MattA75's Full Review: Shangri-la Dee Da by Stone Temple Pilots
Author Note: I held off on reviewing and even listening to this disc for so long...not because I didn't like it, but because I associated for so long with my parent's separation. I bought this disc, listened to it on the train home, and when I got home, my mom told me the news...only recently was I able to pick it back up again...this is my review.
When Stone Temple Pilots released their fourth album in 1999, No.4, it was met with critical question marks and a seemingly "so what" casual attitude from music fans. After all, it had been 4 years since their excellent third album, and those music fans who had made STP successful in the first place had moved on to the sounds of nu-metal bands like Korn and Limp Bizkit, while the teenagers were busy with the teen pop explosion. Not the best atmosphere to drop an album, not when you've also had trouble touring due to your lead singer's drug habit, which is also the main reason it took you four years to release another album in the first place.
But over a year after it's release, the band scored a hit with Sour Girl, and it brought them back into the limelight. So the stage was set for them to make their massive comeback with album #5, Shangri La Dee Da. Or was it?
The album pretty much stalled at retail (it did go gold, on the basis of band name alone), as the first single, the pop rock Days of the Week, met an unfair fate at MTV and radio, pushed aside by the same nu metal and pop acts of 1999. It's a shame too, because Days of the Week is a strong song with a nice vocal hook and some nice playing by all the members of the band.
What's also a shame is that more people have not heard this disc. I love the opener, titled Dumb Love. It is musically similar (and superior) to Down from the No.4 album. The band sounds really tight on this song, and it's obvious from go that the band is looking to recapture the artistic spark of Tiny Music... here.
I love the kitschy rock of Hollywood B*tch, which is musically somewhat similar to one of the band's previous hits, Big Bang Baby. The song that follows, Wonderful, is a dreamy, ethereal acoustic pop song that is by far the most radio friendly song on the radio. I'm shocked this didn't become a single, as it probably could have garnered a good amount of airplay and possibly saved the album at retail.
The band goes for the same dreamy effect on Bi-Polar Bear, and it works extremely well. There is some gorgeous melodies on this song, and I really like Weiland's vocal performance, probably better than anything else on this record. Man, if and when this band puts out a "best of," I really hope this is one of the album tracks that makes it.
There are a couple of misses on this disc as well however. Namely, the two songs right before the aforementioned Bi-Polar Bear: Too Cool Queenie and Regeneration. I find these songs to be boring retreads of past STP work. Hell, one of them features nearly the same exact guitar line as Vasoline, a hit for the band back in 1994.
All in all though, I find this to be a highly enjoyable rock and roll record by an extremely talented rock and roll band. I found No. 4 to be kind of sloppy sounding and almost unfocused, no doubt due in part to Weiland's drug problems. But Shangri La Dee Da is a solid record that deserved a better fate.
Rumors began to swirl about a possible new double album last year, but right now the band is on hiatus while Weiland works on a new solo record. Work on the next STP disc is expected to begin late this year. Hopefully it's as enjoyable as this one.
SHANGRI-LA DE DA, the fifth and finest album from the incomparable Stone Temple Pilots finds the California quartet continuing to carve out their own ...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
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