3 albums in 6 years, the fans feel "robbed"

[MAJOR METAL]

I just read an article from 97 in "Guitar" magazine talking about Talk Show,where Robert said " 3 albums in 6 years, on a fan level the word that comes to mind is robbed". Can you imagine how robbed these guys must feel having put out only 6 albums plus the EP last year? Wow. Going through these old articles from the 90s and the thing that really comes across is how much Robert and Dean wanted to make albums. I wish they had been given that chance.

[ShaneC]

STP could have 12-15 albums by now. Maybe more. I can only imagine how awesome that would be.

[StoneTempleBrett]

I'll bet Rob/Dean/Eric would have preferred for that Talk Show record to be an STP record (or a 2nd disc to Tiny Music).  One of STP's biggest missed opportunities to me though is the 2000's, not the 90's.  That '2nd wind' of popularity Scott had with VR when Contraband came out could have been a 2nd wind in STP's career that established them as one of the top rock heavyweights of the last 20 years.  I think even after that missed chance they missed another with the 2008 reunion.  The self-titled album, while not a big hit by any means, was a respectable return to form (#2 debut, nice critical reviews that acknowledged that they were wrong to rip STP in the 90's) but they never played too much of it live, remaining stuck in the 90's with the setlist.  Not releasing a followup 2-3 years later was another missed opportunity, if they could have done that it would have established them as a veteran act that was really looking to add to their catalog/make up for lost time.  I get that Scott's a colossal pain in the ass, but I wish they could at least just record separately like self-titled and pop out albums every few years, even without touring.  Those four guys were put on this earth to create music together, seems like such a waste that they're not.  It's kind of just hitting me a year later now after all the hype has died down how fucked this all is.

[Down-Plush]

I was weirdly thinking about this same thing today, actually. It had never occurred to me, and I had always felt as though they had an adequate amount of material for their being together, keeping in mind break ups/hiatus/rehab/whatever, but then today I realized how long STP had been around and how much time they could've had/utilized differently. I don't know about 12 to 15 albums, but I feel as though we should be at 8. 8 albums just feels like the right number of albums we should have up to this point. Maybe 8 to 10 depending on how you view possible time usage. The other guys, if they all had that album making mindset, 10 to 15 albums wouldn't be out of the question at all. When thinking of Scott, I feel as though 8 to 10 STP albums would be the best we could hope for in an idyllic sense.

[Chris Pepper]

I'll bet Rob/Dean/Eric would have preferred for that Talk Show record to be an STP record (or a 2nd disc to Tiny Music).  One of STP's biggest missed opportunities to me though is the 2000's, not the 90's.  That '2nd wind' of popularity Scott had with VR when Contraband came out could have been a 2nd wind in STP's career that established them as one of the top rock heavyweights of the last 20 years.  I think even after that missed chance they missed another with the 2008 reunion.  The self-titled album, while not a big hit by any means, was a respectable return to form (#2 debut, nice critical reviews that acknowledged that they were wrong to rip STP in the 90's) but they never played too much of it live, remaining stuck in the 90's with the setlist.  Not releasing a followup 2-3 years later was another missed opportunity, if they could have done that it would have established them as a veteran act that was really looking to add to their catalog/make up for lost time.  I get that Scott's a colossal pain in the ass, but I wish they could at least just record separately like self-titled and pop out albums every few years, even without touring.  Those four guys were put on this earth to create music together, seems like such a waste that they're not.  It's kind of just hitting me a year later now after all the hype has died down how fucked this all is.

I've said something like this since the firing.  They obviously do not get along for long periods of time.......Scott's terrible in long stretches/hard to put up with.  The play after ST was to lay low for a couple of years.  Instead they botch the Core anniversary and then tour greatest hits??  Bad decision.  But their career is littered with bad decisions.  Who remembers Dean going to radio stations whining that Scott's addicted and then cancelling the KISS tour back in the day?  The Deleos have consistently done one thing since inception of STP and that was to overreact to Scott.  They consistently throw Scott under the bus publicly.  Just bad for the brand and the fans.  I've heard Metallica say this before.  Protect Metallica at all costs.  Hetfield is an 'f-up, too.  You don't see them pulling this shit.  They protect the brand.  The Deleos do the opposite.  Totally frustrating.                     

[MAJOR METAL]

Metallica as  recording artist aren't all that far ahead of STP. 9 studio albums since 83, 1 EP, 1 cover album. Though they have toured a hell of a lot more than STP.

[foou33]

How about Tool? at the rate they are going now they could release their next album and the 10th anniversary of their last album on the same day.

Too bad STP didn't make more albums, they probably could have had 10+ more big radio hits than they do now.

[Stop That Pigeon]

I've heard Metallica say this before.  Protect Metallica at all costs.  Hetfield is an 'f-up, too.  You don't see them pulling this shit.  They protect the brand.  The Deleos do the opposite.  Totally frustrating.                     

That's an interesting point. Would we prefer STP to have been like Metallica/U2/Bon Jovi in terms of brand and marketability or do we prefer them with all their fuck-ups as irritating as they are?

Personally, I detest the other bands mentioned although I've seen great live shows from them. On balance, I'll take the fuck-ups.

[IMJ]

That's an interesting point. Would we prefer STP to have been like Metallica/U2/Bon Jovi in terms of brand and marketability or do we prefer them with all their fuck-ups as irritating as they are?

Personally, I detest the other bands mentioned although I've seen great live shows from them. On balance, I'll take the fuck-ups.

The band would have been better off not reacting like children looking for vengeance from the very beginning. I still remember the original, notorious press conference from when I was in High School and even then it seemed melodramatic and like the wrong move - even to a kid in High School. Over the years it's become clearer that there's a bit of a vendetta involved with the public shaming and so on that goes a bit beyond simply trying to communicate the message. Weiland definitely is responsible for derailing the band, but the band's handling of the whole situation has routinely killed the conductor.

[lovemachine97]

STP was pretty damn huge at the time Scott was getting arrested. Most bands aren't in a situation where their frontman is the top story on the news in handcuffs--multiple times. I remember being a teenager and my parents calling me in to watch the local LA network news (it was either ABC, NBC, or CBS) as one of Weiland's arrests started off the news broadcast.

When they released No. 4, the album with a top 40 hit, Scott was sitting in a jail cell. When they were invited on MTV's TRL to debut the "Down" video, they had to do so without Scott.

Not a lot of bands have been in the same position. Scott was very publicly in trouble with the law. In hindsight, a press conference to cancel a tour due to their singer's issues was probably more about getting back at Scott due to frustrations about his extracurricular activities, but it was nothing like the embarrassment he put them through.

Remember, Scott came out and said that scoring the drugs himself in seedy areas was part of the thrill. He could have easily procured his drugs in ways less likely to get him arrested; he preferred to score them in more dangerous ways. That part is on him.

STP is just one of those bands that was destined to be loved in hindsight. Critics overwhelmingly said they were wrong. The band was too versatile to be carry a consistently large fanbase. They are fan-retarded. They've made poor public decisions.

I am happy I have gotten the music I have. "Black Heart" and "Tomorrow" are songs that continue in the tradition of the STP I love. It's better than nothing, I suppose.

Let's also not forget that the DeLeos have many friends in the industry. They maintain these relationships. Scott tends to burn bridges. Two bands don't want anything to do with the guy. That's pretty damning. And honestly, Slash has had issues with two singers. I am guessing Slash is not innocent guy either.

The evidence is just too overwhelming. I enjoy Scott. Used to idolize him. Now I feel sorry for him. I hope he lives a happy and healthy life. If he can do that AND make good music for a while, then even better.

[Stop That Pigeon]

You guys both make great points. It's a great shame that the original breakdown in relationships was never truly resolved.

[DankoJones]

The "what if" factor w/STP is huge on so many levels.

[MAJOR METAL]

You guys both make great points. It's a great shame that the original breakdown in relationships was never truly resolved.

True that. There was no warm fuzzy feelings when the reunion took place in 2008. All we heard about was the million bucks they were offered to play 1 concert. Sadly, after 2 decades of mistrust and disappointment amongst them, I doubt it is fixable now.

[StoneTempleBrett]

You guys both make great points. It's a great shame that the original breakdown in relationships was never truly resolved.

True that. There was no warm fuzzy feelings when the reunion took place in 2008. All we heard about was the million bucks they were offered to play 1 concert. Sadly, after 2 decades of mistrust and disappointment amongst them, I doubt it is fixable now.

I think a 2 million dollar offer could fix it.

[lovemachine97]

Can't see anyone making that offer any time soon.