TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Reunited Candlebox Burns Stronger

ADVERTISEMENT

By CURTIS ROSS

The Tampa Tribune

Published: August 14, 2008

Few bands ever got as much grief for their hometown as did Candlebox.

The Seattle quartet released its eponymous debut album in 1993, scoring hits with "You" and "Far Behind." The album sold millions of copies, but Candlebox was dismissed as coattail-riders, having come to prominence following the breakthroughs of such hometown heroes as Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Soundgarden a few years prior.

The band lasted two more albums before declining sales, a deteriorating relationship with its record label and general burn-out persuaded Candlebox to call it quits in 2000.

But a 2006 retrospective, "The Best of Candlebox," prompted the band mates to reunite for a few shows, which now has turned into a full-scale reunion.

"It feels good," guitarist Peter Klett says by telephone from a tour stop in Waco, Texas, where, he jokes, he's "hanging out at the Branch-Davidian."

"It's so nice to be able to come back and have fans be supportive, and to have a new album that people respect. It's very validating," Klett says.

The new album, "Into the Sun," was released last month and continues in the vein of the band's previous efforts, with plenty of blues-based rock songs and a healthy helping of power ballads, such as "Surrendering."

It was the ballad "Far Behind" that catapulted Candlebox onto MTV and rock radio, beginning not only a period of hit records and intensive touring but also bringing on some scathing press.

"We weren't grunge. That should be noted," Klett says. "We got lumped in with the grunge wanna-bes."

Still, Klett says, Candlebox is grateful to its grunge predecessors for "breaking down the wall. We got fortunate that it hit when we were ready to go. We were prepared, but we were our own entity."

The band toured hard, in all senses of the term, through the '90s.

"I was 22, 23," Klett remembers, "young enough to take rough touring, which we were doing pretty consistently. At first it's fun but you can kind of get lost in the drinking and whatnot."

The band released two more albums, 1995's "Lucy" and 1998's "Happy Pills," with each selling less than its predecessor. Band members left and were replaced. And the relationship with the Maverick label got worse and worse.

"The label slowly declined and took us down with it," Klett says. "They weren't together. I was glad to be away from that."

The 2000 breakup "sucked, but looking back it was meant to be," Klett says. "It was a healthy thing to be apart and do our own thing. The band's a lot stronger than it was before."

Klett, lead singer Kevin Martin and drummer Scott Mercado are back from the original lineup, with bassist Adam Kury replacing Bardie Martin (no relation) who left to pursue a career in law.

Klett is pleased with "Into the Sun." The time away allowed the band members to "approach writing from our outside experiences with other bands."

"For me it captures what Candlebox really is," Klett says. "It shows growth for us. It allows us to move in the direction of our age, to grow as we get older. We nailed it on the head with this one."

ON TOUR

Candlebox

WITH: Small Town Sleeper and The Kings Royal

WHEN: 8 p.m. today

WHERE: Jannus Landing, 16 Second St. N., St. Petersburg; (727) 896-2276

COST: $23

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT