THE BLACK KEYS DEFTONES NEW PORNOGRAPHERS THE HOLD …
Transcript of THE BLACK KEYS DEFTONES NEW PORNOGRAPHERS THE HOLD …
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MAY 2010
VOLU M E 01, I SS U E 03
PE R IODICAL $6.99 U.S. / $7.99 CANADIAN
THE BLACK KEYS DEFTONES NEW PORNOGRAPHERS THE HOLD STEADY
MELISSA ETHERIDGE Returning to rock
MERLE HAGGARDShoots from the hip
NAS & DAMIAN MARLEYRap meets reggae
STONE TEMPLE PILOTSOnce grounded, they’re ready to soar again
VINYL’S REVENGE
SUMMER FESTIVALS
THE ART OF MASTERING
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STONE TEMPLE PILOTS It once seemed they were finished for good, but
now they’re ready to rock again.
DEFTONESHow a heartbreaking accident pulled them closer
and inspired their powerful new music.
NAS & DAMIAN MARLEYLeading lights of the rap and reggae worlds find
common ground in the studio.
ALAN PARSONSThe pioneering producer, engineer and artist
shares his insights about the world of sound.
MELISSA ETHERIDGE After beating cancer, she’s returning to her roots
with a crowd-pleasing new album.
THE BLACK KEYSFor this powerhouse blues-rock duo, keeping
things simple is a way of life.
COVER STORY
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When the members of Stone Temple Pilots began work
on their first album together since 2001, they opted to
stick close to home. Forgoing the luxury of an outside
recording studio, the foursome laid down tracks at the
home studios of singer Scott Weiland, bass player Robert
DeLeo and drummer Eric Kretz. “I attribute it to the fact that we’ve
become much older and lazier,” guitarist Dean DeLeo says with a
laugh. “Scott has a gorgeous studio 10 minutes from his house, Eric
has a gorgeous studio five minutes from his house, Robert has a
gorgeous studio in his house. Where else would you want to work?”
After two often-tumultuous decades together, the members of
Stone Temple Pilots have earned the right to work wherever they
please. Ever since the band formed in San Diego and rocketed
to stardom in the early 1990s with absurdly catchy rock hits like
“Plush” and “Sex Type Thing,” its continued survival has been in
question. Weiland developed a heroin habit during the tour for their
debut album, 1992’s Core, and his
struggles with addiction and regular
brushes with the law over the next
several years regularly wrecked
the group’s recording and touring
schedules. Yet they always managed
to bounce back—until late 2002, when
the members parted ways seemingly
for good. Later Weiland fronted the
supergroup Velvet Revolver, the DeLeo brothers teamed with Filter
vocalist Richard Patrick in the band Army of Anyone and Kretz focused
on production work. While staples like “Interstate Love Song,” “Sour
Girl” and “Vasoline” never left rock radio playlists, it seemed they
would never again be joined there by new STP songs.
That is, until 2007, when Weiland’s then-wife called Dean to
ask if the brothers’ just-for-fun side band, Farm Fur (headed by
Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers drummer Steve Ferrone), could be
persuaded to play at a beach party she was planning. That began
a healing process that eventually culminated in the April 2008
announcement of a 65-date reunion tour. Weiland’s acrimonious
split from Velvet Revolver the same month sealed the deal. Suddenly,
improbably, Stone Temple Pilots was back.
Between shows, the members began writing new songs and
convening at Kretz’s Bomb Shelter Studios. The band opted to
act as its own producer for the first time (Brendan O’Brien helmed
their first five albums), although Don Was provided some crucial
guidance to keep intra-band tension from derailing the music again.
“It’s like a family, and sometimes when you tell your brother you’re
not digging something, he may retaliate,” says Dean. “Don was
very instrumental in saying, ‘You know, maybe he’s right.’ Keeping
us all in line with one another. He
was very helpful in keeping things
harmonious and constructive
between us.”
