MUSIC: "You never really die if your memory’s alive," sings Mark Cutler on the Schemers’ new Remember. The mighty Providence band towered over the local scene in the ’80s, creating a blistering hard rock that united the best elements of Tom Petty and Television. Along the way they amassed an enviable regional audience that was struck by the band’s powerhouse stage shows. But the guys were never awarded the national recognition their work deserved, and after several years together, songwriter Cutler and guitarist Emerson Torrey took their unique rapport to a group called the Raindogs. That left a sheaf of Schemers songs undocumented. Remember rights that wrong; the Schemers spent a chunk of 2003 in the studio, putting down a string of Cutler’s sharpest tunes. For New England rock rats who followed the group during that era, the disc will be manna from heaven. For newcomers who have never heard of the outfit, it’s a punchy little blast of guitar rock. Tight arrangements, terrific playing, pile driver rhythms — they all combine around the down-and-dirty imagery that Cutler has come up with since the get-go. Like our best songwriters, he makes sure that there’s some psychology going down in his character studies. Over the years he’s been quite eloquent about self-doubt, rage, and the bitter fruits of self-destruction. But don’t worry, these guys know joy, too.  by: Jim Macnie