ATLANTIC ENLISTS `SOLDIERS'.

Byline: Lewis Taylor The Register-Guard

After years of grinding it out in small clubs and midsized music halls, the Rock 'n' Roll Soldiers are finally starting to be treated like the rock stars their name implies they are.

The Eugene band, which plays the kind of unvarnished rock made fashionable by the Strokes, Jet, the White Stripes and other trendy, modern acts, has signed a lucrative four-record deal with Atlantic Records, the home of rap-rocker Kid Rock and the English rock band the Darkness.

"It's a really good deal, especially for a rock act," said Marty Larson-Xu, 21, the band's lead singer, guitarist and songwriter.

Last month, the Soldiers found themselves in Los Angeles, where they shot a video for their first single, "Funny Little Feeling," and let record label executives buy them sushi and drinks. And what could be more rock-star than trashing your hotel room.

"It wasn't as bad as it could have been," said Oliver Brown, 21, the group's drummer. "But it was probably one of the dirtier rooms."

Known locally for their raucous stage shows, the Soldiers have performed wearing monkey masks, they've crashed through fake amplifiers like a football team at a pep rally and, once, they forced the evacuation of a local club when they unloaded a fire extinguisher on stage.

"If anyone in town was going to get signed, it was going to be them," said Abe Nielsen, booking agent for the WOW Hall. "I think it's the right time for them."

The WOW Hall was one of many places the Soldiers have played. Formed in the 1990s at Roosevelt Middle School, the group performed its first gig at Green Noise Records and then moved on to regular shows at John Henry's. After graduating from South Eugene High School in 2001, the group's four members - Larson-Xu, Brown, Evan Sernoffsky (bass) and Lucas Gunn (lead guitar) - relocated to Seattle for a year, but ultimately returned to Eugene. The band was singled out in a 2003 Rolling Stone magazine story about the Eugene music scene.

Andrew Brightman, the Soldiers' Los Angeles manager says the band's sound, a tumultuous mix of vintage rock and modern rock elements, is exactly what record labels are looking for.

Oliver Brown, the Rock 'n' Roll Soldiers' drummer, says the difference between his band and all the other vintage rock bands out there is that the Soldiers treat every show like a party.

"We try to be fun and energetic," Brown said. "We get a lot of the high school kids at our shows, which is cool, because they're the kids who rock."

Brightman says he was impressed that Brown showed up in Los Angeles wearing cowboy boots held together with duct tape. He believes the Soldiers are in it for the long haul and says Atlantic executives probably saw what he saw in the group, which was the potential to go far.

"With rock 'n' roll you have to live the life," Brightman said. "I could tell really quickly that it was not something that they were trying to do. It's just something that they (are). They (are) a real rock 'n' roll band."

Atlantic wasn't the only label interested in the Soldiers. After recording a demo with an up-and-coming Los Angeles producer, the band attracted the attention of Virgin, RCA, Capitol and Epic Records. Ultimately it was Atlantic that came up with the best offer.

"They took it off the table and offered us an amazing deal," Larson-Xu said. "They told us they wanted us to bring back the rock."

A label with strong rock roots, Atlantic released some seminal albums by the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin and AC/DC in the 1970s, but in recent years has shifted to more pop and hip-hop. Now under new leadership, the company is looking to re-establish itself with rock fans, Brightman said.

Larson-Xu would not reveal the details of his band's deal with Atlantic, but the next step for the group is to spend the month of July in a Los Angeles recording studio.

In an attempt to capture the attention of hip "tastemakers," the label will release a 7-inch single on vinyl, to be followed by the band's full-length, tentatively titled "So Many Musicians to Kill."

ROCK 'N' ROLL SOLDIERS

With: Courtesy Clerks, Monkee Torture,

2 Bucks Short, Capgun Suicide

When: 7:30 p.m. Friday

Where: WOW Hall, 291 W. Eighth Ave.

How much: $5

CAPTION(S):

The Rock 'n' Roll Soldiers (from left) Oliver Brown, drums; Lucas Gunn, lead guitar; Marty Larson-Xu, guitar and vocals; and Evan Sernoffsky, bass, just signed a contract with Atlantic Records. The group is known locally for its fun and raucous stage shows.