Stone Temple Pilots

[lost in the garden]

Scott was in VR and the fact that Axl's name has been brought into it definetly puts the roots of this story at Scott's assciation with Velvet Revolver, Slash, Duff & Matt

[mrlee]

i hope he doesnt die from drugs because then he will be given credit not worth him for all enternity.

[CheapJon]

Scott was in VR and the fact that Axl's name has been brought into it definetly puts the roots of this story at Scott's assciation with Velvet Revolver, Slash, Duff & Matt

no shit!? you really think so?

it's still not VR nor GNR, it's STP.. i'm not a mod but still.. this thing is about STP might break up sooner rather then later
blah blah u won't get it anyway

[LunsJail]

This is already in the STP section.  I posted it there yesterday.

[FunkyMonkey]

Stone Temple Pilots Still Make Some Soaring Rock 'N' Roll

Posted on: Friday, 6 June 2008

By Ross Raihala, Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn.

Jun. 6--If Scott Weiland's rocky tenure as the lead singer of Velvet Revolver proved anything, it's that the notoriously drug-addled 40-year-old remains the perfect rock star frontman -- preening, narcissistic and reptilian.

Now that his Velvet Revolver days are over -- he announced his departure in March from a concert stage in Scotland -- Weiland has returned to the band that made him famous in the first place, Stone Temple Pilots.

Just how long the STP reunion will last is anyone's guess. The foursome's first decade kicked off with "Core," an album that didn't please critics but sold more than 5 million copies. Weiland's battles with drug addiction and trips in and out of rehab soon derailed STP, which ended in shambles in 2002.

Whatever happens with the STP reboot, one thing is certain. Bassist and songwriter Robert DeLeo couldn't be happier.

"Yeah, I've been having a great time," said the 42-year-old New Jersey native during a recent phone interview. "There's something that comes with a little time away, an appreciation for what we have. And if I'm not having a good time, why be there? It's long overdue."

Here's what else DeLeo had to say about the 2008 version of Stone Temple Pilots:

On the decision to reunite: "I honestly (didn't know) whether there would be an interest there. I certainly didn't assume there would be. I don't think there are any rules to being in a rock 'n' roll band. It's here today, and while it's here, I wantto make the most of out of it."

On letting the fans choose the set lists via the band's Web site: "It was my suggestion to leave it in the fans' hands. We were always very fortune to have great fans, and I think it's really cool that people get the chance (to vote) for what they want to hear. I think there needs to be a challenge on our parts to go out and do something that's in the hands of the fans. It pushes us a little harder to get that stuff together."

On his active, upfront style of playing bass: "The bass player is usually the guy in the background who is the brunt of jokes along with the drummer. I'm just doing what I've always done. I want to have a good time when I'm onstage."

On growing up: "There's aspects of the band that will always be the same, but there's been a lot of change in everyone's lives and, hopefully, a lot more wisdom that goes along with getting older. I think we're applying (our life experiences) to where we're at now. Artistically, you try to do what pleases you, and that's where I see us being for this tour, in a place where we're artistically pleased."

On the band's legacy: "From our point of view, we always tried to make the best album possible. I think we've always been an album-oriented band, but it is nice that there have been some standout songs on those records. There's a certain amount of -- I wouldn't say comfort, but a certain amount of satisfaction in being able to go out there and play 12 or 15 songs that have been top 10 singles. That's a great feeling."

On the band's future: "Stone Temple Pilots may not be around tomorrow. I have no idea. Stone Temple Pilots is a very volatile situation. It always will be. Nothing's going to change there. I'm choosing to deal with it differently. I feel pretty damn fortunate to be 42, be away for six or seven years and come back to this much attention. If you think about it, I spent a lot of time as an artist trying to get people's attention in the first place. Now that I have it, I don't take it for granted."

http://www.redorbit.com/news/entertainment/1420010/stone_temple_pilots_still_make_some_soaring_rock_n_roll/

[Thorned Rose]

What's funny is that they only have 1 song that's cracked the top 100.

When you look at the mainstream rock chart, which is a chart that basically ranks the rock songs... they have 12 top 10 hits.

I guess he was referring to that.

I don't like it when a band says "yeah we've got 8 top 10 singles"

They might have 8 top 10 singles on the rock chart, but actually having a true top 10 single is much more accomplished

[faldor]

What's funny is that they only have 1 song that's cracked the top 100.

When you look at the mainstream rock chart, which is a chart that basically ranks the rock songs... they have 12 top 10 hits.

I guess he was referring to that.

I don't like it when a band says "yeah we've got 8 top 10 singles"

They might have 8 top 10 singles on the rock chart, but actually having a true top 10 single is much more accomplished

That's debateable.  The top 10 singles are usually filled with crap.  Teeny bopper, r&b stuff.  Tough list to crack.

[FunkyMonkey]

 

Reunited Stone Temple Pilots coast through hits

Back in St. Paul after eight years, the ?90s rockers defied expectations ? and maybe hit back at our critic.

By CHRIS RIEMENSCHNEIDER, Star Tribune

Last update: June 7, 2008

 Thank you, Scott Weiland, for not becoming another boring old rock ?n? roll casualty. Thanks also for making up with your mates in Stone Temple Pilots, and for realizing that all-star bands like your short-lived Velvet Revolver are never as good as the horses you rock stars ride in on .

And thanks most of all, Scott, for giving ?90s rock fans a sorely needed nostalgia fix, which your STP did with surprising gusto Friday at Roy Wilkins Auditorium in St. Paul.

The going line on STP ? out on its first tour in eight years ? has always been that it?s a second-rate answer to Pearl Jam, Nirvana or Soundgarden, all groups whose blueprints can be traced in its music. Since none of them are playing here this year ? and since Weiland?s project with the ex-Guns ?N Roses players (Velvet Revolver) accomplished little of note ? we?ll take STP.

Unlike the bloated 2?-hour Smashing Pumpkins reunion gig at Wilkins last year, this one included all the original members (also: guitarist Dean DeLeo, bassist Robert DeLeo and drummer Eric Kretz). And at 100 minutes, it was streamlined enough to never lag.

A mere five songs into the set, the quartet had already dealt out four tunes off the radio (in order):  ?Big Empty,? ?Wicked Garden,? ?Big Bang Baby? and ?Vasoline.? Considering that a good portion of the 4,000 plus fans was too young to ever catch STP live, it was a lasting first impression.

The set peaked three-quarters of the way through when ?Plush? and ?Interstate Love Song? arrived back-to-back, with the crowd singing along word-for-word. But the band kept up its momentum through the finale, ?Trippin? on a Hole in a Paper Heart,? in which Weiland emphasized, ?I?m not dead and I?m not for sale.?

Wherever his well-publicized substance-abuse problems are at, the needle-thin singer looked and sounded healthy. He slithered around the stage like a cross between Iggy Pop and Tool?s Maynard James Keenan. The Clint Eastwood-like poncho and hat ensemble he wore at first was, um, bad and ugly. But then he took them off to reveal a bobbed, blonde-with-pink-stripes hairdo and effeminate blouse that made him look like a punk-rock LPGA golfer.

It?s hard to believe that, after eight years, Weiland had nothing better to talk about on stage than the Star Tribune advertisement hanging on the balcony of the auditorium.

?Let?s just see what it says in the morning in the Star Tribune,? he said with a snide air.

Perhaps he was just randomly blabbing. But it seemed an odd coincidence that this was the one-in-100 concert where the standard reviewer tickets failed to show up at the box office, on that same day a bit in the newspaper mentioned Weiland?s personal problems and low expectations for the tour (why else were tickets still available at showtime?).

Either way, in these challenging times, the Strib will take all the promo it can get.

Thank you, Scott.

http://www.startribune.com/entertainment/music/19623739.html?location_refer=Sports

[FunkyMonkey]

Stone Temple Pilots
Interview with Robert DeLeo

AW: What were the logistics of how the reunion came to be? Who called who and so forth?

Robert DeLeo: It was a couple of different ways. It was mainly through wives [laughing.] Wives were the whole inner thing of it coming together. I think Dean talked to Scott about getting back together, and I had talked to Scott. It was just a matter of timing, too. A lot of things happened with having children and starting other bands, and I think timing plays a big role in life in general. We never really completely lost touch with each other, so it was kind of the right time to get this together, and thought, ?Hey, let?s give this a go.?

Do you think the time off, and being in different bands kind of helped solidify the band currently?

