Jimmy Allen of Against All Will
March 2, 2012 by Publisher
Filed under Interviews
by Mark Allen
Staff Writer –
Crawling Out of the Mudd: An Interview with Jimmy Allen of Against All Will
Fans of that modern, post-grunge sound may instantly recognize Jimmy Allen’s name, but for the uninitiated, he is an original member of the band Puddle of Mudd, the award-winning genius behind hit songs such as “Blurry,” “Drift and Die,” and “She Hates Me,” all featured on the Come Clean album, which was directly responsible for breaking Puddle of Mudd into the mainstream. Jimmy’s Puddle days are now behind him and he has moved on and formed a new band, Against All Will, which sports all the earmarks of the modern commercial hard rock scene while retaining a metal-edged legitimacy.
Jimmy recently took the time to converse with Hardrock Haven about his Puddle of Mudd days, the challenges facing a rock musician in today’s musical climate, his collaboration with Cello Dias, and the lack of platypuses in metal music.
HRH: Jimmy, thanks so much for talking to me. Your new band, Against All Will, is definitely more radio-friendly than Puddle of Mudd. Was this a deliberate attempt at charting some songs or simply the natural outcome of where you are musically and creatively these days?
Jimmy Allen: It was just natural. I tend to write songs that I like and hope other people will enjoy too.
HRH: Just like celebrities always cite “irreconcilable differences” as the reason for divorce, it seems when members depart a band it is often blamed on “creative differences.” Was this the case with your departure from Puddle of Mudd, or did something else cause you to walk away?
Jimmy Allen: I walked away from the band before the signing with Fred Durst because nobody was on the same page and the deal was in favor of one person, not the whole band. I rejoined the band in 2004 and I was let go in 2006 for not signing a shady contract that would have made me a hired gun for the band I started.
HRH: Puddle’s loss is Against All Will’s gain. The band’s latest album, A Rhyme & Reason, has been out for awhile now; how is it performing, both from a critical as well as sales aspect?
Jimmy Allen: It’s been great! For not having a big push from a major label, we sold 50,000 downloads alone in 2011. We are very blessed to have such great fans and people spreading our music around.
HRH: While you yourself are hardly new to the rock music scene, Against All Will is technically a new band, despite the presence of veteran players. What are the biggest obstacles facing a new band trying to make it in today’s rock music world?
Jimmy Allen: Touring has been the toughest thing; making money when out on the road is pretty rough these days.
HRH: Will there be another Against All Will album and if so, when?
Jimmy Allen: Yes. We are shooting for spring sometime.
HRH: Cannot wait to hear it. Cello Dias is an absolute beast on the bass guitar on A Rhyme & Reason. How did your collaboration with him come about?
Jimmy Allen: Our good friend Roy, drummer from Stone Sour, played with Cello in Soulfly. He recommended him to us one day.
HRH: The modern hard rock/metal market is rife with banal, boring album covers, but A Rhyme & Reason has a cover that seems to be trying to convey a message. Can you tell us who designed it and explain the symbolism?
Jimmy Allen: The Aardvark brigade designed it. They do amazing work! I worked out my ideas with them for the artwork and we went back and forth until I was happy with it. I wanted it to show bits and pieces from the songs from the CD, so it has the bugs, needles, speakers, microphones, and a hidden message.
HRH: Since the album cover features beetles, not exactly a common avatar in hard rock, I was wondering if on your next release you would consider giving some love to another creature so often overlooked in metal: the duck-billed platypus. C’mon, nothing screams bad-ass metal like a platypus. What do you think?
Jimmy Allen: That’s totally bad-ass! Where do I send the check?
HRH: I would tell you to send the check to my editor, but he’d just use it to buy vodka, so you might as well keep it. Speaking of keeping things, every song on A Rhyme & Reason is a keeper, which leaves the listener begging for more. What made you decide to only release seven tracks?
Jimmy Allen: Thank you. Very simple—we ran out of money.
HRH: You are on your death bed with only seconds left before you have a personal experience with whatever lies on the other side of the grave. You have enough breath for maybe ten words and you want to tell everyone the most important thing they need to know about life in the rock and roll world—what would those words be?
Jimmy Allen: Be careful what you wish for, it may come true.
HRH: Good advice. Jimmy, thanks a bunch for speaking with me. We here at Hardrock Haven wish you the best of luck in all your future endeavors, both rock-related and otherwise.
Jimmy Allen: Thanks for all the support and taking the time to do this interview.
For more information on Jimmy Allen and Against All Will, please visit www.facebook.com/againstallwilljimmy or www.againstallwill.com.
LIVE! | Rock Allegiance Tour 2011
September 18, 2011 by Publisher
Filed under arccon2011
by Chris A.
Staff Writer
September 14, 2011 at the Lifestyle Center Pavilion, Columbus, Ohio
This should have been called the “Great Value For The Money Tour” because for $15.00 this was a great ticket! Featuring seven bands, the Rock Allegiance Tour brought its fun and games to the Lifestyle Center Pavilion, the LC, in the capital city of Ohio, Columbus. When the gates opened at four p.m. the weather was perfect for an outdoor concert, nearly seventy degrees and a slight breeze but that would change. As for the concert, the Rock Allegiance Tour described itself as “Loud licks and cheap tix” and it certainly lived up to the bill. The artists performing included Drive A., Crossfade, Red, P.O.D., Puddle of Mudd, Papa Roach and headliner Buckcherry.
With a mixture of proven veterans like Buckcherry, Puddle of Mudd and Papa Roach the crowd wasn’t going to be left disappointed by any of the lesser known acts on the bill. However, each band on the bill offered up strong performances. Sonny Sandoval, front man of San Diego based P.O.D., energized the crowd during their set by leaping into the crowd, surfing into the fan base who enthusiastically held him aloft.
Out promoting their disc, The World In Shambles, the California four-some “Drive A.” was energetic with great songs, cool hooks and genuine talent. In the same vein is “Red” a band that is almost certainly going to go places. Visually stimulating and fronted by a vocalist who not only hits the high notes, he’s a crowd pleasing entertainer.
Needless to say, P.O.D., Puddle of Mudd and Papa Roach ripped through long well received sets from the enthusiastic Ohio audience. As the evening wore on, and as it got darker the winds increased too. By the time Buckcherry bounded onto the stage, the occasional sprinkles of rain had changed into a full scale deluge. As he strutted about, the lanky, tattooed vocalist of Buckcherry, Josh Todd squinted as he peered towards the sky at the gigantic raindrops while belting out “All Night Long.” The raindrops were so big, they looked like diamonds as they passed through the rays of bright stage spotlights. Undeterred by the weather, guitarist Stevie D. leapt from the stage onto an off-stage PA system and got soaked with the crowd while he belted out his solo. It was a cool evening and worth every penny.
The Rock Allegiance Tour rolls on, for more information about the tour visit www.rockallegiance.com you can see more of Chris A.’s photography at Chris A. Photography on Facebook.
Rock Allegiance Tour Featuring:
Buckcherry
Papa Roach
Puddle of Mudd
P.O.D.
Red
Crossfade
Drive A.
