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Vocalist Scott Weiland met bassist Robert DeLeo at Black Flag concert in Long Beach, CA. The meeting led to the formation of Mighty Joe Young and Shirley Temple’s Pussy (that was a lawsuit waiting to happen) before becoming Stone Temple Pilots (STP), with Robert’s brother Dean on guitar and drummer Eric Kretz. #10. Sex…
The Church, though popular in their native land, had a tougher time in the States due in large part to their often diverse, free-form approach. They tended to favor thoughtful and meandering acoustic oriented songs. The Church could be moody and gloomy but also lush and textured. Steven Kilbey (bass, keyboards, vocals), Marty Wilson-Piper (guitar,…
When the name Deep Purple comes up most people immediately think “Smoke On The Water.” The thing is, Deep Purple had a long, accomplished career before and after that song. Early Deep Purple could be described as a covers band with Prog Rock tendencies. The covers included “Hush,” a major hit, “River Deep, Mountain High”…
The Offspring originally signed with Epitaph Records. “Ignition” rolled out in ’92 and went gold – shipping 500,000 units. Their next recording “Ixnay On The Hombre”” sold over a million copies but “Americana” chalked up three million in sales. “Conspiracy Of One,” the band’s sixth full-length effort arrived in ’00. The album was the last…
When a band’s first albums are titled “I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love” (’02) and “Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge” (’04), there’s an obvious skewed world view. No wonder, My Chemical Romance was from New Jersey. The band’s name was procured from cult writer Irvine Walsh’s novel “Ecstasy – Three Tales…
It’s funny how a seemingly meaningless performance can change a career. Justin and Dan Hawkins were struggling guitarists from Suffolk who’d rolled through a number of bands, together and separately, with little measurable success. In ’97, Justin was a university student and Dan had moved to London. Various line-ups, including bassist Frankie Poullain and drummer…
Given their fractured beginning, who would have suspected that Pearl Jam would be the last Grunge band standing? Just as Seattle’s Mother Love Bone looked like it was going to be big news, lead singer Andrew Wood overdosed on heroin. Stone Gossard (guitar) and Jeff Ament (bass) pulled themselves from the ruins. They added Mike…
College friends, vocalist Cy Curnin and drummer Adam Woods decided to have a crack at starting a group. They placed an ad and recruited guitarist Jamie West-Oram, keyboardist Rupert Greenall and bassist Charlie Barret. They originally called themselves The Fix but found that there was already band using that moniker so they quickly added another…
Kid Rock (Robert James Ritchie) spent a large chunk of the early ’90s recording and performing in semi-obscurity. Just well-known enough to build a small but loyal fan base, while at the same time, getting a heap of flak/criticism from the local music community. In the mid-90s, Kid Rock formed a backing band dubbed Twisted…
When Smashing Pumpkins were inducted into Hollywood’s RockWalk guitarist/vocalist Billy Corgan and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin (the only two original members still in the band) were on hand for the ’07 ceremony. “I’m so used to bad vibes, people hating our band and throwing things at us,” said Corgan. “So it’s strange to be honored.” Back…