2019-09-27 - Detroit, MI - Michigan Lottery Amphitheatre at Freedom Hill

[Rik]

https://www.belowempty.com/concerts.php?cat=stone_temple_pilots&band=stone_temple_pilots&type=&s=date&id=1934

[Rik]

Set List Information

• Down
• Wicked Garden
• Vasoline
• Crackerman
• Pruno
• Big Bang Baby
• Glide
• Big Empty
• Plush
• Meadow
• Interstate Love Song
• Roll Me Under
• Dead & Bloated
• Trippin’ On A Hole In A Paper Heart
• Piece Of Pie
• Sex Type Thing

[IMJ]

The absence of material from STP I has, oddly enough, made me start spinning that album....

[kshamrock20]

I don't get it. Since Jeff joined the band they haven't played a single song from that album. I like the album. Why completely ignore it? Between the Lines was a #1 hit. I can see if they chose to rarely play from it, but to never touch it at all?

[loungefly90]

I don't get it. Since Jeff joined the band they haven't played a single song from that album. I like the album. Why completely ignore it? Between the Lines was a #1 hit. I can see if they chose to rarely play from it, but to never touch it at all?

Without getting into a big thing here as I think this conversation has been exhausted many times, but I am one of those people who thinks "STP I" was their worst album with maybe one or two good songs on it at the most. Bagman? Hickory Dichotomy? Huckleberry Crumble? These songs sounded very sloppy and like everyone had a different idea that in the end all got pieced together. That album is a total mess and it's very obvious the band was not cohesive at all.

I'm just taking a stab here, but it seems like the band wants to forget that album and I'm with them. They have not played a single song live from that album since Jeff came on and I think there's a very serious reason why.

If anything, we should be far more upset that nothing from Shangri-La is on the regular setlist.

[foou33]

I don't get it. Since Jeff joined the band they haven't played a single song from that album. I like the album. Why completely ignore it? Between the Lines was a #1 hit. I can see if they chose to rarely play from it, but to never touch it at all?

Without getting into a big thing here as I think this conversation has been exhausted many times, but I am one of those people who thinks "STP I" was their worst album with maybe one or two good songs on it at the most. Bagman? Hickory Dichotomy? Huckleberry Crumble? These songs sounded very sloppy and like everyone had a different idea that in the end all got pieced together. That album is a total mess and it's very obvious the band was not cohesive at all.

I'm just taking a stab here, but it seems like the band wants to forget that album and I'm with them. They have not played a single song live from that album since Jeff came on and I think there's a very serious reason why.

If anything, we should be far more upset that nothing from Shangri-La is on the regular setlist.

There are still some tunes on there I'd like to hear them do. But lets face it, if they aren't going to bump the old hits for new songs, they aren't going to bump them for sort of new songs.

[Sklashboombash]

As we’ve said time and time again, they’ve made their bed as a nostalgia act. This is who/what they are, regardless of whatever spin they give in promo interviews.

Jeff does his best to honor the catalog but he clearly dials it up a notch whenever they go into Roll Me Under - and the crowd has responded both times I’ve seen them with Jeff.

There’s plenty on the new record to embrace live; I don’t understand why they refuse to.
But if they’re not careful, in time, Jeff will get bored and just move on.

[stontemplpilot]

I don't get it. Since Jeff joined the band they haven't played a single song from that album. I like the album. Why completely ignore it? Between the Lines was a #1 hit. I can see if they chose to rarely play from it, but to never touch it at all?

Without getting into a big thing here as I think this conversation has been exhausted many times, but I am one of those people who thinks "STP I" was their worst album with maybe one or two good songs on it at the most. Bagman? Hickory Dichotomy? Huckleberry Crumble? These songs sounded very sloppy and like everyone had a different idea that in the end all got pieced together. That album is a total mess and it's very obvious the band was not cohesive at all.

I'm just taking a stab here, but it seems like the band wants to forget that album and I'm with them. They have not played a single song live from that album since Jeff came on and I think there's a very serious reason why.