Dissonance was further kept
to a minimum by having the band’s
three instrumentalists arrange and
record their contributions, then
hand the results off to Weiland
to add vocals independently at his own Lavish Studio. “We’ve been
making music together for so long that we know what to expect from
each other creatively at this point,” Robert DeLeo says. “That’s the
way we made this record.”
In this way, over 10 months, Stone Temple Pilots was born.
‘You have to listen to what the song is asking you and answer those questions.’ – Dean DeLeo
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(Basic tracks for “Cinnamon” and “First Kiss on Mars” were recorded
at Robert’s Homefry Studio.) While many veteran acts struggle to
convince audiences to accept new music, the album’s opening
number and fi rst single, “Between the Lines,” has already become
the band’s 16th mainstream rock Top 10 hit. “I don’t think it was ever
a matter of, ‘I hope this song goes to No. 1 and I hope it’s a huge
song,’” says Robert. “Our main concern is to make the best songs
we can make, and whatever happens with them happens. You don’t
have control over how people are going to react to your songs.”
While predicting Stone Temple Pilots’ future is a fool’s errand,
the group currently plans to tour the world through the end of next
year. And STP remains signed to Atlantic Records for at least one
more album, a contract that Dean, for one, is determined to fulfi ll.
“Just on behalf of myself, I don’t want to leave this earth owing anyone
anything,” he says. “I want to fulfi ll my obligations to whomever I’m
contracted to. If I owe two more records, I want them done.” As they
always have, the DeLeo brothers split the music-writing duties for
Stone Temple Pilots while Weiland handled the lyrics. We recently
spoke with the DeLeos about the long and gradual process of
bringing their band back to life.
“It’s very hard to be talking about a new STP record just
because I fi nd it hard to explain things like that,” Dean says. “I’m
confounded as to what to say when I’m asked questions. But as far
as sitting on a new STP record, I’m elated. I’m ecstatic. Talking about
a new record is hard, but having a new record is spectacular.” His
protestations to the contrary, both Dean and brother Robert proved
as eloquent verbally as they are instrumentally.
Did you feel pressure to make sure this record stood up to
your previous work?
DEAN: If we got into this and we felt this material wasn’t strong
enough to be called a Stone Temple Pilots record, we wouldn’t
have released it. We are our own worst critics. We have very high
expectations for ourselves as well as one another. But it was evident
early on that this was going to be something special, at least to us.
I understand that’s a pretty bold statement right there, but this is
something special.
What was the songwriting process like for this album?
DEAN: It was exactly the same as the previous fi ve albums. Honestly,
it’s remained the same since Core. First Robert, Eric and I get into a
room. Robert and I come into a session with a lot of material. We’re
working up four or fi ve songs a day, because a lot of this stuff we’ve
had in our pockets for a year or two. Scott usually sits the fi rst week
out. Could you imagine being a singer and having that much material
thrown at you? It’s pretty overwhelming. Once we get situated, we
let the music dictate where things are going. When we see the
avenue it’s taking, we stay in that vein of things and start tracking
it in a demo form. We’re not really tracking it for the album, per se,
because when Scott comes in and hears things he very well may
say, “I don’t know if I’m feeling this one,” or, “I think the key needs
to be different in this one,” or, “I need this section to go two more
times.” When Scott really wants to bite into it, that’s when the fi nal
arrangement comes down. You want to accommodate the vocal.
Eric Kretz, Dean DeLeo, Scott Weiland, Robert DeLeo
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Robert, do you actually write on bass?
ROBERT: It mainly starts on guitar for me. I can’t say I really come up
with songs on bass. That way I’ve already established the chording
and the syncopation of the song, and I think being able to add the
bass at the end always makes a more interesting bass line for me.
I would say all of my songs have started out on acoustic guitar.
Do you write with Dean’s guitar style in mind?
ROBERT: I don’t have to. I think he totally relates to where I’m
coming from most of the time. In fact, Dean has written bass stuff.
Dean wrote the bass line to “Sour Girl” and a couple songs on this
record: “Hickory Dichotomy” and “Take a Load Off.” I just played what
he had on there. I like to stay true to what he has in mind. I fully trust
him. I think there’s a certain understanding and respect we have for
each other’s music. We did come from the same womb. (laughs)
How do you present a song to the rest of the band?
