The Deadbolt Exclusive - Love and Hate with Wes Scantlin and Ryan Yerdon of Puddle of Mudd

Love and Hate with Wes Scantlin and Ryan Yerdon of Puddle of Mudd
by Troy Rogers

Eight years after their 2001 debut, Come Clean, and two years removed from their third studio album, Famous, rockers Puddle of Mudd are back with their fourth full-length release, Volume 4: Songs in the Key of Love and Hate, which goes wide to fans on Tuesday, December 8. With ten Puddle of Mudd singles released since 2001, the lead track from Songs in the Key of Love and Hate, "Spaceship", has already cracked the top ten as front man Wes Scantlin and the Puddle of Mudd guys put the fun back in alt-rock as they find musical love and hate.

One of the most popular alt bands of their time alongside such bands as Stained, Linkin Park, Stone Temple Pilots, Limp Bizkit, Godsmack and more, Puddle of Mudd is back with new material after touring for two years and heading off to places like Iraq to entertain the troops.

Ahead of the December 8 release of Volume 4: Songs in the Key of Love and Hate, we went one-on-one with Puddle of Mudd lead singer, Wes Scantlin, and Puddle of Mudd drummer, Ryan Yerdon, to get the scoop on what they've been up to for the past couple of years, the evolution of the band between Famous and Love and Hate, the look of the "Spaceship" video, and how they're using the social media revolution to their advantage.

THE DEADBOLT: It seems like you guys are having a lot of fun with "Spaceship". What was the mindset of the band going into the song?

WES SCANTLIN: Sitting on the couch, late at night catching a buzz and trying to write something a little fun and sexy. You know, every guy is always trying to undress chicks with their minds. So I think I was watching some science channel and they had something on about UFOs and I thought, "Man, that would be kind of cool if I had a spaceship and I had a party on it."

RYAN YERDON: You were bouncing back and forth between The Playboy Channel and ...

SCANTLIN: Yeah, The Playboy Channel, and I'm thinking, "We can have a party on the ship and we go from planet to planet picking up hot chicks and hopefully the boys can telepathically make their clothes come off." Hey, I didn't say that. That was Ryan, man. I'm married.

THE DEADBOLT: When you guys have songs sitting around for a couple of years, is it tough to record since music changes so quick.

SCANTLIN: For us, no, not really. We just kind of keep writing the way we write. If it's good, it's good. If it sucks, it sucks. You know, keep the good ones and throw the shitty ones out.

YERDON: We don't really pay attention to stuff like that.

SCANTLIN: Yeah, other artists have really got to worry about shit like that. Keep it simple, man, and don't over think shit too much. Keep it simple, man.

THE DEADBOLT: For the entire album, what was going on in your lives that's reflected through the tracks?

SCANTLIN: I don't know. There were tons of different emotions. Everybody that writes music and lyrics, and stuff like that, they're all writing about kind of the same emotions that everybody goes through and faces on a daily basis. So if my wife is bummed out and mad at me, I write an angry rocker like she's about to leave me and I'm sad. I'll write a "I love you and please don't f**king leave me right now" kind of song. If something is really, really pissing me off, I'll write like a punk rock jammer.

THE DEADBOLT: So is there a noticeable division with the tracks between love and hate?

SCANTLIN: Well, some of the songs, like "Keep it Together", are "Hold on a second and let me get through this real quick. Just keep it together. I love you, but don't walk out on me." It's kind of coming from a loving place. And then a song like "Pitchin' A Fit" is kind of like, "F**k you!"

THE DEADBOLT: How do you guys see the band has changed through the years?

SCANTLIN: I'll tell you what, dude. It's really simple, man. You start about eleven o'clock at night, make sure you got the right resources - beer, Southern Comfort, vodka, maybe a pack a smokes, maybe not, maybe a nice little fire and an acoustic guitar - and start jamming. Hopefully by the time five o'clock in the morning rolls around, you have something that's a keeper or it's a throwaway. Then you start again the next night. It's kind of like a repetitious thing that just never ends.

THE DEADBOLT: Sounds like the same way I work, without the beer and the ...

SCANTLIN: Comedians do the same thing too, man. I was talking to a comedian and he's like, "Am I nuts, man? My wife is always saying I'm a psycho and she's constantly pissed at me for staying up writing comedy bits all late and shit." He's like, "Is that just me, man?" And I'm like, "No, dude, I do the same thing. And everybody thinks I'm crazy for staying up late." But I like to do my work when everybody else is in bed so they don't f**king bug the shit out of me.

THE DEADBOLT: Since you guys were over in Iraq, did you ever think about writing an album while you were over there?

SCANTLIN: It's impossible, man. There's no way you can pull it off.

YERDON: Yeah. The time that you're there, you're dedicated to ...

SCANTLIN: Every single minute was soldier, soldier, soldier. Signing pictures, pictures, pictures. I mean, you just sit there and you sign and you take pictures all day, 24-7, man. Then you hit the stage and fortunately maybe get a little bit of sleep. It's all good. But those dudes over there will be like, "Suck it up, dude."

THE DEADBOLT: With the video for "Spaceship", how did you and Petro work out the look and tone?

SCANTLIN: I think it was his concept, sort of. Well, me and Paul [Phillips] just kind of had a buzz going one night, and we were like, "Yeah, man. Lets have a tour bus spaceship and we're going to planets picking up weird alien chicks and having a party with our buddies." And it's exactly the way the video is basically shot. We just invited a bunch of friends down, packed some coolers full of beer, and basically had a party. We had the interior of a spaceship and the person that actually designed the interior of the spaceship. I think it was already set up for a different shoot from something else, so it was kind of already there. And then Petro, the director, we just basically gave him a little bit of the idea and he just rolled with it and did his thing.

THE DEADBOLT: How dependent on Facebook and Twitter are bands becoming? Is that good or bad?

YERDON: We're not that dependent on it. We're just starting to get that whole program rocking. But I think it's great for bands, it really helps out. Obviously it's a fast way to connect with all of your fans. Puddle of Mudd has nothing but good things to say about all of that stuff.

-- Troy Rogers