Interview With Dean DeLeo, Stone Temple Pilots Guitarist
Stone Temple Pilots are coming to The Rust Belt in East Moline, Il on Saturday, October 23, 2021. I was lucky enough to score an interview with their incredible guitarist Dean DeLeo recently to talk guitars, music, kids, and a new project he's put together called Trip the Witch.
As soon as Dean DeLeo came on screen...before we hit record...before we said "hello" he focused right in on the guitars hanging up and sitting behind me and started telling me about his Yamaha FG-160 that he got from his mom when he was 16 years old. They used it on Core, Purple, and Tiny Music. He re-gifted it to his son when he turned 16.
Which got us talking about his kids and how proud he is of them and their artistic endeavors. He took his son into the studio and his son is so talented he didn't "need" his professional musician father...he played everything himself. Dean says he's looking forward to getting his daughter, who sings, into the studio.
We talked about taking time off the road. October of 2019 was the last time STP played before a handful of shows in September. So he had plenty of time to be creative. Trip the Witch was a project he put together with Tom Bukovac, a great session musician. They had the luxury of technology and used it to it's fullest by sending each other files and filming themselves playing parts.
Like most of us...he had so much time off that he wondered if he would remember how to play these great songs. Luckily muscle memory is a real thing and they are as tight as ever.
I can't wait to see these guys at The Rust Belt. Do yourself a favor and listen to the recent STP album Perdida. No, it doesn't have Scott Weiland on it but it's got his vibe all over the place.