ROBERT: I just play it. I think there’s a trap in putting it down on
record fi rst—that old problem of “demo-itis,” trying to chase down
the demo. I just keep it inside me until it’s time to present the song.
I’ll play it and hum the melody I have, and whatever sticks, sticks. I
usually have the song complete from start to fi nish.
Is there an element of competition between the two of
you as songwriters?
DEAN: No, that’s the wrong word. I’ll tell you what it is. If I want
songs on an STP record, I’m going up against Robert DeLeo. My
brother won’t say this, but I will: He’s one of the fi nest songwriters
on the planet, hands down. I put Robert DeLeo up there with Burt
Bacharach, man. So if I want a song on a record, I better bring my
A game. It defi nitely brings out the best in all of us.
ROBERT: I feel like he’s going to take my song and improve it—and
hopefully I’ll do the same with his song. It’s something that’s not
even thought about, we just do it.
Was it ever a challenge to be in a band with your brother?
ROBERT: No, I feel fortunate. I think writing music together has
enhanced our relationship. We’ve always had a true relation through
music as well as being brothers, and I couldn’t think of anybody else
that I’d be more honored to be in a band with. My brother is the one
who inspired me to get into music, so to be able to write music with
that person is a complete honor.
Do you have much input into the lyrics?
ROBERT: That’s Scott, man. He’s a great lyricist. I’ve always
loved where he comes from lyrically. I’ll have a melody, and if he
uses it, great. If not, then I know he’ll come up with something
great. “Interstate Love Song” was a melody I had, which he stuck
with. There are a few things on this record that I think he stuck
with melodically.
PEACE OF ARTDuring the mixing of Stone Temple Pilots, the band was casting around for album cover
ideas when vocalist Scott Weiland brought in a book by artist Shepard Fairey—best
known for his iconic “Hope” poster supporting Barack Obama’s presidential campaign.
Weiland and guitarist Dean DeLeo both immediately fi xated on an image called Peace
Fingers Red. “Scott and I will go to a restaurant and order the same thing,” DeLeo
says. “He and I see very much the same way, and we both clamped down on this
image.” After settling on the image as the album cover design, the band elected to
self-title the album to avoid cluttering it up with other elements. “How do you improve
on that?” DeLeo says. “It’s like trying to improve on a fl ower—you just can’t. We had
a couple of titles in mind, but when anything got next to that image, it muddled it. It
took away from the essence of the image.”
C F
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On stage at the Fox Theater in Oakland, Calif., Oct. 2
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Was it difficult to produce yourselves?
DEAN: I wouldn’t say it was difficult, but it required more attention.
There’s more intensity involved. You’re not just in there worrying about
yourself and your own performances. We made a lot of records with
Brendan and it was like, “This is his thing, let him worry about it.” I
would surely put my two cents in, but I respected Brendan’s decisions.
Was it difficult to hand off the songs to Scott to lay down
vocals himself?
ROBERT: It wasn’t very much
different from making our other
records. Scott did come over to Eric’s
place a few times, and we did sit down
and go over keys and arrangements
and the necessary things we needed
to do to continue on. We hashed that
out before he started singing on stuff,
so we had it together.
All of your records have a real
sense of economy. How did
you develop that approach?
DEAN: I think we always let the song dictate that. It’s nothing we
really ever set out to do. We always let the song talk to us. Just
listen to what the song is telling you. It’s going to ask you questions:
Do you really need a third verse? How long should the bridge be?
When that intro part comes back in, do you need that to go eight
bars, or could that only be four? How do you want to end this? On
a fade? On a last chorus? What is the song saying? You have to
listen to what the song is asking you and answer those questions.
Has the personal dynamic among the band members
changed over the years?
ROBERT: A lot of things have changed. This is textbook stuff,
it happens with anyone. Am I on a personal level the way I was
20 years ago with some of my friends that aren’t in the band?