Puddle Of Mudd | re:(disc)overed
August 30, 2011 by Publisher
Filed under arcrvws2011
by Deb Rao
Staff Writer
Puddle Of Mudd return to the radio with a follow up to Volume lV: Songs In The Key Of Love And Hate with a ’70s classic covers album re:(disc)overed slated to be released on August 30. You may wonder can a band influenced by the Nirvana grunge scene pull off an album full of ’70s classics? The answer is yes indeed. Actually, Puddle Of Mudd stay true to the original sound of these classic hits and even manage add a ’90s flair to the songs giving them a sort of rebirth. re:(disc)overed was produced by Bill Appleberry.
The first single “Gimme Shelter” has hit the airwaves with a riveting response. The album cover reflects a picture of an old Victrola or record player. In essence with all the pro-tools of this era, till this day I don’t think modern technology will ever recapture the raw untainted sound of a record produced back in the day. Today many albums are so over produced. Puddle of Mudd stay true to the raw, live sound on re:(disc)overed. It was nice to go back in time for a just a moment.
Guitarist Paul Phillips tells Hardrock Haven, “It is something that people wouldn’t expect to hear from us. That is kind of the reason we did it. It gave us the opportunity to do things that we could not do on a Puddle record.”
It was refreshing listening to these ’70s classics hits that have helped shape the music world, as we know it today. It is always a dangerous situation to attempt to re-do a song that was so popular back in the day. But the musicians in Puddle Of Mudd pour out their hearts into this vast collection of hits. The CD starts off with The Rolling Stone hit “Gimme Shelter,” right off the bat by the tone and production of this song you just know the album is going to flow very well. One of the highlights of the album is the re-make of “Old Man.” Neil Young is not a force to be reckoned with but the band really does this song justice. Paul Phillips manages to bring out the guitar parts even more vibrant and singer Wes Scantlin has kind of Neil Young folk vibe in his vocal style on this track.
Highlight of the album would have to be the re-make of the Steve Nicks tune, “Stop Dragging My Heart Around,” with guest vocalist BC Jean. Wes and BC Jean do the song justice. The tune flows really well with passionate vocals. The band jams on Billy Squier’s, “Everybody Wants You.” Bad Company was a huge part of the ‘70s and the song “Shooting Star” adds a nice ambiance with keyboards.
Surprising remake on re:(disc)overed is Elton John’s, “Rocket Man.” The melody, vocals, and guitar work take the song to a soaring new level. What ’70s classic album would not be complete with “All Right Now” and “Funk #49?” The ’70s were a time period in which the bands jammed. Guitar solos ruled the scene. The songs were filled with passion and stripped down. Puddle Of Mudd may hail from the ’90s grunge era, but this album proves that the band can do so much more than the typical four-chord grunge song. It was exhilarating to hear Puddle Of Mudd breathe new life into these classic hits. Wes Scantlin really showcases his vocal ability and guitarist Paul Phillips shines going from acoustic to electric and really jamming on these timeless hits.
Puddle Of Mudd dig deep into the ’70s classic rock era performing the songs from the heart and discovering the bands outstanding potential along the way. Be sure to check out Hardrock Haven’s Exclusive interview with Paul Phillips.
Genre: Hard Rock
Band:
Wes Scantlin
Paul Phillips
Doug Ardito
Shannon Boone
Track Listing:
l. Gimme Shelter
2. Old Man
3. T.N.T.
4. Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around
5. The Joker
6. Everybody Wants You
7. Rocket Man
8. All Right Now
9. Shooting Star
10. D’yer Mak’er
11. Funk #49
Label: Arms Division
Website: www.puddleofmudd.com / www.facebook.com/puddleofmudd
Hardrock Haven rating: 9/10
Paul Phillips of Puddle of Mudd
August 25, 2011 by Publisher
Filed under arcint2011
by Deb Rao
Staff Writer
Puddle Of Mudd is gearing up for the release of their covers album re:(disc)overed on Aug. 30. The album features songs that inspired the band to become musicians. Puddle Of Mudd dig deep into the classic repertoire with a collection of ’70s hits plus ’80s hit “Stop Dragging My Heart Around,” staying true to original versions of the songs but also adding their signature flair. “Gimme Shelter” is the first single of re:(disc)overed and already impacted radio with a great response.
In this exclusive interview for Hardrock Haven guitarist Paul Phillips discusses the making of re:(disc)overed, and upcoming Rock Allegiance Tour slated to kick off on Aug. 24 in Grand Prairie, Texas.
Hardrock Haven: Paul, thank you so much for checking in with Hardrock Haven. What inspired Puddle Of Mudd to release a covers album?
Paul: It was a crazy idea that we come up with. We took some time off after our fourth record came out all of our management agreements and record label; we were out of all contracts. So we took some time off to kind of get our business in order. We kind of toyed around with doing “TNT” and “The Joker” which we have been doing live forever. We wanted something on the radio to tie us over on the radio. We kind of got the crazy idea to keep going with it and bringing in some extra musicians, piano players and back-up singers just doing this crazy record of ’70s songs. It is something that people wouldn’t expect to hear from us. That is kind of the reason we did it. It gave us the opportunity to do things that we could not do on a Puddle record. We couldn’t do on a Puddle record because it would freak people out. It allowed us to do songs that are driven by piano opposed to guitar and bring in back-up singers and do a duet with a girl. It was a lot of fun and inspiring for us. A lot of the songs that we choose for selfish reasons. It allowed us to do things that we can’t do and allowed me to sit on the couch and practice again like I haven’t since I was like 15 or 16 years old. It was a whole lot of fun to make and really just something cool thing for the band. The cool thing about it is if you don’t like the record it is not necessarily that you don’t like Puddle it is maybe you don’t like that song or you don’t like Puddle doing that song. If you do great that is what it is for. We are starting a new Puddle record in January. So there you go, that was the reason behind it. One long story but that is it.
Hardrock Haven: That is awesome. I am a musician myself and I find sometimes myself that after playing cover tunes I am in the mood to start writing original material. Do you find that as a musician yourself that this album inspires you and the band to take it to the next level and start writing again?
Paul: For sure! It was definitely very inspirational. It opened my in a lot of different ways of writing different instrumentation and different ways of recording. It inspired us to start writing. We hadn’t written anything in a long time. We were so burned. We had so much business to take care of that we weren’t writing. Now it really just inspired us to pick up the guitars and play again. We have been writing a lot of stuff. In November and December, we are going to start demoing stuff and edge out a record. Hopefully, we will start recording in January.
Hardrock Haven: Puddle Of Mudd has been touring nonstop this year. I know the band just got down playing the East Coast re: (disc)overed tour. How did the fans respond to the cover songs? I know you did one set live of Puddle songs and one set of covers.
Paul: It was great. Everyone seemed to really enjoy it. We got a lot of good responses from people. For us it was cool, we are a five piece now we added another guitarist. To have so many musicians onstage throwing out this huge sound and hearing all the instruments the harmonica, the piano, the slide, and all that stuff for me it was amazing to be able to pull it off. It was so not what we do at all. It was really self-rewarding for me. It was like wow we could actually do that. It was so much fun to do it.
Hardrock Haven: Also, I have to mention too that with the return of your guitar playing on the last album it was phenomenal. How did the band go about selecting the songs for re:(disc)overed? “Gimme Shelter” is the new single, the song “Old Man” is a classic. Was it challenging playing acoustic?
Paul: No, not really. We have acoustic driven songs on all of our records. As far as choosing the songs, we kind of just narrowed in on the ’70s era. We wanted to songs that were fans of. We didn’t want to choose some stupid song that we weren’t a fan of that we could make a rock song. We wanted to do songs that were already rock songs and timeless rock songs. We compiled this huge list of 30 songs. When we looked at them, we went OK, what song means something? We connected to some lyrically. Also, we wanted to do songs that were just going to be fun that we tried to tackle. That is why there is an Elton John song on there. People are like really Paul, Elton John. I am like Hell Yeah! I love Elton John and to be able to take that song into rehearsal the first time and hear it come to life was like Wow! I can’t believe we are able to pull that off. That was the whole reason for doing it. We brought in extra musicians and they all were completely pro. So the record was just super easy to make. It was so much more relaxed than doing a Puddle record.
Hardrock Haven: Whom did you bring in for the girl vocals for “Stop Dragging My Heart Around?” That is one of my favorite tunes.
Paul: A lot of people say that. It’s a girl named BC Jean. She belongs to Clive Davis’ label. She was great. She came in and I tried to keep the spirit and the vibe of the record the same as the ’70s records doing a lot of live stuff. So we actually had those two in the vocal booth together. Which was feeding off of each other and singing together.
Hardrock Haven: It is hard to believe it has been ten years since the release of Come Clean. How do you think the band has evolved as a unit since then?
Paul: What happens when you have success so quickly it changes you. Money and fame changes you. We started kind of fraying towards the end. Not getting along. Also, when it happens that quickly you don’t have time to appreciate what is going on. It is such a whirlwind. As you get past that, I left the band a while for those reasons and came back. I think we are so much mellower now. We can appreciate things. We know how to deal with each other better with moods and when to leave people alone. I think we are functioning better now then we did back then because it was such a whirlwind. As much as we knew each other when you are slammed on a bus together, you have to figure out everybody’s little bad habit. It was just a crazy time. I think now we are much more functional than we used to be.
Hardrock Haven: Are you looking forward to the Rock Of Allegiance Tour with Buckcherry that kicks off Aug. 24 in Grand Prairie, Texas?
Paul: Yes, it going to be great. I am excited about it. A lot of friends that we have known forever. It is a great bill for the price of the ticket. It will be a whole day of bands and a lot of hit songs that you have heard on the radio from us. It’s going to be a great month.
Hardrock Haven: Will the band be performing songs off of the new CD?
Paul: Yes, we will probably throw in “Gimme Shelter” and probably “Old Man” as well.
Hardrock Haven: The trek continues to England in October.
Paul: Yes, that is another thing of being out of all of our contracts; we are setting Europe back up. We went really hard in the beginning and did very well. Then some over the scene things didn’t allow us to go back over and capitalize on the success we had. Now we are making a point to go back over and rebuild that. Probably next year before our record comes out most of our time will be concentrated on Europe, South America. We are setting up South Africa right now. Going to places that we haven’t been in a long time and reconnecting and trying to rebuild that global worldwide audience.
Hardrock Haven: In closing the music industry has lost so many great performers this month including Amy Winehouse and Jani Lane. Were you influenced by the ’80s at all?
Paul: I grew up in a musical household. My dad played guitar. When I went to college, I was always around it. He never really pushed the guitar on me. When my town first got MTV, I gravitated to the rock and metal stuff. A lot of that was the hair metal stuff. One of the first records that I actually bought with my own money was Motley Crue, Shout At The Devil. I was influenced by a lot of that stuff. You look back now at the clothes and hair and it was cheesy as hell. But back then it was cool. There were good songs. I think that if they didn’t look that those songs would be a lot more timeless than they are. Jani had some great songs with “Heaven” and “Uncle Tom’s Cabin.” “Cherry Pie” is their “She Hates Me.” (Laughter) It’s not their best song that they wrote but it was a huge hit. I think that is true for a lot of the bands back then. If they weren’t such a clown circus show and lumped into this period of time. I think they would be a lot more timeless than they are.
Hardrock Haven: re:(disc)covered is in stores Aug. 30. Do you have a favorite song off of the album?
Paul: For me probably “Old Man.” For me the original version wouldn’t be my favorite. But on our record it is my favorite because it was such a stripped down acoustic song that we kind of added stuff to it. It took on this whole other life. The original song is there but we added to the top of it. I really liked the way that song came out. We made it our own thing. I am really proud of that one
Hardrock Haven: Great. Paul, Thank you so much for the support at the magazine. We wish you the best with the covers release and Rock Allegiance Tour. Anything else that you would like to add?
Paul: My goal was to make a ’70s record with modern gear. We approached it like a ’70s record. A lot of the songs were live takes. Just two guitars, one hard left one, one hard right, opposed to stacking gazillion guitars. As far as tones, I went somewhere in the middle somewhere between the original tones and our tones. It is definitely not as heavy as our records. That was part of my version too. To keep it really true because they are such timeless great songs. There is not much room for improvement. We took a few liberties here and there. “Old Man”, we kind of did our own thing with. Most of the stuff is represented there in its truest form. It is kind of paying tributes to great songs. Kind of recording them in a more modern sense.
For tour dates visit: www.facebook.com/puddleofmudd
LIVE! | Puddle Of Mudd
July 25, 2011 by Publisher
Filed under arccon2011
by Deb Rao
Staff Writer
July 8, 2011 at Red Rock Casino in Las Vegas, NV.
They say it never rains in Las Vegas but don’t believe them. It pours! Last week in Vegas the area was embellished with thunderstorms that brought torrential downpours to the area. But not even a little rain would stop Puddle Of Mudd set to perform at the Sand Bar at the Red Rock Casino on July 8. An hour before the doors were set to be opened there was talk that the outdoor show just might be cancelled due to the inclement weather. Thankfully, the rain clouds subsided and like they say in Vegas, the show must go on!
Puddle Of Mudd hit the stage at 9 P.M. for a 90-minute set of great music that spanned their extensive career plus the band performed an AC/DC cover song TNT off of their upcoming cover album release, re:(disc)overed that is slated to be released on Aug. 2.
Red Rock Casino is one of the most innovative and impressive casinos in Las Vegas. The Sand Bar featured cabanas, pools, and a spacious concert area for fans to dance and just have a great time. Puddle Of Mudd are back on tour with a great new set list. Singer Wes Scantlin even performed some songs acoustically including “Drift And Die.” It was great to hear “Famous” back in the set list. The band seemed energized and put on one of the best shows I have seen all season.
The set list was relentless, as Puddle Of Mudd pounded out hit after hit. Singer Wes Scantlin and guitarist Paul Phillips are a great team. The momentum of the night roared on as the band launched into “Psycho”, “She Hates Me”, and mega hit “Blurry.” Be sure to check out Puddle Of Mudd on tour this summer. The re:(disc)overed Tour is slated to kick off on July 23 in Hartford, CT for a few select shows. Then Puddle Of Mudd joins the Rock Allegiance Tour on August 24 in Grand Prairie, Texas.
Puddle Of Mudd Set List:
l. Out Of My head
2. Control
3. Famous
4. Living On Borrowed Time
5. Drift And Die
6. Away From Me
7. Nothing Left To Lose
8. Think
9. Stoned
10. T.N.T
11. Psycho
12.She Hates Me
13. Blurry
For tour info visit www.facebook.com/puddleofmudd
Five Must See Bands From Rock on the Range
June 14, 2011 by Publisher
Filed under arccon2011
by Chris A.
Staff Writer
Energy, Great Vocals and Stage Vibe Make These Bands Worth Shelling Out the Bucks To See Live
Now with its fifth year behind it, “Rock On The Range” has become a real-deal rock and roll concert institution. Held each year in Columbus, Ohio, at Crew Stadium, fans, bands and media agree it’s one of the best run high- value for money rock festivals in North America. The success of the Rock on the Range franchise has inspired a Canadian variant and similar festivals including the 2011 “Carolina Rebellion.”
The 2011 Rock on the Range featured 40 bands and added a free Friday night party for ticket holders. With three stages and that many bands it impossible to see every act. Headliners for the event included Avenged Sevenfold, A Perfect Circle, Disturbed, Korn, Stained and many more.
As the summer schedule heats up, here are a few suggestions for bands to consider going to see based on their performance at Rock On The Range:
Korn: Okay, the bands been through several members and has been around the block, but this train just keeps on rolling. From the moment they walked onto the main stage at ROTR it was pandemonium on the stadium main floor. Jonathan Davis is a presence behind the microphone, with his often constrained, hypnotic vocals adding credibility to the insanity of Korn’s musical world. A genuine must-see band that never fails to deliver live!
Black Label Society: Zakk and the boys in BLS are back and putting more “brutal”into the old-school “brewtality” the band originally built its reputation on. After several tumultuous years and two ho-hum albums, Wylde’s ejection from Ozzy Osbourne’s band was perhaps what the iconic metal shredder needed to help him find his way back to reality. The now-healthy Zakk Wylde took the stage donning a full indian war bonnet Ala-Ted Nugent and for the next 30 minutes treated the crowd to inspired wailing.
Pop Evil: Wow! An absolutely explosive band with a frontman who has it all. I like bands that are “frenetic” and that’s one way to describe the energy expelled by the rockers in Pop Evil. With great guitar tone and a vocalist who instantly seems to connect with the fans, Pop Evil is one of those bands that deserves serious consideration. There’s no standing still when this band is on stage.
Trust Company: While these guys hail from Alabama, they’re not “good ole boys” by any means. Mixing tight guitar grooves with big soaring vocals in a melodic metal mix of head-banging inducing tunes, this band has great potential. Radio friendly with tunes that should appeal to a broad range of rock fan. The band is absolutely crazy onstage with youthful enthusiasm and high-powered rock-star appeal.
Asking Alexandria: This is a kick ass metal band. I’d never heard of them before ROTR but I’m gonna be keeping an eye on them. With steam-roller precision this British quintet of guitars match perfectly with the incredibly diverse capabilities of the vocalist. If you like it brutal these guys deliver.
|
Day 1 (Saturday, May 21)
Monster Energy Stage: Avenged Sevenfold FYE Stage: Danzig Jagermeister Stage: P.O.D. |
Day 2 (Sunday, May 22)
Monster Energy Stage: A Perfect Circle FYE Stage: Hollywood Undead Jagermeister Stage: The Damned Things |
2011 Rock on the Range Photo Gallery
Carnival of Madness Tour LIVE!
August 20, 2010 by Publisher
Filed under arccon2010
August 4, 2010 at Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, CT.
by Deb Rao
Staff Writer
The Carnival of Madness Tour made a special stop at the Mohegan Sun Arena on August 4th performing to a packed house of fans coming from as far as Massachusetts to see the show. Tonight’s performance included Shinedown, Puddle of Mudd, Sevendust, and 10 Years. Chevelle wasn’t on the bill for the Mohegan Sun show.
10 Years opened the show at 6 P.M. with a strong 25-minute set. Having first seen the band before a few years ago before they got signed at The Middle East in Cambridge, it was great to see them progress to the arena setting.
Next up Sevendust hit the stage with a vengeance. Opening with “Splinter” from their latest release Cold Day Memory it didn’t take long for the mosh pits to begin. Singer Lajon Witherspoon took full control of the young audience. Sevendust only slowed things down for a moment with the song “Angels Son” and the frenzy began again with “Unraveling” the first single off of the new album that was very well received. The return of Clint Lowery has made a great impact with the overall sound.
Puddle of Mudd took Chevelle’s spot in this evening lineup. and opened with the song “Control.” The band performed their hits and had fans singing along to songs like “Spaceship,” Psycho,” and “She Hates Me.” Lead singer Wes Scantlin was very entertaining thanking the audience for coming out for the show. Guitarist Paul Phillips shined in an arena setting. Paul has made a great impact with his return showcasing the strength of the band with his songwriting skills on their current release Volume 4: Songs In The Key Of Love And Hate. Bassist Damien Starkey, replacing Doug Ardito, was very energetic onstage. One major highlight of the bands set was the sing along to the song “Blurry.”
The evening went relatively fast and it was time for Florida rock band Shinedown to take the stage at 9 P.M. for an hour and 45 minute set. Singer Brent Smith sporting a Black top hat, cane, and striped shirt played ringleader to a sea of 5000 fans opening with “Sound Of Madness.” Brent’s voice was captivating and the focus of the entire set. His vocal range went from melodic to hard rock adapting to every song in a flawless performance. Brent also dedicated “If You Only Knew” to all the women in the audience. He spoke with much enthusiasm announcing “Diamond Eyes” the song that can be heard in the upcoming Sylvester Stallone movie The Expendables.
Highlight of the set was the compelling, “The Crow and the Butterfly.” Singer Brent Smith proclaimed the Carnival of Madness Tour as the event of the summer. It is always a pleasure to watch a band develop into an arena act and hear their hit songs on radio. Reminiscing about seeing Shinedown for the first time on the Sno-Core Tour a few years back in Worcester at the Palladium, I had a feeling then that Shinedown would be huge musical act.
Shinedown came to play, with their set on the music, the band poured their heart into the evening’s performance.
Every band gave 100 percent. This was the perfect way to spend a summer evening listening to the bands making an impact today.
A Special thank you goes out to Julie Lichtenstein and Amanda Cagan, and Morgan Rose of Sevendust for making this review possible.
Check out our Interview with Morgan Rose of Sevendust right here at Hardrock Haven.
Be sure to catch Carnival Of Madness Tour this summer!
Puddle Of Mudd Set List:
Control
Livin’ on Borrowed Time
Spaceship
Stoned
Blurry
T.N.T.
Psycho
She Hates Me
Sevendust Set List:
Splinter
Praise
Denial
Angel’s Son
Black
Driven
Unraveling
Pieces
Face To Face
Shinedown Set List:
Sound Of Madness
Devour
I Dare You
Cyanide Sweet Tooth Suicide
If You Only Knew
Diamond Eyes
.45
Call Me
Heroes
The Crow and The Butterfly
Her Name is Alice
Save Me
Son of Sam
Left Out
Encore:
Simple Man
Fly From The Inside
Second Chance
Rock On The Range 2010 LIVE!
May 27, 2010 by Publisher
Filed under arccon2010
May 22 & 23, 2010 at Crew Stadium, Columbus, Ohio
by Chris A. & Deb Rao
Staff Writer
[author: Chris A.] It’s the fourth time Columbus has hosted the “Rock on the Range” festival and by the size of the audience you’d never know there was any kind of economic crisis. With approximately 50,000 people attending each day, “Rock on the Range” is proving to be “the” show of the year in the upper Midwest of the United States. Three stages, 30-plus bands, dozens of vendors and lots of creative merchandise for sale, it’s a big party and a very good time. As with past years, there were three stages; the Monster Stage was the main stage inside the Columbus Crew Stadium while the Kicker Stage was located on the north side of the stadium and the smaller Jaegermeister Stage was positioned on the south. “Rock on the Range” has always been a great place for upstart “baby bands” to get some exposure plus they don’t seem to shy away from including diverse acts on the bill. In the case of Rock on the Range, a show known primarily as a “metal festival” it was interesting that the show would be opened and closed by rap oriented acts. Headliners for Saturday on the Monster Stage were, “Rise Against”, “Three Days Grace” and “Godsmack”. On Sunday the main bands were, “Seether”, “Rob Zombie” with “Limb Bizkit” closing the festival.
Despite a damp start to Saturday, gray clouds and occasional sprinkles didn’t appear to hold the crowd back as the yellow benches in Crew Stadium started to disappear as fans arrived to the show. At noon, the show started with Windsor, Ontario Detroit Tigers fan, “Richy Nix,” a tall thin white-guy from Ontario, rapping to metal. Twenty minutes later on the main stage, “Sevendust” exploded into their set, erasing any memories of cockeyed baseball caps and robotic hand gestures, with in-your-face metal intensity. Nearly 11 hours later the sound of electric guitars and the gritty metal of “Godsmack” faded as day-one came to an end.
Sunday was a glorious day, blue skies, beautiful hot sun and no indication of rain. At noon, “Shaman’s Harvest” a great young band, opened the show on the Kicker stage. Over the course of the next 11 hours Apocalyptica performed its brand of “metal”. Australian metal band “Airbourne” made a lot of friends and demonstrated why we all love blues-based rock ‘n’ roll! At nearly 10 pm, Fred Durst and the now out-of-seclusion “Limb Bizkit” capped off an incredible two-days of great music.
With three stages and almost invariably two running at one time, it was impossible for anyone to see all the bands. As seems to be the case with Columbus rock ‘n’ roll crowds, the fans were very mellow at Rock on the Range. It was a big party with lots of beer and thousands of friends. Sitting back and observing, It was amazing to watch the incredibly orderly procession of thousands of people snaking along the paths to get from stage to stage. Venue security, the Columbus Police Department (who were there in numbers) were extremely fan-friendly and were clearly there to keep an eye on things and to snatch up the occasional drunk-moron who got a bit too out of hand.
Each performance day started at 12 noon and for the most part the show stayed on time and ran smoothly. “Rock on the Range” 2010 was a very successful event with great bands and thousands of happy fans. Keep any eye here for interview articles from John 5, Airbourne and others from the weekends show. For more information on “Rock on the Range” visit www.rockontherange.com You can also see my photos of “Rock on the Range” by visiting www.chrisa.us
Rock on the Range Photo Gallery
Photos appear courtesy of Chris A. and Deb Rao
[author: Deb Rao] As thousands of rock fans descended to Columbus, Ohio at Crew Stadium, one thing was for certain the sporting venue was turned into a rock and roll extravaganza for one of the most anticipated events of the summer Rock On The Range 2010. The event promised to feature one of the most solid line-ups to date. This year Rock On The Range was hosted by Mistress Juliya and broadcast live by Nikki Sixx and his new hit radio show Sixx Sense.
Tattoos, body jewelry and rock clothing venders filled the area to the hilt. The crowd featured a young audience and some older fans of the older bands. One of the most exciting aspects of this year’s line-up on May 22 headlined by Boston’s Godsmack with the diversity to the line-up. ROTR featured the best in punk, alternative, hip-hop and hard rock cutting edge bands making an impact in music today. The festival featured three stages of music included the Jager Stage. Kicker Stage, and Monster Stage. I found myself mostly stationed at the Kicker Stage but after the days shooting of that stage was over, I managed to catch full sets of Rise Against, Three Days Grace, and Godsmack. More on the main acts later.
My journey began early in the morning from Boston, as my flight landed in Columbus, Ohio a tad late due to flight delays. But no worries a full day of music was ahead of me. One of the first acts I had the pleasure of seeing was Eleven Seven Music recording artists Drowning Pool on the Monster Stage. This band is one of the hardest working bands in music today. Singer Ryan McCombs has picked up the pieces and breathed new life into the band. As the sun tried to break through the ominous clouds, Drowning Pool heated up the stage with a set that included these songs,”Enemy,” “Sinner”,”37 Stitches,” Feel Like I Do”,”Regret”,”Tear Away”, and “Bodies.”
Next up on the Monster Stage was Puddle of Mudd who is in the midst of a successful headlining tour. Puddle Of Mudd is best when performing at festivals like this. Lead frontman Wes Scantlin always manages to get the crowd rolling and today’s performance was no exception. The band opened with the ferocious “Control”, as Wes took full control of the moment and the mosh pits began. Slammin’ into new song “Spaceship’ let the party begin as Wes yelled,”What’s up Motherf***ers?” Highlight of the set with fists in the air included the AC/DC cover “TNT.”
I proceeded to make my way to the Kicker Stage to catch one of the most exciting and promising acts of the day Halestorm. Mistress Juliya introduced the band as Lzzy Hale dressed in a black and red dress and hit the stage with a set that was clearly mesmerizing. Halestorm opened their set with “It’s Not You.” The ’80s had Heart and Pat Benetar as the reigning rock queens. Well, this is the Millennium and Lzzy Hale most definitely deserves the title as best new female of the decade. Lzzy can rock with the best of them and Halestorm clearly won the title for best act on the Kicker Stage at ROTR 2010.
It was great to see all the female musicians performing here today. Next up another great band that gave an outstanding performance was Christian rock band Skillet. Fronted by John Cooper, his wife Korey Cooper on guitar was also spellbinding. Jen Ledger was featured on drums. The band also featured a cello and violin, which added a nice flavor to the hard rock sound. Highlights of the set were the songs “Hero”, and “Monster.”
The Kicker Stage featured some of the best acts all day. Next up Killswitch Engage made Massachusetts proud. It was exhilarating to see all the talent from the Mass area here today. Highlight of the Killswitch Engage set was when singer Howard Jones dedicated the song “Holy Diver” to the legendary Dio. Metal horns in the air. May you rest in peace.
Throughout the day many of the bands held meet and greets including Adelita’s Way and Puddle Of Mudd. It was great to see the inter-action between fans and bands. This festival is all about the music. The rock stars left their attitudes at the door and chatted with the fans and showed their appreciation.