If anything, we should be far more upset that nothing from Shangri-La is on the regular setlist.

I second everything loungefly90 said.

[loungefly90]

As we’ve said time and time again, they’ve made their bed as a nostalgia act. This is who/what they are, regardless of whatever spin they give in promo interviews.

Agree, but I don't think they have much of a choice. STP came from a time when rock/grunge bands were on fire, but honestly did not make enough of an impact to just sell out arenas for the rest of their lives like Pearl Jam or Guns N' Roses. I think fans, and I know I did, got tired of the drama. I am glad STP are still hanging on, but they remind me of Candlebox. Enough people are still going to see Candlebox shows, but I was literally at a Candlebox show earlier this year and the band got booed when Kevin said, "We're going to take you back to 2016." It was clear people only wanted to hear You, Don't You, and Far Behind, which is a complete shame.

Unfortunately, I feel that STP falls into this group. People want to hear Plush and Creep. Stone Temple Pilots is a nostalgia act as was mentioned along with bands like Bush and Live and 3 Doors Down. I'm not exactly sure how bands like Smashing Pumpkins or Radiohead can be absent for a long time and then show up out of nowhere and sell out big tours, but they do it. I even know lots of people who aren't exactly sure what happened to Scott or even that Jeff and Scott are not the same person, and unfortuiantely, these are the people buying tickets. They aren't people like us who want to hear songs like Black Again and No Way Out.

[Sklashboombash]

Maybe

As we’ve said time and time again, they’ve made their bed as a nostalgia act. This is who/what they are, regardless of whatever spin they give in promo interviews.

Agree, but I don't think they have much of a choice. STP came from a time when rock/grunge bands were on fire, but honestly did not make enough of an impact to just sell out arenas for the rest of their lives like Pearl Jam or Guns N' Roses. I think fans, and I know I did, got tired of the drama. I am glad STP are still hanging on, but they remind me of Candlebox. Enough people are still going to see Candlebox shows, but I was literally at a Candlebox show earlier this year and the band got booed when Kevin said, "We're going to take you back to 2016." It was clear people only wanted to hear You, Don't You, and Far Behind, which is a complete shame.

Unfortunately, I feel that STP falls into this group. People want to hear Plush and Creep. Stone Temple Pilots is a nostalgia act as was mentioned along with bands like Bush and Live and 3 Doors Down. I'm not exactly sure how bands like Smashing Pumpkins or Radiohead can be absent for a long time and then show up out of nowhere and sell out big tours, but they do it. I even know lots of people who aren't exactly sure what happened to Scott or even that Jeff and Scott are not the same person, and unfortuiantely, these are the people buying tickets. They aren't people like us who want to hear songs like Black Again and No Way Out.

This is years in the making.
Who they are live has less to do with the era they came from and more to do with their reluctance to play new material, in my opinion. Maybe some of that is on Scott for "not being able" to pull off stuff. I don't know.

But for years, I (and others) have been saying that they've mismanaged their career. Look no further than this tour. Rival Sons is going out there playing 7 songs off their new album - which by the way is their 6th album (in 10 years). STP, for comparison's sake, played 2 off Butterfly.

They put more emphasis on their reissues than their new material.
Wiki lists Butterfly as having had 4 singles. I mean, did anyone even know that?

And if I sound harsh, it's only because I've always wanted the very best for these guys. They should be viewed in the same light as the Big Seattle 4 but they've squandered so many opportunities.

[IMJ]

I agree with basically everything that's being said here, but you've got a guy like Jeff who can still sing. They should be able to shake up the setlist at random.

But, the other side of this is that Jeff is no spring chicken either. Hell, he pulled his left hamstring climbing back on stage at the Chicago show. I don't know if anyone noticed that but if there's footage of it, it's there if you watch. -Not that you have to be aging to pull a hamstring, but I'm just saying..-

I suppose that having a regular setlist is probably a lot like lifting weights appropriately in your routine, but for your vocal chords. But hopefully during the next tour they will shake it up significantly. With the bassy, rockshow calibration the band is using, I'd love to see Dumb Love as part of the set.

