With barbecue, leftover beer, rock group marks
million <br>Thursday, December 7, 2000<br>By DONNIE
MOORHOUSE <br><br>One million records sold.
<br><br>Springfield's Staind has gone platinum, the first locally grown
rock band to accomplish the feat, with the Recording
Industry Association of America certification of the
band's Flip/Elektra debut "Dysfunction."
<br><br>According to Staind guitarist Mike Mushok of Ludlow, the
band was on tour when members got the word from their
management. <br><br>"It feels pretty damn good," said Mushok.
"It was a great surprise. We had an idea it might
happen, but then we finally found out all the paperwork
had already gone through and the certification was
complete." <br><br>The band, featuring Mushok and singer
Aaron Lewis of Springfield, drummer Jon Wysocki of
Westfield and bassist Johnny April of Enfield, celebrated
when they returned home at a backyard barbecue with
friends, family, and leftover beer from their tour bus.
<br><br>They will celebrate with local fans tomorrow night
when they play with the hard rock bands Sevendust and
Megadeth at the Worcester Centrum Centre. <br><br>The last
two years have been successful for the four who
started in Springfield in 1995. They performed on the
local club circuit at bars like Infinity and Mikaras
before their brooding hard rock sound was heard by Fred
Durst of Limp Bizkit, who helped them. <br><br>"I think
it has a lot to do with coincidence and luck and I'd
like to give us some credit," Mushok said last year
when things began rolling for the group. "I think we
are a good band." <br><br>Staind knew what to do with
their big break. They went to work making a record and
hitting the road. They were on tour when the album went
gold (500,000 copies) and remained there until it went
platinum. (Staind's first independent album "Tormented,"
recorded in Springfield, was recently released online on
ArtistDirect.com). <br><br>Staind became an MTV favorite with a
video shown frequently on the cable TV music channel.
<br><br>The band is at work on its second effort for Elektra
which is tentatively scheduled for an April release.
<br><br>"I am excited about the record," Mushok said. "I
think these songs are much better than the last batch
and I hope everyone feels the same. It is not a huge
departure, but I think the extremes are further out. The
heavy songs are heavier and the mellow songs are more
mellow." <br><br>Mushok said they have included a band
version of "Outside" the current hit by lead singer Lewis
and Fred Durst which appeared on the 1999 Family
Values release. <br><br>With a platinum record under
their belts, Mushok admitted to feeling some additional
pressure in the studio. <br><br>"I don't know about the
other guys, but I had it in the back of my mind,"
Mushok said. <br><br>The band recorded in Los Angeles,
New York and Massachusetts, doing some vocal work at
LongView Farms in North Brookfield. They will head down to
Florida next week to finish up the final tracks.
<br><br>Producer Brendan O'Brien (Pearl Jam, Stone Temple Pilots)
will mix the disc at an Atlanta studio. According to
Mushok, the band is getting ready to announce a major
tour which will begin in March. <br><br>Staind carries
the honor of Springfield's first stamped and
certified rock stars with pride, but Mushok insists not all
that much has changed other than the fact that they
are now working musicians and are either touring,
recording, writing, or rehearsing. <br><br>"Okay," he
finally admits after some prodding. "Every now and again
its pretty cool to get up in the morning and do
whatever you want." <br><br><a href=http://www.masslive.com
target=new>http://www.masslive.com</a>
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target=new>http://www.wickedpromotions.com</a>