STONE TEMPLE PILOTS: Perdida (ROCK): review / opinion to read on Music Waves

Stone Temple Pilots has not been spared the blows of fate in recent years with the deaths of Scott Weiland in 2015 and his replacement Chester Bennington (Linkin Park) two years later. Far from resigning themselves, the DeLeo brothers and Eric Kretz found the resources to keep the project alive and refuse to let part of the memory of their two singers die out with the band's memory. Galvanized by a good "Stone Temple Pilots" in 2018 which marked the debut of singer Jeff Gutt, the Californians are back at the beginning of this year with a new album entitled "Perdida".

After the scream of rage embodied by "Stone Temple Pilots" the quartet achieved greater serenity in their approach to writing "Perdida". It is quite naturally that Stone Temple Pilots chose the acoustic form for their eighth album. An ideal setting to express its sensitivity and to establish a touching intimacy, "Perdida" sails along melancholic and sometimes painful moods (the very successful 'Three Wishes', 'Miles Away', 'Perdida', 'Sunburst'), often soothed ('Far Thee Well', 'Years'). During the time of one album the four musicians put the amps away and slowed down the rhythmics to convey emotions in introspective ballads rather than the urgency of rock.

With such a project, there is always a risk to offer a monotonal record that is difficult to listen to. But the result doesn't suffer from it thanks to judicious choices in the variety of instrumentations and styles of each track. Thus, one will hear in "Perdida", in addition to acoustic guitars and pianos bases, arrangements of violins ('Miles Away'), analog keyboards and trumpet ('Years'), and more surprisingly sitar ('She's My Queen') and flute, in beautifully held phrases ('I Didn't Know The Time') or more hopping in Jethro Tull or Psychotic Waltz mode ('She's My Queen'). All of this accompanies a beautiful diversity of genres, from the Balkan folklore of 'Miles Away', the Blackfieldian nostalgia in 'Sunburst', the emotional Hispanic 'Perdida', the opaline atmosphere of the retro blues 'Years' or the ample resonances of 'She's My Queen' that give it a refreshing Irish touch.

Few rock bands have taken such a perilous step as writing a whole album of ballads and orchestrated acoustic mid-tempi. Stone Temple Pilots didn't repress its desire of the moment and this endearing album is the witness of this touching sincerity. - Official website

STONE TEMPLE PILOTS

PERDIDA

RHINO RECORDS

ROCK