Stone Temple Pilots Recruit a Onetime 'X-Factor' Contestant as Their New Singer

You can also hear "Meadow" — STP's first new song with vocalist Jeff Gutt set to appear on the band's upcoming 2018 album

BY Calum SlingerlandPublished Nov 15, 2017

Though Stone Temple Pilots have been searching for a new vocalist for what feels like forever, the band have now confirmed that onetime The X Factor contestant Jeff Gutt will replace the late Scott Weiland and man the mic for the group going forward.

The group made Gutt's membership official at a private show last night at the Troubadour in Los Angeles, where the band shared the new STP single "Meadow." You too can now hear the band's comeback track down below.

As a press release reveals, "Meadow" will appear on a new Stone Temple Pilots album set for release in the spring of 2018 via Atlantic/Rhino. Their as-yet-untitled seventh album will come in conjunction with a North American tour. Gutt has spent the past year writing and recording with founding STP members Dean DeLeo, Robert DeLeo and Eric Kretz.

"We wanted someone who would not only do our earlier songs justice, but would also write new songs and carve out a different path forward with us. It took some time, but we found our guy," Dean DeLeo explained.
The band reportedly reviewed about 15,000 submissions online before selecting more than 30 singers to audition in person with the group at Studio 606 in Los Angeles.

"It was clear right away that Jeff had the range to sing vocally challenging songs like 'Piece of Pie' and 'Interstate Love Song,' Robert DeLeo said. "But we soon discovered that he also has a great ear for melody and knew how to write a song."

Upon getting together with the group in September 2016 to write new material, "Jeff kept coming up with one great melody after another. We ended up finishing 14 songs, which is the most that Stone Temple Pilots has ever recorded for an album," Kretz added.

"No one will ever fill Scott's shoes and I'm not trying to – he's a legend. But these songs deserve to be performed and people want to hear them. I'm just honoured that the guys chose me to help them continue to build this band's legacy," Gutt said.

As previously reported, the band recently treated their debut Core to an anniversary reissue.

Latest Coverage