Scott Weiland has seen the newest incarnation of Stone Temple Pilots — one minus him, plus Linkin Park’s Chester Bennington — and he’s not happy.
In a message posted to his website addressed to his fans, the ex-frontman of the ’90s rock icons rails against his former bandmates, calling the band that performed last weekend “not Stone Temple Pilots.”
“Like everybody else out there, I read about my band, Stone Temple Pilots, and their recent performance this past weekend with a new singer,” Weiland wrote. “To tell you the truth, it took me by surprise. And it hurt.”
According to Weiland, the three remaining original band members: Eric Kretz and brothers Robert and Dean DeLeo, were “wrong” to perform as Stone Temple Pilots with Bennington during surprise performances at KROQ Weenie Roast in Los Angeles and at the Live 105 BFD festival near San Francisco, saying that the band doesn’t have the legal right to present itself as Stone Temple Pilots because he’s “still a member of the band.”
There’s conflicting reports as to whether or not that’s the case. In February, it was reported that the rest of the band had “terminated” Weiland from his duties as lead singer. However, Weiland later told Spin magazine that he hadn’t been fired, adding through TMZ that the band apparently lied about the firing in order to boost ticket sales.
Weiland is sticking to his guns. In addition to questioning the legality of the performances, he also said his former bandmates “don’t have the ethical right to call themselves Stone Temple Pilots because it’s misleading and dishonest to the millions of fans that have followed us for so many years”
Weiland’s statement comes a day after the rest of Stone Temple Pilots filed a lawsuit against its former frontman, accusing him of misusing the band’s name to further his solo career. Weiland also disputed this claim. “When I tour on my own, it’s never as Stone Temple Pilots,” he wrote. “It’s as Scott Weiland. The fans deserve to know what they’re getting.”
However, he doesn’t appear to hold issue with the band hiring Bennington as its frontman, calling the decision “their prerogative.”
“I don’t give a f— what they call themselves,” Weiland wrote, “but it’s not Stone Temple Pilots.
“But don’t give up on STP,” he ended the letter. “I know I haven’t.”