STONE TEMPLE PILOTS

ESM’s Darren Saletta had the opportunity to sit down with Stone Temple Pilots drummer Eric Kretz and talk about the role of surfing in his life and its connections with the band’s music. STP has made a vengeful comeback in the past year after the prolonged, well-publicized problems with lead singer Scott Wieland and now shows no signs of slowing down. The new groove should allow the band to incorporate their passion for surfing into the daily grind of being recording artists. Eric and the band are hoping that future tour plans, including upcoming gigs in Australia with their newest release Four, will be more wave-focused than in the past, with plenty of water time on their days off.

ESM: How has surfing played a role in your life and affected your music?
EK: When Scott [Weiland] was doing his solo record, my wife and I had a house out in Hawaii. I was there about 6-7 months out of the year, so my cousins would basically see how much fun they could have with me and watch me fuckin’ tumble and tumble in the surf.

ESM: So that was when you started surfing?
EK: No, Robert [DeLeo] and I both started early. Robert grew up surfing in Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey, as a kid, and I grew up in San Jose, California, spending a lot of time in Santa Cruz. Surfing is very difficult to get prolific at. It takes a few months of repeating over and over again just to get past that first learning curve, and Hawaii’s such a great place to do it.

ESM: Are you still surfing every day when you have free time?
EK: Not so much—I live in LA, and Robert lives down by the beach. He goes out, but I’m so busy dealing with other stuff I don’t really have enough time. Even though everyone says you just have to make time, you have to make time for so many other things.

ESM: You were very much into your music well before surfing became something you thought about every week...
EK: When I was growing up a lot of kids would go into Santa Cruz. Surfing was in my blood, but I was into other sports like soccer, wrestling, and then playing drums would take 4-5 hours a day. I think what fascinated me about surfing is how much of an art form it really is. The fact that you’re dealing with how mother nature is feeling that day with the oceans, the winds, the waves, and everything else that’s going on makes it either an amazing time or a frustrating time. In some ways, playing music is the same because you have to deal with other people, and with other people you have different moods. Sometimes musicians can be really wonderful to work with, and other times they’re just a pain in the ass.

ESM: What about traveling? Do you ever get to mix music, traveling, and surfing together?
EK: We were just in Miami for two days, and there was no surf, so we just did other sports like waterskiing. But we’re not a band that’s been able to do that yet because of the limitations we’ve had. We haven’t been able to travel the world so much and do a surfing safari.

ESM: Is that something you aspire to do?
EK: Yeah, we plan on doing the Dick Dale Festival in Australia during January, which is great because I know a lot of other bands that have been doing it and are probably gonna do it this year. I know for sure that this time we’ll work it out. Once you’ve got the whole machine running_—packing and flying all this equipment—it’s much easier to bring a couple foam sticks. You know, just throw ‘em in. The festival will be the first time we can actually surf and play music.

ESM: Do you think that may lead to a habit-forming style of touring?
EK: Yeah, I’m sure it will. Surfing and music are so synonymous with one another. Look how many surfers are musicians as well. It’s just such a ritual of bonding, and of course partying. Surfers are usually pretty good musicians.

ESM: So you’re obviously feeling pretty strongly about being in the water. What do you think about how things are shaking down environmentally with water quality and stuff like that? Is the environment something that the band can address?
EK: Yeah. Surfrider Foundation has called us numerous times, but for the last three years, it’s just been one setback after another. Now that we’re finally a unit again and a full running machine, we can start to address a lot of these issues and start to get involved a lot more. It’s just too difficult when you’ve only got three wheels on the car. You can’t really drive it, let alone jump in the race and do advertising as well. Robert and Dean grew up in New Jersey on the coast, and Scott and I grew up in California, even though he moved to Ohio for a few years during highschool. We’ve all grown up around the ocean, so it’s important to the band.

ESM: California and New Jersey are two places that have seen some serious environmental issues...
EK: Yeah, especially because we all met down in Long Beach. Robert used to surf there a lot. I went out there a few times, and it was just disgusting. Santa Barbara and places like that, when you come back with tar and a film of oil on your body, it’s really disgusting. Yet with the money that the corporations are making from those offshore oil wells, it will be really difficult for people to fight against it unless there’s a very high unity amongst the public.

ESM: Even with these environmental dilemmas, do you still feel that positive energy in the water when you do find the time?
EK: Oh yeah, and it’s just so amazing when you get those beautiful days, when it’s not too crowded and the conditions are just right.

ESM: And how often do you get to carry over that stoke, that feeling, and go right into the studio, sit behind the drums, and let that same vibe flow into your music?
EK: Surfing is probably the greatest inspiration. On a good day, when it’s flowing, your equipment is working good, and everything is running well, that’s the way it is for us in the studio and performing live. If everything is working great in the group of people you’re with and everyone is clicking with each other, it’s those kind of days that nothing can touch.