Mike Mushok - Staind 'Confessions of the Rock Star'

For close to three decades, the music produced by Staind has long dealt with profound issues such as depression, death, addiction and a plethora of other cheery topics, all while delivering a heavy sonic punch that suggests they might not be as miserable as all the aforementioned subjects suggest. Now, as they’ve recently released their first new album in 12 years, Confessions of the Fallen, Wall of Sound sat down with guitarist and founding member Mike Mushok to discuss how the new album finally came about, guitar shredding, the short-lived solos on their last self titled opus Staind, and why they’re hell bent on making us cry harder than a Bluey episode with their film clips.You’ve just released your first album in 12 years, Confessions of the Fallen. I didn't want to say it, but it's been a while. I imagine every interviewer has probably said that to you. I hate to break it to you. You're not the first.But 12 years is a long time between drinks. What was the catalyst for you finally sitting down and writing the new album?We started these conversations I want to say in 2018. Aaron and I had spoken through the years and all we said, 'hey, we’re going to do this.' I literally remember him saying he's like, 'I'm just not ready.' Okay, that's cool. Wherever you are, I'll be here. Hopefully our paths will meet and we'll be able to make this happen. We all got together, we discussed it, we kind of figured it out. We had some shows in 2019, just a handful of them. And we had all of 2020 kind of planned out. We had signed a record deal and we kind of knew that we were going to make a record. Then the pandemic hit, and kind of killed all the plans for 2020, for the world really, right. So we went out with Korn in 2021. Jonathan got COVID on that tour. We stopped for about 10 days, and we were able to finish it, which was great. But really, on that tour, knowing that we had a record deal, knowing that we had to write a record, it was really a great opportunity, because we were all together. I mean, Aaron tours all the time. He has his solo country career that he does, and he's always out playing. So it's really just hard to coordinate. So it was a good opportunity for the two of us to at least get together and I could play him some of the ideas that I had, get some direction, see what he liked, what he didn't like and we could figure out the path that we wanted to take.What was your approach to the songwriting? Because I looked back at your previous album, the self-titled 2011 release, and you were throwing a lot of solos in there. I grew up in the 80s, everyone was playing solos and I love that. But you've reined the soloing back in, which sort of surprised me because you're the student of Tony MacAlpine, and he played with Steve Vai. Tony would have taught you to play a solo up and down every inch of the neck of that guitar.And I did. If you saw Staind when we first started, I was soloing through every song. I definitely come from that school. But I mean, honestly, I just got away from it. I kind of got a little tired of it, somewhat. And really it’s just kind of about what the song is. There's still a few songs that have solos on the record. It’s just really kind of what the song calls for. And if we feel that there's a need for a solo, I'll put one in. So it's not like I feel like I need to have a solo on every song.

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As far as Staind is concerned, you've always had that wall of sound. And it's really almost served as a vehicle for Aaron to just sort of really deliver that message that he's trying to convey. I suppose I was just wondering why you've reined it in, because if I could play like you mate, I’d be shredding the whole bloody time.Right on, right on. Maybe the next one. If we get to do another one. I'll add a few more in.Yeah just make it hard on Aaron. Just play solos for like three or four minutes and make him sing over the top of it.More instrumentals, or half instrumentals on their next albumAbsolutlely. So I saw you’ve just recently done a tour with Godsmack and Mixmaster Mike, which I think is really cool. How was the new music received at the live shows?It's been great. I mean, it was a really great summer, great shows, with really good friends. I mean we've played with the Godsmack guys since before either of us had a record deal. We go back 25 years, so it's been a long history with those guys. Aaron used to say it on stage. It's like, we used to play shows to these guy, like I just said, before we had record deals, and here we are 25 years later playing these amphitheatres across the country every night. It was really cool to kind of see where we all started and where we are going and still doing it.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2tCwGPuUzsYeah look, I'm one of those guys who all go to a show that's either your small dingy dive bar, there's me and 100 people jammed in. Then I’ll go to a massive arena, and it’s like 10,000 people. But what I've noticed a lot, maybe it's because I'm one of the old guys now, but I'm seeing a lot of parents taking their kids to these shows. Are you seeing a lot of that at your shows?For sure. Yeah, you do see the range of the audience from young to my age and older. So you really see the gamut, which is pretty cool. There's definitely a few generations there that, come together. I just kind of feel like with as much as everybody kills Spotify and Apple Music and all these ways that people get all their music for free. It is free. So if anybody can go listen to anything, like if somebody that never heard of us and says, 'Oh, I wonder what that's about,' you can go listen to it, and five seconds later be listening to what it is and decide if you like it or want to be a fan of it or not. I remember when I was a kid, I used to save my lunch money and not eat lunch so I could go buy a cassette at the end of the week. And I didn't even know if it was going to be a band I was gonna like. I’d just heard of it. So I'm just gonna go buy it.Well we use Spotify every day. As much as we love our records here at Higher Ground Tattoos and Records, they’re not practical when everyone is tattooing. Now the last time you were here in Australia was for the 2012 Soundwave Festival. When do we see you again? It’s been over 10 years.That’s really a great question. Believe me, it's really hard to get there. I'm not gonna lie. We are trying to figure out next year. We have one more show this year, and then next year, we are going back out. Aaron always will continue his solo career. So we're just trying to figure out next year right now. Obviously, if there's a demand, and we can get there, I'd love to get there. It's a beautiful country. I've only been there I think like three times. So I mean, it would be great to be back for sure.It'd be interesting to see in what capacity you were thinking about doing it. Like a headlining tour or even just a couple of festival circuits. I wouldn’t object if you want to bring Godsmack and MC Mixmaster Mike with you.That'd be great. Right? It was a good summer.I've been giving the new album a listen for the last few days and I'll tell you now, I've watched the video for ‘Here And Now’. (Mike grits his teeth and smiles) I watched it first thing in the morning and it ruined my fucking day.Sorry, I know it's I mean, listen, it's pretty emotional.Yeah, it was a it was a heavy video. Someone sent it to me and I thought, I'll watch it and I was sitting there with my son. Makes it even harder, right? Ha!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yo8Riw9IHUwAnd then five minutes later my wife walks out, and I'm sitting there hugging a box of tissues, and she's like ‘Are you alright?’ (Mike is enjoying this by the way, giggling his arse off). But look, I did read through the comments on YouTube and there was some really great comments on there. There's obviously people that it hit directly. But there was also comments like “Fucking Staind, they always do this. They make you cry, they make you think, but then it becomes a healing thing at the same time". Right on!So I thought that was really, really cool.It is, very cool.So when you do decide to come to Australia, it'll be the first time I have to take a box of tissues to a fucking concert. (laughing) No, it's not even the song. It's the video. Listen, we got the treatment. You get, this is gonna be the next single, we're gonna make a video, and we're getting all these treatments to read through. I cried reading a two-page treatment of what this is. I called my manager like, this is the one we’ve got to make. If this on paper can do this to me, you know what I mean? It's a love song, but it's not a traditional man/woman. It's a father/son, and what that relationship is. It’s a parent to child. It’s tough.Yeah it was awesome, but I'm just looking forward to the day you guys write a song that's like, 'Jeez, it's a nice day. Everything's going fine.’ Ha ha haHahaha. There’s some of those songs. Some of them are like that. Come on. Listen to ‘Better Days’. Listen to that track. That one's like that.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bY8tjCd-pcoI will mate. Thanks again Mike. You're a bloody legend. Mate, you should be here in the next few weeks. The sun is out and it's beautiful at the moment.Listen, I mean, I would. I would love to be there. That's for sure.Looking forward to when you do come down. Man the album Confessions of the Fallen is a beauty. And thanks, man. Thanks for your time.Mike: Thank you, man. I appreciate the support. It's great chatting with you. Have a good one mateInterview by Duane James@duanejames666

Stream Confessions of the Fallen here

Staind – Confessions of the Fallen tracklisting

1. Lowest In Me2. Was Any of it Real?3. Here and Now4. In This Condition5. Out of Time6. Cycle of Hurting7. The Fray8. Better Days9. Hate Me Too10. Confessions of the Fallen

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D0Nm-yx9CLg