, the band’s second album which will be released later this year. He also hopes that this record will be the one that puts the band on McCulloch’s radar. “The Kids in the Hall Twitter account,” concludes Slania, “re-tweeted a link to an article of mine, so maybe he knows about it.” A squash punk can dream, can’t he?
The Eradicator plays X-Ray Arcade on Saturday, April 6, at 8 p.m. with Okilly Dokilly (a Ned Flanders-themed metal band) and Playboy Manbaby.