I don?t think the band is ever going to be completely solidified. I think that?s kind of how it is. I don?t think STP ever was solidified. It?s a very volatile place to be sometimes. It?s kind of like an unmade bed to me. It?s a mess, but at the end of the day, you kind of find a way to crawl back into it. That?s kind of how I look at it. You know it?s a rock n? roll band. That?s the reality of it. It?s a rock and roll band.

Have you rediscovered things that you have missed about each other?

I missed the music. There?s always that feeling of creating something, and it?s almost like these songs are your children and it?s almost like you come back and revisit them with the people that created them. That?s something that always will stand the test of time. That?s a really trippy thing to be in that situation if you are with people that you created these with, too. Like you go into rehearsal and you say, ?Can you print me out all of the songs on all five records and then some?? Then there?s 74 songs looking at you and you?re like, ?Well, let?s start at the top.? It?s a sort of a trip down memory lane so to speak, you are revisiting all these songs as well the emotions that went into them at the time.

Your songs really are timeless. If you released Core last week, it would still have the impact and get the band the attention that it did in the early ?90s. You guys never fell into a fad or trendily pitfall.

Yeah, we weren?t into music from the beginning to just be about...you know there was the whole grunge scene or whatever, we out lived that. I think we proved to ourselves that we wanted to write songs that were timeless. I still get a pretty big thrill out of hearing ?Interstate Love Song? on classic rock radio now, it kind of trips me out. 15 years later, it?s actually being played on classic rock radio. It?s a great feeling.

Also, one of your first shows being Rock On The Range in OH, is that a little bit nerve-wracking for you? Playing to such a huge venue with bands like Metallica?

Yeah, there is always a bit of insanity that goes along...there?s so many steps to getting to the point of being onstage for an hour or two. I mean, it?s incredible how much goes into just coming to that point of being onstage. I mean, yeah, it?s a little overwhelming at times.

How do you go about picking the set list? Is it set in stone before hand or are you guys at the point where you can just wink at each other and know what to play next?

I think everyone has to be there at rehearsal. I think everyone has to be relearning these songs, and that?s where it starts. We would like to try to get into songs that we haven?t done in a long time, and also songs that we have never preformed before. I think that?s part of keeping the time out on the road healthy, and not falling into doing the same set all the time. I think that?s going to be challenging, and it?s going to be rewarding, too. We are going to be able to do songs that we never preformed before.

Could you give some clues as to which ones?

We are thinking about stuff off our last record, Shangri-La Dee Da, there?s a song on there called ?Bi- Polar Bear? that I think we are going to try to tackle. Let?s see, there?s a song on there called ?Dumb Love,? and there?s a song on there, ?Long Way Home,? I think we?ve only preformed that once. There?s some stuff off No. 4 that we have only performed once or twice. There is a song called ?Glide? that we never performed before. It?s a matter of finding the time, and getting all the stuff. We have been in rehearsal, and I think the band is sounding amazing. I think the band is sounding better than I would say we ever sounded. There is a lot more focus and sobriety and wisdom that goes along with doing with what we are doing right now. It?s a good place.

Seeing you guys live in the past has been amazing, and I think people who are even into like the thrash metal or punk would really dig your set, because you bring it with such intensity, so to imagine it sounding even better than before is just mind- blowing.

Yeah, I think when you write great songs, when anyone tries to write great songs, they are those things?those are going to stand the test of time, and a lot of people are going to get turned onto great songs. It?s nice to able to know that we can do shows where there?s...you know I think we have had 12 or 15 top ten singles. That?s a good feeling to know you can go out and do 15, 20 songs and people know all the songs. It?s pretty nice.

Is it true that you will be writing a new record after the tour is done?

Yeah, we?ll see, I mean. I think there?s a lot of things that a lot of us individually are trying to do. I am starting a new record company myself, a music company. I am really excited about that. I want to see where that takes me you know. I really want to try to concentrate on that. I have built myself a home studio here and I am gathering some artists together, and I am going to start doing that and see where that takes me, too.

So would the goal be to have the next STP record on your label?

Well, no, I think if we do STP stuff, I will be able to record it at home, which is just a really great luxury. I have just built myself a home recording studio, so I am actually tracking an artist today. I am really excited about that. The company is called Long Live Music and Long Live Records. So we?ll see where that takes me, and I am very excited about that.

Who are you tracking today?

His name is Mike Stocksdale, it?s an acoustic James Taylor-type thing. Just a great storyteller, and a really great artist.

