“Turbo rockers” Saliva and Drowning Pool tour Montana
Published: October 27, 2008
Saliva and Drowning Pool kicked off a new tour on Oct. 17 that brings the two bands, plus Tantric and Jet Black Stare, to Missoula, Butte and Great Falls.
The new tour dates come as the new video for Drowning Pool’s latest single “37 Stitches,” recently named Blender’s breakout video, pervades internet music sites. The hit follows the success of band’s first two radio singles off of Full Circle, “Soldiers” and “Enemy,” which each lived on the charts for more than six months.
For Memphis turbo-rockers Saliva, the past couple years of their decade-long career have brought an ocean swell of change. One or more members have had children, stopped drinking, ended longterm relationships, gotten married and/or left the group, and each instance has been accompanied by a new sense of clarity.
As a result, Saliva's fifth album, Blood Stained Love Story, resounds with a previously untapped level of passion, energy, sincerity and melodicism. "I think we've all been through a blood-stained love story of one type or another," says frontman Josey Scott. "It's kind of a metaphor for how things can be a certain way for so long, and then within a day, they just change and you're on this whole other path."
The album reflects a realization that there are more important things in life than cover stories, photo shoots and big Hollywood parties. But while it may be more mature than Saliva's past efforts, it's no less turbulent.
"These songs are about waking up after the party and your wife is gone, your money's gone, your cars are gone and you go, 'What just happened?'" explains Scott. "It's about trying to get all that stuff back, having a second chance and starting again."
For Texas modern rockers Drowning Pool, Full Circle, their third album, and first for Eleven Seven Music, represents a chance to continue to build on their success, with a new lead singer in old friend Ryan McCombs, a new label and new management, but the same fiery commitment to their music and one another.
Marking one of the new album's fateful coincidences is the fact that ex-SOiL vocalist McCombs made his live debut in Dallas with the band at Ozzfest in August of 2005. It was almost three years to the day since he joined Drowning Pool's guitarist C.J. Pierce, bassist Stevie Benton and drummer Mike Luce on-stage in Indianapolis at Ozzfest 2002 to sing "Bodies" with the late Dave Williams, who would pass away from a rare heart disease just a day later.
"There's never been a point when we thought about stopping," says Pierce, who moved to Dallas in the mid-'90s to form Drowning Pool with Luce, Benton and Williams when they were all still in high school. "Everything we've gone through has just brought us closer."
"We decided to keep the band going because if we didn't it would put to rest everything we did with Dave," says Benton. "If someone in your family dies, you don't change your last name. You just keep going."
And keep going they did, on a third album that is more mature, melodic and accessible than its predecessors.
Catch the tour 7 p.m. Nov. 15 at the Great Falls Civic Center (ticketing.greatfallsmt.net), 6 p.m. Nov. 16 at the Butte Civic Center (406-782-2102) and 7 p.m. Nov. 17 at the Wilma Theatre in Missoula (www.jadepresents.com).
