Grunge act Puddle of Mudd has been around for almost two decades, but became known here in 2001, when they released their multi-platinum smash Come Clean, featuring the hits ‘She Hates Me’ and ‘Blurry’.
Subsequent releases have been fairly quiet, but the band hopes to come back strong with its latest, Volume 4: Songs In The Key Of Love And Hate. In this interview, lead singer-guitarist Wesley Scantlin talks about finding a record deal, writing the new album and keeping things going between band members.
The band had several incarnations since the early nineties and late in the decade, Wes was ready to give up. But suddenly, through a stroke of luck and Fred Durst, the band was picked to record an album.
Wes says, “I started the band in KC in '92/'93 and then worked and jammed and tried to get it going for a long time, saw a lot of band members come and go, come and go, come and go and then when I was about ready to hang my hat up, I went to Family Values, brought a demo tape, didn't really want to go… My buddy made a fake backstage pass and we got backstage and gave it to Fred Durst's security guard, and then he gave it to Fred; Fred jammed it, another guy Danny and Jordan, they all loved it.”
“The next thing you know, I'm in Alabama and I'm getting crazy phone calls from a friend of mine like, ‘I don't know what happened, dude, but you've got to go to LA. Here's this number.’ So I'm like ‘Hello?’ and he's like, ‘Yeah, yeah man... go to the airport right now. Get on the plane and come to LA and we'll go ahead and sign you up.’ I'm like, ‘Come on, man…’ He's like, ‘Go to New Orleans and fly into Los Angeles and do some showcases.’”
Wes says that he placed his hope in the higher power before he could do anything about his dreams. He says, “I said a prayer to God that night before I went to bed, I was like, ‘Hey, you know God, I just wanted to thank you so much for giving me this gift. I got to be in this band for a while and it's pretty cool but man, you know I've got a kid and I'd appreciate it a lot,’ and then I went to sleep and woke up. He's like, ‘Oh, not so fast buddy, now you gotta go really do it.’” |
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