Speaking of being behind the scenes and possibly tracking new STP material in your home studio, how does the inner process of songwriting happen for STP?

Well, I think everyone has different degrees of the material they have inside them. Whether it?s just if you are caring it around? I have never put anything down on a recorder, I have always had this thing where if it?s a great song, you don?t have to record it or put it down. If it?s a great idea, it will always be in your head. If I forget it, then I guess it wasn?t a very good idea. There are songs that I haven?t recorded yet that haunt me throughout each day of my life. Those are the songs that you really want to get down and record, and yeah, I have several of those haunting me right now.

Well the world is excited about your new hauntings.

Yeah, thanks[laughing].

What was it like seeing Velvet Revolver play some of your songs?

I laugh about it, because I think if you had told me 20 years ago, that?s when Appetite For Destruction came out...if you had told me at the time that those guys were going to be covering my songs?[laughing]. It?s kind of a trip, it?s kind of a trip. I am honored.

Is it true that one of the contributing factors to reuniting is so you could play with Zeppelin?

You know it?s funny that it went as long as it did, because it was kind of joke. It was really in jest that we got together, because Zeppelin got together. It was just merely a joke, ?Yeah, we got together because Zeppelin got together because we want to play with them.? But you know, Zeppelin for me, personally, is still my Bible. It?s one of the Commandments. You shall listen to Led Zeppelin. If that ever came about, that would be great! That would be really, really great! Yeah, we played some shows with Robert Plant a long time ago, and I love the guy to death, he was very nice, just a gentleman. It?s one of those things that if happens that would be great, but it was mainly in jest.

http://theaquarian.com/artistfeatures.php?aid=475

[FunkyMonkey]

Stone Temple Pilots hits mark with solid show

By Pat Reavy

Published: Thursday, June 12, 2008

STONE TEMPLE PILOTS, E Center, Wednesday

Reviews of Stone Temple Pilots' reunion tour so far had been hit and miss, though in recent weeks they have been mostly positive.

Wednesday night, STP was far more hit than miss. Although not a perfect show, at times Scott Weiland and company displayed the type of brilliance that made them one of the biggest acts of the early '90s. In fact, at times it felt like the crowd had been transported back 15 years. To use a sports analogy, STP's show Wednesday night was a solid, stand-up triple off the wall in deep center field.

The band played more than 90 minutes, delivering a strong mix of radio hits and B sides from all its albums, concentrating mainly on the band's first three releases including a pleasantly heavy dose of "Core," their 1992 multiplatinum debut album.

Rather than going full throttle out of the gate, however, the band opened with the slower paced "Big Empty," an interesting choice considering it has been nearly eight years since STP last played Utah, and the crowd of several thousand fans was ready to explode when the band took the stage.

The concert seemed to start for real by song two with "Wicked Garden." The lanky Weiland, dressed in a maroon fedora, sport coat, vest, white shirt, tie and sunglasses, strutted around the stage with his unique style and traditional pose of his left hand on his thigh with cigarette in hand while his right hand held his microphone high in the air. By night's end, Weiland was shirtless and hatless.

The DeLeo brothers, Dean on guitar and Robert on bass, ripped through favorites "Big Bang Baby" and "Vasoline," while Eric Kretz kept the beat on drums.

"We haven't frequented any cities for awhile. But when we were touring, this is a city that was left out for awhile. But, here we are," said Weiland to the crowd.

Although Weiland occasionally poked fun at the band's biggest singles, even introducing "Plush" by saying, "For some of you, this is the one you've been waiting for," it was those familiar songs that got some of the biggest audience reaction of the night.

Weiland's voice also got stronger as the night progressed, delivering highlight performances on "Crackerman," "Lady Picture Show" and "Sex Type Thing." Fans roared during "Creep," "Sour Girl" and "Interstate Love Song." Weiland also frequently used a bullhorn during the concert, including for the familiar intro of "Dead and Bloated." Other highligths included the lesser known "Down" off the "No. 4" CD, and "Coma."

Big props also need to be given to Salt Lake City's own Royal Bliss, which got the call the night before the concert asking if the band was available to open. Neal Middleton and crew tore it up during an excellent 45-minute set.

http://deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,700234129,00.html

[Gunner80]

What's funny is that they only have 1 song that's cracked the top 100.

When you look at the mainstream rock chart, which is a chart that basically ranks the rock songs... they have 12 top 10 hits.

I guess he was referring to that.

