Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington discussed Stone Temple Pilots and Scott Weiland in a new Q104.3 interview. Alternative Nation transcribed his comments.
“Man, let me just tell you, I have the highest respect for Stone Temple Pilots. I love Scott [Weiland], I’m sad that he’s gone. He was a huge supporter. I just heard a really interesting story the other day, about how he had heard [Hybrid Theory] with one of the programmers in California, and basically said, ‘That’s it. That’s what you guys are going to be playing from now on.’ That just means a lot to me, because he actually introduced me to a lot of the people I play music with.”
“I’ve seen Stone Temple Pilots play probably about 30 times, a huge influence on me. They really made music that I absolutely loved, and I still love to this day. So the chance to go out and perform those songs with those guys was very cool. Honestly, Robert [DeLeo], Dean [DeLeo], and Eric [Kretz], those guys are super talented. I’ve had the privilege of not only being in Linkin Park and being around a bunch of geniuses, I got to go and be in Stone Temple Pilots and be around a bunch of geniuses, and just kind of sit back and kind of ask myself, ‘How did I get here?’”
“I had so much fun. I actually still get to play with those guys every once in awhile, I have a deep deep love. The only reason why I’m not doing it now is my kids, they would cry every time I would go on the road with STP. When I leave on tour with Linkin Park, they’re like, ‘Okay, we’ll see you when you get back.’ They understand what I’m doing, but when I would leave with STP they would cry. I started realizing, I think they thought I was choosing to do that over being at home with them, because I would be done with Linkin Park and coming home. It was just too hard on my family, so I basically was like, you know what, I’ve got to stop being selfish here. When I’m not doing Linkin Park, I’ve got to be home with my babies.”
