The recently reformed Stone Temple Pilots have released their first body of new material since 2001, and the results are surprisingly mainstream.
Maybe because of the relative commercial failure of 2001’s “Shangri-La Dee Da,” the new self-titled album falls between the early hard-rocking grunge aspects of “Core” and the Shangri-La’s artier psychedelic qualities. The outcome ends up being fairly straight and narrow radio rock ‘n’ roll.
That wasn’t meant as a critique per se, but Stone Temple fans from both ends of the spectrum might struggle to latch on to the current fashion.
First single “Between the Lines” is about as radio-ready as rock songs come. Vocalist Scott Weiland delivers a simple hook (“You always were my favorite drug, even when we used to take drugs.”) and guitarist Dean DeLeo delivers a stock issue solo. Fans looking for an edgier take on romance circa “Sex Type Thing” will be disappointed.
The other tracks aren’t nearly as cut and dry, but they aren’t revolutionary. “Hickory Dichotomy” and “First Kiss on Mars” (with its lyrics about “supermagic robots”) show the band in a more creative mood if not that exciting.
Stone Temple Pilots may have beaten Alice in Chains in terms of grunge bands back from the dead, but fans should look for something better. Soundgarden, your move.