I don't like it when a band says "yeah we've got 8 top 10 singles"

They might have 8 top 10 singles on the rock chart, but actually having a true top 10 single is much more accomplished

Is that what you think makes a band great and accomplished - top 10 singles? Get a life!

Beethoven never had a top ten and he's the greatest that ever was.

[FunkyMonkey]

Record label sues two Stone Temple Pilots

Thu Jun 12, 2008

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Atlantic Records sued two members of the alternative rock band Stone Temple Pilots on Thursday, accusing them of trying to prematurely end their recording contract with the Warner Music Group label.

The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, claims lead singer Scott Weiland and drummer Eric Kretz have threatened to stop performing under their contract and have indicated they would like to end the agreement unless Atlantic makes significant changes.

The record company said in the suit that while Stone Temple Pilots has already delivered six albums, it wants the group to record a seventh album and deliver up to two more if the record label decides it wants them.

The group, known for hits like "Sex Type Thing" and "Interstate Love Song," rose to fame in the 1990s and reunited last month for its first national tour in eight years.

The group, whose momentum was often curtailed by Weiland's drug problems, had fallen apart shortly after a 2002 tour. In late 2003, the other two members of the group, guitarist Dean DeLeo and bassist Robert DeLeo, were released by Atlantic from their recording contract as they said they wanted to pursue separate careers.

Atlantic said in the lawsuit that the group -- Weiland, Kretz and the DeLeos -- was now touring successfully and had indicated its intention to record together again.

The record company said its contract with Stone Temple Pilots was written under New York laws and that the musicians are trying to use California laws to terminate it.

Atlantic said claims by Kretz and Weiland that they have a right to terminate the contract "have given rise to a definite, real and substantial controversy between the parties that threatens to harm Atlantic's business."

Atlantic is seeking a court declaration of its rights under the recording contract, the costs of its legal fees and any other relief the court decides is appropriate.

A spokeswoman for Stone Temple Pilots had no immediate comment on the lawsuit.

http://www.reuters.com/article/entertainmentNews/idUSN1248126220080613?sp=true

[bazgnr]

More of the same here:

http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2008/06/13/atlantic-records-sues-stone-temple-pilots-weiland-kretz/

They may have just reunited, but two members of the Stone Temple Pilots are already facing a lawsuit from Atlantic Records. The label alleges that frontman Scott Weiland and drummer Eric Kretz are trying to prematurely end their contract and stop touring unless Atlantic makes significant changes to their old deal. Now that STP has voiced their intention to record another album, Atlantic wants in, as well as the two other albums the band owes the label. Dean and Robert DeLeo were not named in the suit, as Atlantic dropped them in 2003 so they could pursue other projects.

[FunkyMonkey]

STONE TEMPLE PILOTS Comment On ATLANTIC RECORDS Lawsuit - June 13, 2008

STONE TEMPLE PILOTS have issued a statement in response to a lawsuit filed by Warner Music Group Corp's Atlantic Records label against two of its members for allegedly trying to end their recording contract early.

The suit, filed on Thursday (June 12) in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, claims lead singer Scott Weiland and drummer Eric Kretz have threatened to stop performing under their contract and have indicated they would like to end the agreement unless Atlantic makes significant changes, according to Reuters.

The record company said in the suit that while STONE TEMPLE PILOTS have already delivered six albums, it wants the group to record a seventh album and deliver up to two more albums if the record label decides they want them.

The following statement was released to the media earlier today (Friday, June 13) by the members of STONE TEMPLE PILOTS:

"STONE TEMPLE PILOTS were deeply disappointed to see that Atlantic filed a surprise lawsuit against two members of the legendary band STP when they were in the middle of what were believed to be cordial and positive discussions about STP returning to the studio to make a new album after 5 years. Despite the allegations in the complaint, the band never threatened anything more than remaining away from the studio until equitable terms could be arranged. The precipitous filing of this action is yet another example of the difficulties facing artists in the new music environment, as relationships between artists and their labels fall further and further apart.

"Eric and Scott have not yet been served and hope that Atlantic will allow cooler heads to prevail, and have the courtesy of shelving this action to permit negotiations to continue in a positive spirit rather than under a dark cloud of hostility. Should everyone operate in good faith, STP are certain that a new album from the band will be available soon. Should Atlantic instead pursue this scorched earth policy towards the band, the ultimate victims will be STP's fans, who will never be able to enjoy a new album from the group."

http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=98966

[D]

still bummed they arent coming close to me.