The event was blessed by the weather this year as the sun finally broke through the crowds with temperatures in the 80′s. Finally, the Kicker Stage music was over and now it was time to enjoy the Monster Stage. The floor began to fill up to capacity for The Deftones. I spoke with many fans who were eager to see the band. The Deftones took full advantage of the set premiering many new songs from their latest release Diamond Eyes. They are definitely one of the best punk rock bands around; true pioneers.
One of the most promising acts on the Monster Stage was Rise Against. I never heard of them before and really enjoy their high-energy set. The award for most promising act on the Monster Stage would have to go to Three Days Grace. This is a band that you associate all their hits on the radio when you hear them they play live and you go “I know that song.” This was my first time seeing this Canadian band perform live and I have to say I was very impressed by Adam Gontier vocals. Sporting a black hat, Adam and company delivered a set that was powerful and poignant. Adam is the master of love gone wrong songs. I highly enjoyed the “I Hate Everything About You.”
Boston’s Godsmack was the headliner on the Monster Stage and did Boston Proud. Sully Erna took full control of the Mid-western crowd and showed them how we rock in Boston. Their set list included
Godsmack Set List:
Awake
Straight Out of Line
Re-Align
War and Peace
The Enemy
Bad Religion
The Oracle
Cryin’ Like a Bitch
Keep Away
Speak
Voodoo
Batalla de los Tambores
Spotted in the audience, was Jackass star Jason Acuna. Actually, he was sitting in back of me with a beret of beauties on his lap. The announcer of the show commented that this years show broke all attendance records. Rock On The Range 2010 proved to be a haven for rock fans to unite and enjoy some of the best cutting edge bands in music today. It was a time to make new friends, spend time with old friends, and celebrate the exciting new wave of music today.
Special Thanks to the great staff of MSO for letting Hardrock Haven cover Rock On The Range 2010. Be sure to check out Rock On The Range interviews with Puddle Of Mudd, Sevendust, Richy Nix, and coming soon Adelita’s Way and Apocalyptica.
Rock On The Range May 22 Line-up:
Monster Stage:
Sevendust 12:25
Drowning Pool 1:40
Puddle of Mudd 2:55
Papa Roach 4:15
Deftones 5:35
Rise Against 7:05
Three Days Grace 8:51
Godsmack 9:45
Kicker Stage:
Richy Nix 12:00
Violent Soho 1:05
Adelita’s Way 2:20
Halestorm 3:40
Skillet 5:00
Killswitch Engage 6:20
Jager Stage:
Like A Storm 12:00
Taddy Porter 1:05
Janus 2:20
Non Point 3:40
Helmet 5:00
Paul Phillips of Puddle of Mudd
May 20, 2010 by Publisher
Filed under arcint2010
by Deb Rao
Staff Writer
One of the top acts in music today Puddle Of Mudd is gearing up for an exciting appearance at Rock On The Range at 2:55P.M on Saturday May 22. Puddle Of Mudd is currently burning up the airwaves with their second hit single “Stoned” off their fourth studio album, Volume 4: Songs In The Key Of Love And Hate.
The band just stormed through New England with near capacity crowds at the Webster Theatre in Connecticut, Hampton Beach Casino, and Higher Ground in Burlington, Vt. Part of the success of the new album and tour is due to the return of guitarist Paul Phillips. I recently had the opportunity to discuss the new Puddle Of Mudd album in-depth with Paul Phillips with a special Track By Track. Plus we discussed the band’s upcoming appearance at Rock On The Range, Carnival Of Madness Tour, guitars, and the passing of the legendary Ronnie James Dio.
HRH: Paul, Thank you so much for checking in with Hardrock Haven. Puddle Of Mudd is currently on the road in support of your latest release Volume 4: Songs In the Key Of Love And Hate. What have some of the highlights of the tour been so far? I know the band performed to great shows this past weekend in New England.
PAUL: I don’t know if there is any one particular one. I just love to play live. Any show has the potential to be the highlight of the tour when you have a good crowd and energy going back and forth. We just had a few in a row that were really good. I just enjoy playing live and having people out there singing the words and having a good time. .
HRH: I was at the show in Hampton Beach and the crowd was very enthusiastic about the new material. I noticed a whole new generation of younger fans at the show. How inspiring is this for you as an artist to see the fan base of the band grow since the Come Clean era?
PAUL: Yes, it is crazy. This year is the tenth Anniversary of Come Clean. So we have people that have kind of grown up with us throughout the years. Luckily, we came to having success with radio with our songs. This brings in a new audience. You will see these younger kids as well. And there are these families. We see people now bringing their kids. Older people bringing their kids. It is kind of cool that we can reach across that whole generation gap. It is pretty neat to have that happen.
HRH: The new single “Stoned” is burning up the airwaves in Boston on radio station WAAF. It also marks the return of you to the band. Do you think the album returns back to your early roots?
PAUL: I think a little more so than the last record. When I left, I left during the writing of the Famous record. We weren’t getting along. We weren’t working together well. Not a whole lot of things were happening. After I left, they kind of went the route of going with different songwriters to kind of help out with the record. It is a good record. But I think it went a little poppy and a little polished than what we have done before. I don’t know if we made a conscious effort to try to strip it down a little bit and be more of ourselves. That is just what happens when we get into a room together. I don’t know if it is anything that we ever discuss. We are not a band that writes in the same room together. We always write separate. We bring our ideas in. This time I was staying up in Wes’s house during the writing and recording. By proximity we had a lot of writing sessions together. We would bring them in to the band the next day and hash them out. Doug wrote some stuff on his own. It was definitely the most collaborative and friendly good vibe that we have had making a record. Which was great compared to what it was before.
HRH: I can see what you mean. Because on the Famous album too, I got that. Maybe it was just a bit too over-polished for then band. But this record has the right amount of elements from the Come Clean era including acoustic and electric. As a guitarist what kind of sounds were you looking to achieve on the new album.
PAUL: Thank you very much I appreciate that. I always wanted to rock. When this nu-metal was going on I tried to lean somewhere between that and a little classic rock. I tried to give it as much punch and clarity out of this as you can. Like you said, the acoustics we have always kind of use a lot of live acoustics a lot on some of the slower melody things. It is a constant battle. I am always trying to find that perfect tone. I think it is something that you can never reach. You always say I can do better if I do this.
HRH: I have seen both tours your headlining one and the recent one with Shinedown. I noticed the band is doing an acoustic portion of at the show. Are you enjoying this part of the show?
PAUL: I enjoy part of it. Because it is just Wes. I get to jump off the stage for a bit and cool down. I get like a little intermission in the middle. I jump around like a monkey so I get to catch my breath, and have a drink and come back up. It is cool to do that. I have always seen bands to that. I have enjoyed it. I have seen bands that actually have a whole change in scenery with a backdrop and all that and do a whole acoustic set. Zeppelin did that back in the day. They’re a lot of bands that have done it. It is just like taking a journey. We come out and rock and then you chill off a bit and bring a different vibe and bring it back up and finish off the show. It is something different to add to the show.
HRH: Tell us about the upcoming Carnival Of Madness Tour with Shinedown. What can the fans expect to see on this tour?
PAUL: Well, it is a little shorter set for us. Because there are so many bands on the bill. Basically, we are going to go out there and rock the hits. Throw in a few songs off of the new record and go out there and do our thing. The whole tour is all great friends of great bands and ours. It is a win win for us, as well for the fans who are buying the ticket. It is a cheap ticket price. It is going to be a great tour.
