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0 Iconic Stone Temple Pilots/Velvet Revolver frontman Scott Weiland spent his Tuesday on The Sunset Strip, first stopping by Book Soup to sign copies of his new memoir, Not Dead & Not For Sale, and later taking the stage at the world famous Viper Room for an intimate showcase of soon to be released solo material.
The show, which sold out in less than 10 minutes, was the only West Coast performance/rehearsal of the pending new record. And for those 200 or so fans lucky enough to secure a coveted ticket, the evening flew by as Weiland and his band indulged the crowd with a set of carefully selected and movingly cathartic covers.
Early in the performance, the sunglasses-shielded frontman explained to the crowd his rationale behind releasing this collection of mostly covers as a companion piece to his book; likening the project to Bowie’s 1974 concept album Diamond Dogs, in which parallels were drawn between George Orwell’s novel 1984 and Bowie’s own fantasy world/characters.
The songs, modern classics like Depeche Mode’s “But Not Tonight,” Radiohead’s “Let Down,” and Nirvana’s “Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle,” thematically reflected the emotional turmoil depicted in the chapters of Not Dead, tying together his music to his now published uncensored story.
Hearing these classics reworked with Weiland’s haunting, almost deadpan like vocals, forced a sort of reexamination/second look at the storytelling and emotional depth behind songs you may have heard a hundred times before. Needless to say, the crowd was moved.
As the show progressed, so did the intensity of the vocals, as Weiland’s raspy voice finally ramped up to full throttle with the band’s cover of The Doors’ “Roadhouse Blues” and carried through with nods to his inspiration via Bowie’s “Jean Genie” and “Fame.”
The show finally closed with a faux encore (being that there is no backstage to exit to at the Viper Room) of STP’s “Unglued,” the “rock the fuck out” moment the crowd had been waiting for — ending the show with a satisfying climax for all.
Photos courtesy of Christy Borgman/LA Woman Photography
–Brent X Mendoza
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