Hopefully they will record a new CD and will come to Atlanta.

[oldleadbelly]

still bummed they arent coming close to me.

Hopefully they will record a new CD and will come to Atlanta.

Are you in Atlanta D?  They are going to be here August 23, at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre.

[oldleadbelly]

still bummed they arent coming close to me.

Hopefully they will record a new CD and will come to Atlanta.

Are you in Atlanta D?  They are going to be here August 23, at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre.

Actually just noticed you are in Chatt town.  VWA is in Alpharetta, which is about 15-20 mins north of Atlanta on GA-400.

[D]

wow

i havent checked the dates lately

Im gonna go check for tix.


thanks a lot!!

[FunkyMonkey]

Stone Temple Pilots: turbulent yet enduring

Stone Temple Pilots are back at it: performing together, fighting, getting sued.

By Chris Lee, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
June 21, 2008

NOTHING GETS in the way of a lucrative rock reunion quite like a jail stint -- even an extremely short one. Just ask the members of Stone Temple Pilots, the multi-platinum-selling, stadium-rocking, alterna-grunge band that recently reunited after more than half a decade's "separation" (don't call it a breakup) to mount a 65-date tour of North America's top-tier summer music festivals and amphitheaters (with a stop at the Hollywood Bowl on Tuesday).

Last month, faced with the very real possibility that singer Scott Weiland would spend up to eight days behind bars for a 2007 drunk driving charge, each member of the SoCal rock quartet voiced a different perspective on how disruptive Weiland's sentencing had been on band unity.

"Seeing a friend go through something like this, it's an uneasy feeling. It's a drag," said the group's guitarist, Dean DeLeo."

"To be honest with you, it's going to be a lot easier for me than it is for him," drummer Eric Kretz said of Weiland, a guy who by his own estimation has attempted to detox "40 or so" times in between various arrests, overdoses and relapses.

Robert DeLeo, Dean's brother and STP's bassist, seemed more concerned about his own self-preservation than his bandmate's debt to society: "I gotta take care of myself, man."

Seated at a conference table in a Burbank rehearsal space, the scarecrow-thin Weiland made known his feelings on the matter. "I live my life the way I live my life," Weiland said, loosening his paisley tie and brushing tresses of pink-dyed hair from his face with visible contempt. "I don't have to make any apologies."

Staying power

Despite having sold around 35 million albums worldwide and topping charts no fewer than six times since 1992 with hits such as "Plush," "Sex Type Thing" and "Interstate Love Song," Stone Temple Pilots originally were dismissed by rock cognoscenti as Pearl Jam-soundalikes. But the group has learned to take any criticism in stride, likening themselves to no less an act than Led Zeppelin.

Judging by certain empirical data (if not cultural impact), the comparison isn't far off the mark. Like Led Zep, the Pilots' hits remain in steady rotation on rock radio nationwide (locally, KROQ-FM keeps the STP songbook alive), and they are one of the most consistently played acts on Lithium, Sirius Satellite Radio's '90s nostalgia bandwidth. Additionally, the band's back catalog sells at a consistent clip.

Maybe it has something to do with the still-commanding presence of one of the last bad boy rock stars -- Weiland's snarling charisma, otherworldly androgyny and smoke-and-whiskey tunefulness are among STP's most identifiable hallmarks; his narcotic combustibility its biggest liability -- but it's easy to understand why concert promoters would see a Stone Temple Pilots tour as a golden ticket.

Now, the group's members are taking pains to ensure that fans remember them fondly -- even though STP never officially faded away. "Success to us does not mean the number of records sold," Dean DeLeo said. "It means making an indelible mark on the face of music."

Added Weiland: "Our biggest goal when we first got together was to create a legacy, musically. Now there's a whole new generation of kids getting into the band. The respect has multiplied like a snowball that goes, um, downhill."

Three days after making those remarks, Weiland would check himself into and be released from the Van Nuys Municipal Court lockup, having served just six hours of his jail sentence. Not what you'd call hard time -- even for a flamboyant frontman with a predilection for skin-tight trousers and mascara -- and the band's tour would kick off as planned at Columbus, Ohio's Rock on the Range Festival on May 17.