I don’t think I am. There’s an obvious appreciation for what we
have, and that grows stronger as time goes by. But do we all hang
out? I mean, my own brother is in the band, but do we hang out
all the time? Not all the time. But when the four of us do come
together, it’s interesting to start playing songs that we wrote
almost 20 years ago. Instantly it’s like a class reunion—each song
will spark up a different memory of where we were or what we
were doing or what happened
at that time. It’s incredible. It’s
something that I love always
having in my pocket.
What are your hopes for
the band at this point?
DEAN: I’d like this record to sell
10 million copies, I’d like to do all
my future tours on my private jet
…. (laughs) Honestly, I do not
take for granted that I have a job
that allows me the opportunity to
share something so intimate and so beautiful with so many people.
I’m very, very grateful. If I can just keep continuing to do that until
I’m old and gray, man, that’s success.
ROBERT: It’s tough being in a band. I’ve been in a band for 20
years now, and it’s not the easiest thing to do. There’s a lot of
personalities and egos and different things involved. I look at things
differently being in my 40s than I did in my 20s. In my 20s, STP
was my life. I think now I make STP a part of my life, and that makes
it easier for me. There’s a lot of vinegar and oil needed to make a
good salad, and STP is sometimes vinegar and sometimes it’s oil.
Balancing it out and making it a good salad is the goal here. It’s
about making the greatest songs and records we can make. M
TOOLS OF THE TRADEWe asked Dean and Robert DeLeo to tell us about the instruments and gear they used while recording Stone Temple Pilots.
GUITARS
DEAN: I don’t have a heck of a lot of guitars. I usually have two Les Pauls, with one of them set up for slide. I have three Telecasters. One has a Bixby [tremolo], which I utilized for the solo for “Bagman.” Then I have one Tele strung up with Nashville tuning, which gives it this real chime-y, interesting sound, and I have a Tele that’s strung up straight. I have a Danelectro, with those fabulous lipstick pickups, that I use a fair amount on the record. I also have a Danelectro Longhorn six-string bass that you hear on “First Kiss on Mars.”
BASSES
ROBERT: The fine folks at Gibson sent me a Thunderbird, and I fell in love with that bass. I had never really played one, and I was very curious to see how it would sound. I used that bass on the majority of the record. I just liked the consistency of it, from string to string, note to note, fret to fret. I also used a Schecter eight-string bass on a song called “Take a Load Off.” I know most people play it with a pick, but I just banged it out with my fingers.
Then I got a nice 1970 Hagstrom Swede bass, which I also love. It’s kind of like a Les Paul bass, all mahogany. I used that on “Dare If You Dare,” and all the rest of it was the Thunderbird.
AMPLIFIERS
DEAN: I brought in a couple of the Marshall 18- and 20-watt combos. Marshall did those between ’66 and ’68, and they were never actually introduced to the U.S. They are really amazing. I’ve had those for a long time, and I use those a lot on the records. I have a B212 Ampeg flip-top and a couple of [Vox] AC30s and AC15s. A friend a mine, a San Diego cat by the name of Jeff Snider, makes really wonderful amps. I always bring a Snider amp into a session. It doesn’t matter what guitar I plug into that, I can get a chime out of it like an AC30 won’t give me. Beyond that I have a lot of small stuff—little Ampeg V12s and Champs, four-inch and six-inch speakers. ROBERT: I was fortunate enough about 15 years ago to find a 1970 Marshall 8x10 cabinet. It speaks well on bass. I took the power section off my 1971 Ampeg BT-22 amp and ran it into the 8x10 Marshall cabinet. Then I AB’d that off to a ’61 Fender Bassman that had a custom 15 in it. I also put that directly into a Demeter Tube Direct Box. Usually I do those two direct channels and blend them together according to where it will fit in the mix with the guitars. By the third record I had started doing that. I can’t say I was entirely happy with my sound on the first two records. By the third record I was just like, “Dammit, I work way too hard and long not to be heard.”
‘When the four of us do come together, it’s like a class reunion.’ – Robert DeLeo
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