HRH: I know a lot of fans are really happy that you have returned to the band. There is a really definite impact on this album. What prompted your return to Puddle Of Mudd?
PAUL: I hadn’t talked to the guys since I had quit. I have seen Doug a couple of times. I hadn’t talked to Wes since the day I quit. I live in Jacksonville, Florida and they were part of a big radio show there. It is something like me and my friends go to every year. It is an all day hangout. They were telling me go. I was like I don’t want to go. I don’t want to see Puddle and have to be around all that. But I went to it and ran into everybody. We just hung out and started talking. Wes and me went to a bar later. Oddly, enough we were getting along and not fighting. We just started talking on the phone. It wasn’t even about me coming back to the band. It was like,”Hey how are you doing man?” One day I got a phone call and they said we are playing a show down and we want you to play. Come on back. I was like under those circumstances it would be under a much better vibe. So that is the only way I would have come back. I didn’t want to come back and be miserable again. So it was a much cooler vibe and I came right back in.
HRH: How do you think the band has evolved since the Come Clean release?
PAUL: Everybody is trying to become a better player and songwriter. I think as far as the song writing I don’t think we try to re-invent the wheel. There is a sound that we make and a sound that people like. We are not trying to go in and make some crazy concert record with like 13-minute songs. We keep our lyrics to everyday stuff. Keep it real and stuff like that. I mean hopefully we are evolving as players and in writing great songs. I don’t know if we are really trying to take our song writing somewhere else.
HRH: Tell us about the making of the new video “Stoned.” It is a really fun video to watch.
PAUL: It was fun to make. Sometimes you get those videos that just last all day long. We did this one really quick. We were on a tight schedule. We had a show the day before and after, so we had to cram it in all in one day. They said you got to smash some stuff in our office. I was like cool. I got there and they had a sledgehammer and I was like I definitely have to have that. That has to be mine. I have to use that. They had all the actors do their stuff first. We got in and smashed some stuff and played the song a few times and we were out. It was quick and easy.
HRH: Are you endorsed by PRS guitars?
PAUL: Yes, I am. They have been with me from the very beginning. They came basically the time the first single “Control” came out. I have been with them ever since. They have been good to me.
HRH: Puddle Of Mudd is getting ready for a very important show on Saturday May 22. The band goes on at 2:55 P.M. How important is it for the band to play to the masses your new material at ROTR?
PAUL: It is great when you get to play when you have that many good bands. When you get to play in front of more people than you normally do. You definitely want to have your A game on and put the best show on possible. There may be a lot of fans that haven’t bought the record. It is always an opportunity to get new fans. Our good buddy is the promoter of the show. He started Rock On The Range, so we always want to impress him. He is a hard critic.
HRH: Any bands that you are looking forward to seeing perform at ROTR?
PAUL: It is kind of bittersweet. I am really excited to see The Deftones. You may or may not know their bass player who is a friend of ours that was the first tour that we did with The Deftones got in a car accident. He has been in a coma for over a year now. They went ahead and got another bass player. They are back together. They have been gone for a while. I am super excited because I am a huge fan. They are good friends of mine. It is going to be weird without the original bass player knowing his circumstances. They had to continue on but it is a little weird with him being in a coma. He is on life support and the whole deal. It is terrible.
HRH: What are your thoughts on the passing of Ronnie James Dio? The Metal world was so saddened by this news.
PAUL: It is crazy when you lose anybody like that. Like an icon. It is like when you lost Michael Jackson. Regardless of what your opinions are or what not. I mean he was an icon. He is regarded as one of the best metal singers of all time. He had success with Dio and Rainbow and Black Sabbath. It is just weird when you know he is not doing the Heaven And Hell tour one day and one day he is dying of cancer. When he was doing the Heaven And Hell tour he was out there rocking. It is a sad day anytime when you lose anybody who put great music and art out to the world. He put some great music out in the world and it will live forever.
HRH: What are the future touring plans of the band? I know you have the Carnival Of Madness Tour this summer. Will the band remain on the road throughout the year?
PAUL: I think so. I think we will probably go the end of the year. Depending on the demand at that point, maybe start thinking about another record. I am pretty sure we will definitely be going at least to the end of the year.
HRH: Paul, do you have any advice for aspiring guitarists?
PAUL: Practice, practice, practice! It goes without saying. Practice with a metronome. Get your timing together. If you got friends or whatever that play guitar or drums you got to get out there and jam with them too. It is one thing to sit around and practice scales every day. If you don’t have your feel and your groove locked in that is the most important thing when you get into a band. There are a lot of people that aren’t that technically advanced. When they deal with people and start jamming they just get it. They do it. Most of the best guitar players are just all feel and they don’t know a note. They just know a note and know it sounds good and what feels good.
Hardrock Haven is proud to present a Track By Track Of Volume 4: Songs In The Key Of Love And Hate by Puddle Of Mudd Guitarist Paul Phillips:
l. Stoned -”That is basically a F*U* song. It has a lot to do with major labels. And other bands dealing with major labels. Anybody who is stuck in that corporate world and having to do something that they don’t always want to do. Unfortunately you get pressured into doing some things that you don’t want to do in the music industry as well. So basically it is like hey instead of looking up to you I like to be doing what I like to do. You can probably kind of figure that one out.”
2. Spaceship -”That was one that was at least 3 quarters of the way done when I came back to the band. We added a few extra parts in there to just spice it up a bit. We pretty much knew all of the time it was going to be the first single. It just had kind of that novelty feel that we do a lot. We went up to Vancouver and recorded that with Brian Howes. I am happy with it too. I think the guitars are slammin’ on it.”
3. Keep It Together – “This song is probably the one I am most proud of. That was one that I actually wrote when I was away from the band. It is something that I had sitting around. It was actually a lot slower when I originally wrote it. Then there was a way more difficult more guitar part in just the result of the way Wes was trying to sing and play the guitar. He started playing the way it is now. He played it faster instead of picking out all the crazy notes I had in there. He stripped it down. So that is the way it ended up. It got stripped down a lot and sped up a lot. To me that is our credit achievement on the record. I am really proud of that song.”
4. Out Of My Way -”Me and Wes have a habit of staying up late and drinking and writing songs. We have these little hand held recorders. That is one we wrote on the recorder in Vancouver in a hotel room and listened back to it three months later. Wes is like,” Do you remember writing that?” I am like I don’t remember writing that one either. That was funny. If I didn’t have that little hand held recorder that song would have been lost and it wouldn’t have made it.”
5. Blood On The Table -”This song is fun. I like to turn that into a driving song. When you speed you put on an up tempo song like that. That was a riff and vocals that Wes had sitting around for a while. He started playing. I am like,” What is that?” Wes said I wrote that a long time ago. I like that it is cool. I wrote a chorus to it. It is basically about fighting with people in close proximities. It has a lot to do with band frustrations. Sometimes you give everything you got to each other and you bleed for each other on a daily basis. Sometimes it can get frustrating if it is not returned in the same matter. If you feel like you are doing it more than somebody else. It can apply to any kind of relationship that you have. There has to be that equal thing. ”
6. The Only Reason – That was actually a song that I had nothing to do with. That one was written for Famous. It was recorded for Famous. It ended up not making Famous. But we always thought it was a good song. So we insisted on this record that it get put on the record. I always thought it should have been on the Famous record even though I wasn’t around. I always thought it was a really good song. It has got a cool time change in it. It goes from 3/4 to 4/4 which is pretty cool. So we just re-mixed it, so it is kind of cohesive with this record. So we put it on there.”