It was Weiland's second taste of freedom in three months. In March, he sprang himself from Velvet Revolver, the hard rock group comprising several former Guns N' Roses members.

That group scored a hit with its first album, "Contraband," winning a Grammy and touring the world, but its 2007 follow-up "Libertad" never caught on. VR's coffin was effectively shut after Weiland announced on stage at a gig in Glasgow, Scotland, that the group would be no more -- without having finalized the decision with his bandmates first.

By then, Dean DeLeo had called Weiland about resurrecting Stone Temple Pilots with the tantalizing offer of a big payday to play a bunch of summer festivals.

Weiland recalled: "I went to [Velvet Revolver guitarist] Slash and said, 'Listen, we have some opportunities this summer. With the Velvets, we're going to be done touring because this record isn't performing the way the last one performed, and to continue to try to flog a dead horse is ridiculous.' "

The singer's appraisal of Velvet Revolver's commercial doldrums and rationale for breaking up particularly irked the group's drummer. "Matt Sorum threatened to kick my ass on his website," Weiland recalled.

On Velvet Revolver's behalf, Slash portrayed the split somewhat differently in a written statement: "This band is all about its fans and its music, and Scott Weiland isn't 100% committed to either. Among other things, his increasingly erratic onstage behavior and personal problems have forced us to move on."

Never a dull moment

So far, STP's festival convoy has rumbled through Rockfest in Kansas and Calgary's V Festival, but the tour hasn't been without its share of speed bumps. On May 31, radio personalities Opie and Anthony reported witnessing a bitter shouting match between Weiland and Robert DeLeo at K-Rock FM's "Return of the Rock" show in Holmdel, N.J. -- during which the singer reportedly threatened to kick DeLeo off the tour. And earlier this month, the group's label, Atlantic Records, sued Weiland and Kretz for trying to end their contract early, dashing hopes for a new album.

"Stone Temple Pilots were deeply disappointed to see that Atlantic filed a surprise lawsuit against two members of the [group] when they were in the middle of what were believed to be cordial and positive discussions about [Stone Temple Pilots] returning to the studio to make a new album after five years," the group said in an e-mailed statement earlier this month.

Although STP seemingly thrives on conflict, its members haven't always enjoyed the tumult that so often accompanies fame. The bandmates went their separate ways in late 2002, bottoming after performing gigs with Aerosmith. "We were shoulder to shoulder for 14 years. It takes a big effort to keep a relationship together with four men," Dean DeLeo said. "You get tired of one another's routine."

While Weiland toured with Velvet Revolver, the DeLeo brothers joined with Filter singer Richard Patrick to form the alterna-rock quartet Army of Anyone in 2005. However, after its sole album failed to catch fire commercially, the group went on "hiatus" two years later. "We probably could have gotten this thing off the ground if we were prepared to go on the road for a year or two," Dean DeLeo said. "But quite honestly, man, I'm far too lazy to do that."

Which is around the time big-ticket rock fests started putting a lot of cash on the table to get STP to reunite. It brings up the question: Precisely how much of a factor was money in getting Stone Temple Pilots back together?

"I love the legacy of what we did, the footprint of it," said Dean DeLeo. "I absolutely adore playing music with these guys. Do you ask most people what their paycheck is? We get paid handsomely, too."

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/music/la-et-stp21-2008jun21,0,2749188.story

[FunkyMonkey]

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Stone Temple Pilots defy expectations at the Bowl

Review: Soaring strongly, the reunited '90s band wiped the grime off its troubled past with a performance worthy of the giants of its era.

By BEN WENER
The Orange County Register

Had you asked me a little less than two months ago if I thought Stone Temple Pilots stood any chance of delivering anything but a bloated mess Tuesday night at the Hollywood Bowl, I never would have stopped laughing.

If you caught STP back in May on "The Jimmy Kimmel Show," during the '90s hard-rock favorite's first television appearance since suddenly reuniting, you'd understand why.

Even allowing for the poor mixing of most variety shows, which tend to over-amplify vocals (no matter if they're any good, and these weren't) while burying everything else, this ballyhooed return was still a monumentally awful performance. So bad, actually, that it often seemed as if singer Scott Weiland, the DeLeo brothers (guitarist Dean and bassist Robert) and drummer Eric Kretz had just started rehearsing earlier that week.

Little surprise, then, that the majority of reviews that emerged as STP made its way home to Southern California for its first major appearance since the 2000 Weenie Roast at Angel Stadium ranged from just-OK to same-as-it-ever-was.

