Credit: Michelle Shiers
Credit: Michelle ShiersStone Temple Pilots are currently on tour in support of their new, self-titled album, their first with lead singer Jeff Gutt. Speaking with ABC Radio, Gutt — a former X Factor contestant — describes his approach to performing the songs once sung by the late Scott Weiland and Chester Bennington.
“I just try to stick with the sentiment of the song and try not to overthink it, and just try to be as free as possible,” Gutt explains. “To me, that’s what the essence of STP was for frontmen: fearlessness, just b***s-to-the-wall, and [being] comfortable in your own skin and just moving forward.”
He continues, “So I just try to be me and feel the songs and feel the energy of the band with me. That’s about all I can do.”
STP has definitely been playing the classics while on tour, including “Plush” and “Interstate Love Song,” but Gutt has also noticed an enthusiasm for the new material.
“I’m always listening to hear what the people are yelling back at me, and I’ve heard some requests for the new stuff,” he says. “Which…warmed my heart!”
If you do happen to yell out a request at an STP show, there’s a fairly good chance Gutt will be open to playing it, since he’s down to sing pretty much any song in the band’s catalog.
“There’s so many STP songs that are just classic to me, and just so influential in my musical growth,” Gutt says. “I mean, there’s so many that I couldn’t pick one that I have to say, ‘I have to play that song.'”
That being said, he adds, “I’m a big fan of ‘Dead and Bloated,’ for sure.”
STP’s current tour continues tonight in Memphis, Tennessee. They’ll embark on a “tri-headlining” tour with Bush and The Cult in July.
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