Rock and roll has matured, as evidenced by a new compilation CD including Robbinsdale's NemoJoe and Send Up The Room. "Twin Cities Rockers for Life" is part of Illumina Records' campaign against drunk driving called Ground Control. NemoJoe lead singer and guitarist Mark Johnston said none of the band has personally had any serious run-ins with drunk driving, but he remembered what happened to a friend who lost her license. "It had to be tough love," he said. Johnston said he didn't go out of the way to help his friend with transportation because she needed to "face the consequences" of her actions. He told her she was, "lucky [she] didn't kill anybody." As a new father and former softball and kickboxing coach, Johnston said it was important that NemoJoe be "community minded." "We think about the kids," Johnston said.

After a friend committed suicide in high school, Send Up The Room bassist Steve Ryan said it became important to him to create awareness of the many issues people face, including drunk driving. Ryan said many of his fellow band members have worked in hospitality and see their share of drinking. Drunk driving is, "a good cause to bring attention to," Ryan said. Drinking and concerts tend to go hand-in-hand, according to Ryan. "Where you see music, you can buy booze," he added. Ryan, who recorded, produced and engineered the band's album, formerly worked as a bartender.

Ryan was responsible to, "cut people off if they're drinking too much; make sure they're not driving home drunk," he said. NemoJoe's next performance will be Sept. 15 at O'Gara's Bar & Grill in St. Paul. Send Up The Room currently has no September shows scheduled, but recently was a finalist for the Basilica Block Party. Either band can be reached online at myspace.com: www.myspace.com/nemojoe or www.myspace.com/senduptheroom. "Ground Control is unique; it's unlike any other campaign," said Nicole Van Eden, publicity director. For a fee, local bands can have a song included in a "Rockers for Life" compilation. "It's a double-edged sword - we help each other," Van Eden said. Illumina Records promotes bands to their target audience, while the artists promote Ground Control's message of not drinking and driving. "One of the biggest things musicians can do is make a difference with their music. We're allowing local bands across the nation to do that," Van Eden said.

Ground Control focuses on getting the attention of teenagers and people involved in their local rock scene, since drunk driving is "the number one killer of rock and roll fans," Van Eden said. "Artists can use the talent they have, doing what they love, to save the lives of their fans, friends, family." As the artists are out performing at the bars and CD release parties, they "get to share the message with the kids at the bar," Van Eden said, and hear musicians spreading the word of awareness, to drink and party responsibly. The campaign started in 2005, and includes "almost 60 cities," according to Van Eden. Aside from the Twin Cities, there are "Rockers for Life" compilations in Miami, New York City, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle and other major cities.