His stint in the relatively short-lived supergroup Velvet Revolver may have kept his physique toned, but it never did anything for Weiland's nasal voice, a limited instrument in the first place. And though the DeLeos maintained their chops by forming a short-lived supergroup of their own ? Army of Anyone, with Filter's Richard Patrick ? that hardly guaranteed they'd be able to serve up STP's staples sharply, particularly in such large spaces.

Besides, had these guys really been gone long enough for us to truly miss them? And hadn't VR's ability to blast through "Crackerman" and "Sex Type Thing" on tour proven that the STP sound could be easily replicated with just about any L.A. guitar-slingers?

Boy, was that last dismissal unfair. What was most evident throughout Stone Temple Pilots' deeply impressive 19-song set Tuesday night is that, as with its more celebrated peers (Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Soundgarden), there's distinct chemistry at work within this oft-troubled unit.

Velvet Revolver, by comparison, was merely a facsimile, as it was whenever it tackled Guns N' Roses songs. Hearing Kretz and the DeLeos instinctively lay way back into the turnaround beats of "Big Empty" and "Vasoline," however, was just one of several face-slapping reminders that no one plays these modern-rock radio fixtures quite like their originators.

The lessons to be learned here, then, are these: 1) As always, never underestimate the prestige-power of the Hollywood Bowl ? how playing such an auspicious venue tends to bring out the best in headliners. 2) Stone Temple Pilots were, and in many ways still are, a much better band than its damning critics will ever admit.

Weiland is all too aware of that second point. Hard to say which came first ? was he born aggressively testy or did all of STP's bad press put that chip on his shoulder? ? yet it's undeniable that lesser Nirvana knockoffs like Bush and Silverchair got fairer shakes than the Pilots, whose popularity always seemed to be held against them.

"You people, the fans ? you got it," a newly-blonde Weiland told the ecstatic crowd before the mood switched from the Alice in Chains sludge of "Lounge Fly" to the McCartneyesque stomp of "Lady Picture Show." "But of course any artist wants to impress the people who write about him ? the journalists. And that didn't happen on that first record."

Nor did it happen on the second or fourth, or especially the third and fifth. It also didn't help that, with Weiland spiraling further into a drugged-out abyss, the band often wasn't able to tour ? and when it did, it was never in peak form.

Thus, this tour ? and this Bowl bash in particular ? is a way of righting many long-standing wrongs, a chance for the band to finally unleash its full thunder and merit a place alongside the giants of its era.

True, its music was always an amalgam (whose isn't?) of easily discerned parts, much of it a cross between Seattle grunge and Sunset Strip flash. Yet consider how much of STP's music has endured, and how well. The seven selections it resurrected from its 1992 debut "Core" ? including a ferocious "Dead & Bloated," a more psych-metallic "Wicked Garden" and spot-on handlings of "Plush" and "Creep" ? are more indelible than ever, and still sound as fresh as anything Linkin Park has tossed onto KROQ lately.

Likewise, most anything else the group dug up from its catalog ? from riff monsters like "Vasoline" and "Down" to unexpectedly strong fifth-album cuts like "Too Cool Queenie" and "Coma" ? was executed with energy like they rarely exhibited during their heyday.

Not everything was so flawless ? "Interstate Love Song" was a tad dusty, while "Sour Girl" lacked the sad sultriness that makes it so captivating on record. But that so much of this performance would rise to a new level of excellence for this bunch ? that Weiland's persona could be reined in and his vocals given extra oomph, that the DeLeos and Kretz haven't lost a lick of potency ? well, that just didn't figure at all.

Thank the Bowl. "What a (bleepin') amazing experience," Weiland said at the evening's outset, after Frank Black (under his nom de Pixies, Black Francis) roared through 40 minutes of material hardly anyone knew. "To play this venue ?" ? Robert started picking out the Beatles' "Day Tripper" bass line ? "well, there are probably five things you remember in your entire life as the most important things. This will go down as one of them."

It will also go down as the night Stone Temple Pilots finally got it all together ? if not a completely crowning achievement, then at least a performance I wonder if they even realized they still had in them. They're said to be recording a sixth album come fall. After so many false starts and forced groundings, maybe there's hope for their future after all.

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/stone-temple-pilots-2076700-hollywood-bowl