| Creed stands out as a grassroots phenomenon,
built fan-by-fan from the ground up. The Tallahassee, Florida quartet combines
big guitars, dramatic vocals and bold lyrics to make music that is real
music with which real people can identify. Fans also jam radio station
request lines, helping Creed to become the first band to ever have three
songs in the top 20 of Billboard Monitors Rock chart at the same time.
Their debut album, My Own Prison, was certified TRIPLE-PLATINUM in February,
1999. Creed is also a live band of rare potency. "Each performance is an
intense experience for us," says singer Scott Stapp. "We play from the
heart. I think thats important the first time you see a band that youre
in love with. When we play, you can see the sweat dripping off my face
and the spit coming out of my mouth. You can reach out and almost touch
us. And I want to be able to see the audience. I want to be able to make
eye contact with everyone in the room. Its a show for the band, too. Were
looking at all these faces in the crowd and theyre putting on a show for
us." Candor, commitment, and fervor are the hallmarks of Creed, comprised
of Stapp and fellow songwriter/guitarist Mark Tremonti, and the assertive
rhythm section made up of bassist Brian Marshall and drummer Scott Phillips.
Creed is a young band, but somehow they play together like seasoned pros.
Frontman Scott Stapp was raised in a devoutly religious (Pentecostal) household,
the effects of which have shaped his songwriting and world-view. He grew
up singing in church and also nurtured a Southerners love for Elvis. Rock
music was forbidden in his home. For punishment he often had to copy --
word-for-word entire books (usually Psalms or Proverbs) from the Bible
and had to write essays about their meanings. Not surprisingly, imagery
from the Bible pops up frequently in Stapps lyrics. "Theres always a
spiritual thrust to what Im writing," Stapp says. "Spiritual, not religious.
For me, religion was about what not to do. Spirituality opens you up,
sets you free." In direct defiance to the strict follow-it-blindly-do-not-think-for-yourself
religion with which he was raised, Stapp left home at 17, started listening
to rock music and began writing songs that questioned everything around
him. Initially turned on to heavy rock by Def Leppards Pyromania, he soon
began his personal search. Stapp is a huge Doors fan. He read that Jim
Morrison had briefly lived in Tallahassee and soon packed his bags for
the relatively close-to-home college town/state capital. He had a one-week
stint of being homeless (he lived in his car) before getting settled, hooking
up with former classmate, guitarist Mark Tremonti and beginning his first
and only band - Creed. In 1997, Creed released My Own Prison (recorded
for $6,000 with local producer John Kurzweg "Hes amazing," Stapp says,
"people will be hearing a lot about John.") with funding from a local concert
promoter. The album garnered local radio airplay, which fueled regional
sales of 3,000 albums in just two months. Wind-up signed Creed shortly
thereafter. My Own Prison was remixed by Ron Saint-Germain (Tool, Soundgarden,
311) and re-released in August of 1997. The debut single, "My Own Prison,"
quickly became the first of three consecutive #1 Rock radio singles ("Torn"
and "Whats This Life For" are the other two). Creeds songs are not light-hearted.
Judging from the huge amount of mail the band receives, most of the fans
identify with Stapps self-examination and scrutiny of society. However,
he never pretends to have all the answers. Creed fans relate to the fact
that Stapp is trying to figure things out right along with them, raising
questions and thinking for himself. On My Own Prison, Stapps lyrics have
themes including self-reliance and responsibility (title track), organized
religion vs. spirituality ("In America"), survival ("Torn"), compassion
("Sister") and the suicide of a former classmate of Stapp and Tremonti
("Whats This Life For"). With influences from Metallica to Jim Morrison,
and R&B to Black Flag, Creeds music is rich in texture. (It makes
sense that Stapps an R&B fan; in the shower, he used to sing along
with the a cappella parts on Take 6 records). The bands musical range
is evident on My Own Prison -- from the dazzling guitar and drums interplay
of "Ode" and the graceful six-string playing on "Pity for a Dime" to the
throbbing bass line of "Illusion" and the way in which the full-blown assault
of "Unforgiven" switches gears to the syncopated rhythms of "Sister." When
combined with Stapps heartfelt vocals, the results are memorable. Throughout
the record, theres a palpable sense of cohesion. While theirs is an egalitarian
spirit, the members of Creed found their collective voice in Stapps highly
personal lyrics. "We get along extremely well in this band," he says, "Were
more like a family than just a band." He found, too, that his experience
provided ample material for lyrics. Take the stunning title-track to "My
Own Prison," for example. "I wrote it about 4:00 in the morning," Scott
says, "I realized I was building up reasons to blame people. I was getting
bitter. Writing the song was a turning point. I realized that Im responsible,
were all responsible for our lives." Creed continues to live up to their
promise, every week gaining new followers to join their swelling ranks.
"At the gigs," Scott says, "We find that about half the audience knows
the record really well. The other half have heard of us. They seem to want
to hear more. So we play even harder." |
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