Scott Weiland

Scott Weiland biography

Scott Weiland (born Scott Richard Kline on October 27, 1967) is an American musician, lyricist and vocalist. During a career spanning two decades, Weiland has served as the frontman for a number of rock bands, most notably the Grammy Award-winning rock band Stone Temple Pilots.

Weiland first caught the public eye in 1992 with the release of Core, STP's debut album. One of the most popular bands of the 1990s, Weiland's career with the band in the 1990s and early 2000s was plagued by drug addiction, as well as several arrests. During STP's five year hiatus from 2003 to 2008, Weiland fronted the successful supergroup Velvet Revolver with former members of Guns N' Roses.

In 1998, Weiland released his first solo record, 12 Bar Blues, which marked a significant contrast to his usual style with Stone Temple Pilots. Weiland's solo endeavors have continued throughout his career, and now consists of three studio albums and one compilation album of cover songs.

Weiland's onstage persona is known as being flamboyant and chaotic; he is also known for constantly changing his appearance and vocal style, as well as his use of a megaphone in concert for vocal effect.

Biography

Early years

Weiland was born as Scott Richard Kline at Kaiser Hospital in San Jose, California. His surname was changed after being adopted by his stepfather David Weiland at age 5. Around that time, Weiland moved to Bainbridge Township, Ohio, where he attended the Kenston School District. He moved to California as a teenager and attended Edison High School in Huntington Beach and Orange Coast College. In a 2005 interview with Esquire, Weiland stated that while performing in his first bands as a teenager, his drinking "escalated" and he began using cocaine for the first time, which he referred to as a "sexual" experience. Weiland also revealed in his 2011 autobiography that he was raped at 12 years old by a senior high school student.

In 1986 Weiland met bassist Robert DeLeo at a Black Flag concert, and shortly thereafter formed the band Mighty Joe Young with DeLeo's brother Dean on guitar and Eric Kretz on drums, recording a demo tape in 1990. After signing with Atlantic Records it was discovered that the name "Mighty Joe Young" was already taken by a blues artist, so they changed their name to Shirley Temple's Pussy and then, briefly, Stereo Temple Pirates. Not long afterwards the band's name was changed again to Stone Temple Pilots, due to pressure from their record label, although they retained the initials STP.

Mainstream success with STP (1992-1997)

Weiland wrote the band's lyrics and performed vocals. In 1992, they released their first album, Core, spawning four hits ("Sex Type Thing", "Wicked Garden", "Creep", and "Plush") and leading them to becoming one of the most influential bands of the grunge movement, the music genre that was started in Seattle in the late 1980s and became rock and roll's central movement in the early-mid 1990s. The band was widely accused of imitating bands such as Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden and Nirvana in an attempt to cash in on the scene's burgeoning popularity. Critics also pointed out that Weiland's vocal style at the time was very similar to that of Layne Staley's and Eddie Vedder's. Weiland has rejected such comparisons, however, citing Jim Morrison and David Bowie as more influential on his vocal techniques and sound. Despite negative reviews from critics, Core was extremely successful, eventually being certified 8x platinum by the RIAA. thumb In 1994, Weiland and STP released their second record, Purple, which saw the development of a more distinctive identity for the band. While still a clear continuation of their previous techniques, the album featured a more "classic rock" sound, and had a mixture of punk, bossa nova, and acoustic songs. Like Core, Purple was a big success for the band, spawning three hit singles ("Big Empty", "Vasoline", and "Interstate Love Song") and selling over 6 million copies. The year prior, STP toured with the Butthole Surfers and Weiland developed a heroin addiction, claiming Butthole Surfers singer Gibby Haynes introduced him to heroin, which Gibby denies.

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