7. Pitchin’ A Fit – “That was fun. That is pretty much about me and Wes being up late and doing our thing.”
8. Uno Mas -”That is a Doug track that Doug brought in. It is a little punk rock jammer. When I first came back to play and listened to the demo at his house, I was like that is cool I like that. It has a good up-tempo beat. It never really backs down. It took Wes a while to write lyrics to it. We knocked that one out too.”
9. Better Place -”That about Wes’s cousin who overdosed on drugs. That was basically a letter to him. You are in a better place now. I miss ya. It was a heartfelt goodbye to him.”
10. Hooky -”That was a lot of fun to write. That riff was actually written by Wes’s son who was in the “Blurry” video. He is twelve now. He has started to rock the guitar pretty well. He was staying with Wes for the summer. We were hanging out. He started playing that riff. We were like we should write a song to it. So we started asking him,” What would you rather do today than go to school?” He is like,” I rather do this. I rather so that.” We ended up writing this whole song around him with his guitar riff and vocals. Then Wes changed some of the vocals. Some of the more risqué’ vocals came from Wes and not the twelve year old kid. A lot of them are the exact same thing that he came up with. It was kind of a joke. But then we thought it would totally make his life, if we went in and recorded this song. So we waited till he left and went into the studio and recorded it. Once we got the disc and played it for him, I have never seen anybody smile that way. He couldn’t believe something that he did was on record and we recorded it.”
Puddle of Mudd LIVE!
May 18, 2010 by Publisher
Filed under arccon2010
May 15, 2010 at Hampton Beach Casino, Hampton Beach, NH.
by Deb Rao
Staff Writer
The summer concert series at Hampton Beach Casino is kicking into full gear featuring some of the hottest acts in music today. Gracing the stage with a near capacity crowd on May 15 was one of rock’s top acts Puddle Of Mudd. Riding high on the success of current album Volume 4:Songs In The Key Of Love And Hate, Puddle of Mudd is currently burning up the radio airwaves with their second hit single” Stoned and headlining tour.”
Part of the success of the new hit Puddle Of Mudd release is due to the return of guitarist Paul Phillips and his catchy pop riffs. Not since their release of Come Clean in 2001 has the band enjoyed the success that is now flourishing with their current release Volume 4:Songs In The Key Of Love And Hate.
Puddle Of Mudd hit the stage at 10:15 P.M. and performed a 90-minute set that featured songs that spanned their extensive career. Opening with:” Control” lead singer Wes Scantlin took full command of the stage. The band then launched into their first hit single from their current release, “Spaceship.” The all ages’ audience could not get enough of the band as Puddle Of Mudd cranked out hit after hit.
One interesting aspect of the headlining show compared to the recent tour with Shinedown is the longer set in which the band put into great use with an added acoustic portion. Wes Scantlin performed on acoustic guitar on the song “Thinking About You” and a few other songs this evening in which the band showcased their melodic side. The slower part of the set really infused the Nirvana ambiance and strong song structure that has made the band famous. It was very refreshing.
The rhythm section featuring bassist Doug Ardito and drummer Ryan Yerdon was pulverizing. One great aspect of attending a Puddle Of Mudd concert is the impromptu sing-along in which were very strong tonight including on the AC/DC cover “TNT” and “Blurry.” Highlight of the night was the medley of “She Hates Me”, and the Grease hit “Summer Lovin.” That song was perfect for the boardwalk crowd attending tonight’s show.
After the show, the band did a meet and greet and stayed into the wee hours of the morning signing autographs. It was great to see the great repoire between the band and fans. Puddle Of Mudd is all about the music and it in for the long haul. Be sure to check out the band on tour this summer and pick up a copy of Volume 4: Songs In The Key Of Love And Hate today.
Puddle Of Mudd is gearing up for an extremely busy summer. Kicking things off with an appearance at one of the most anticipated festivals of the summer Rock On The Range on May 22. Be advised the band is performing at 2:55 P.M. on the main stage at ROTR.
Also, Puddle of Mudd will be appearing on the Carnival Of Madness Tour this summer .For up to the minute news visit sites listed below. See Press Release in News Section at Hardrock Haven.
Puddle Of Mudd Set List:
Control
Spaceship
Blurry
Thinking About You
Famous
Livin’ On Borrowed Time
Blood on the Table
Away From Me
Out Of My Head
Stoned
Psycho
TNT (AC/DC cover)
Encore:
She Hates Me/Summer Lovin’/The Joker (Steve Miller Band)
Puddle of Mudd on Tour:
518 S. Burlington, VT @Higher Ground
5/19 Watertown, NY @Exhibition Hall
5/21 Buffalo, NY @Town Ballroom
5/22 Columbus, OH Columbus Crew Stadium “Rock on the Range”
5/24 Aberdeen, SD @Ramkota Exhibit Hall
5/25 Minot, ND @Minot Municipal Auditorium
5/26 Sioux Falls, SD @Ramkota Exhibit Hall
5/28 Davenport, IA @Capitol Theatre
5/29 Noblesville, IN Verizon Wireless Center for “X103 Presents May Day”
5/31 Richmond, VA @The National
6/3 Atlanta, GA @The Masquerade
6/30 Milwaukee, WI @Summerfest Grounds for “Summerfest”
Puddle of Mudd on the Carnival of Madness Tour:
7/16 Jacksonville, FL @Jacksonville Arena
7/17 Simpsonville, SC @Heritage Park
7/18 Huntsville, AL @Von Braun Amphitheatre
7/20 Tampa, FL @St. Pete Times Forum
7/ 21 Estero, FL @Germain Arena
7/23 Knoxville, TN @Civic Coliseum
7/24 Charlotte, NC @Verizon Amphitheatre
7/25 Raleigh, NC @Raleigh Boutique Amphitheatre
7/26 Virginia Beach, VA @Virginia Beach Amphitheatre
7/28 Columbia, MD @Merriweather Pavillion
7/30 Philadelphia, PA @Penn’s Landing
8/1 Boston, MA @Comcast Amphitheatre
8/4 Uncasville, CT @Mohegan Sun Arena
8/5 Holmdel, NJ @PNC Amphitheatre
8/6 Canadaguiga, NY @CMAC
8/7 Detroit, MI @DTE Amphitheatre
8/9 Cleveland, OH @Time Warner Amphitheatre
8/10 Pikeville, KY @Eastern Kentucky Expo
8/11 Chicago, IL @Charter One Pavillion
8/17 Southhaven, MS @Snowden Grove Amphitheatre
8/18 Lafayette, LA @Cajun Dome
8/20 Oklahoma City, OK @Zoo Amphitheatre
8/21 Houston, TX @Woodlands Amphitheatre
8/22 Dallas, TX @Nokia Theater
8/24 Casper, WY @Casper Event Center
8/25 Billings, MT @Metropark Center