[Blue]

I feel like die-hard fans are never going to be happy with them. They're playing a rotating set, they're playing songs like Glide, Pruno and Coma just about every night. They're playing  Meatplow and Sour Girl for the first  time in 5 years. Not to mention that certain "staples" of the setlist, such as Silvergun Superman, Lounge Fly and Piece of Pie, are deep cuts most casual fans wouldn't know the name of if you asked them.

It's a shame they aren't playing more of SLDD or either Self Tiled, or even High Rise for that matter... But considering they are playing an abbreviated set during a co-headlining tour, they're doing a LOT better job keeping the set fresh and full of deeper cuts than they were for the tour with Bush. And yet here we are, still complaining.

[Flyingmerpa]

...There’s plenty on the new record to embrace live; I don’t understand why they refuse to.
But if they’re not careful, in time, Jeff will get bored and just move on.

This is a point that is often overlooked.  On one hand, Jeff could just be a practical guy who just wants to provide for his family and eventual retirement (like the rest of us non-rockstars).   He may be perfectly happy to have landed a solid job that presumably pays well, with all the perks of singing with his heroes and enjoying every other perk of being in that tier of the rock industry.
On the other hand, he could just be using this as a stepping stone to personal glory and fame, or perhaps he desires more renown for his writing and creativity.  If that is the case, he will see he is on the wrong path.  However there can definitely be a balance between all of these variables and are not all mutually exclusive.
My instinct tells me hes a regular dude who may be content with a solid job that gives just a sliver of the spotlight for stuff he contributes.  He is 40+ and a single dad from Detroit (from what I remember from his X-Factor clips), so I think even if he gets bored, what odds does he have at this point to find something better?  Maybe going into production or something?

[IMJ]

I feel like die-hard fans are never going to be happy with them. They're playing a rotating set, they're playing songs like Glide, Pruno and Coma just about every night. They're playing  Meatplow and Sour Girl for the first  time in 5 years. Not to mention that certain "staples" of the setlist, such as Silvergun Superman, Lounge Fly and Piece of Pie, are deep cuts most casual fans wouldn't know the name of if you asked them.

It's a shame they aren't playing more of SLDD or either Self Tiled, or even High Rise for that matter... But considering they are playing an abbreviated set during a co-headlining tour, they're doing a LOT better job keeping the set fresh and full of deeper cuts than they were for the tour with Bush. And yet here we are, still complaining.

These are good points, and as for my part in it, I'll clarify at all by saying that the current setlist is a move in the right direction compared to what the band used to play.  And I'm not really "complaining" about the setlist as much as just saying that the band even expressed in the recent past that now they have the ability to play songs from across their catalog.  So the observation is more akin to 'you guys said you had this ability now, so let's see it because we got the impression that was what you wanted to do'.

All of that aside though, and I'll still err on the side that the constant setlist is also a function of keeping your singer healthy and "in shape".

[Rik]

Just my $.02:

• Set lists are way better than they used to be. STP has never been the kind of band that goes into 90+min sets and as they get older I don't think they will.
• I'm bummed to see Jeff only sing one or two of his 'own' songs. There's strong material on the new album that they could add to the set.
• But... I think the hardest thing for the band is to take 'hits' out. They love playing the songs that they play and they will always keep a base set with a few rotating slots. I would be surprised if they ever dropped Interstate, Wicked Garden, Plush, STT, DAB, or Trippin' for a new and lesser known song
• They are on tour with Rival Sons. That band basically has 6 albums out. That's the same number of albums as what STP is drawing from, since they have abandoned the 2010 self-titled one. Seven (7!) out of the 12 songs from their current regular set are from their last album. Yeah, they don't have as many hits as STP, but they are creating new ones by playing fresh material.