ROCK 'N' ROLL Saliva seeks staying power

The group wants to be known as a classic rock 'n' roll band.
By JOHN BENSON
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
HERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT MALE aggression that lends itself to the music of Saliva.
The Memphis, Tenn., band continues to produce pile driver-friendly tunes for the WWE (World Wresting Entertainment); however, it's the group's latest album, "Blood Stained Love Story," and specifically its lead single, "Ladies and Gentlemen," that finds the adrenaline pumping overtime.
Not only is the track tapped as the official theme song of "WrestleMania 23," but it was also heavily featured by the NFL Network during its Super Bowl coverage.
"We wrote it with that in mind," said Saliva singer Josey Scott, calling from Fayetteville, Ark. "We were in the studio and we knew that it was pretty special. It had this real heavy dynamic to it and a huge bounce. I was just joking in the studio. I said what if I acted like I was a circus announcer and did the vocals like that? I wanted to say 'Welcome to the show' like Def Leppard did back in the day."
He added, "The last time we said 'Boom' in a song, it was pretty huge. And it kind of got killed by 9/11 happening, which was unfortunate and terrible. That really kind of knocked the wind out of our sails. So it's kind of like a new 'Click Click Boom' for this day and age."
There's no denying Scott and his Saliva band mates are all about the anthems. Over the past five years, the group has found chart success with "Always," "Your Disease" and "Survival of the Sickest." However, the band continues to change up its sound and style.
His philosophy
Though "Ladies and Gentlemen" is a power-packed fun song, Saliva takes a serious turn on its next single "Never Gonna Change," which Scott claims is an open letter to its fans.
"It's just honest and from our hearts," Scott said. "It's a snapshot of our lives and everybody's lives. A snapshot of every kind of pain and joy you can feel in life. I think that's overall what I'm trying to do as a songwriter is trying to identify with that person that has been destroyed by a broken heart, broken home or has been uplifted by having a child."
It's the latter experience that Scott says has changed his life.
"I had a child last year, a little boy," Scott said. "His name is Justice, and we had him on St. Patrick's Day, and I got to deliver him myself. I want to identify with my fans old and young, new and old, as humankind. I want to share the joys and pains. I want to let them know I feel that too."
In many ways, Scott is working toward making his father proud. Even though his dad died in 1996, Josey still lives by his dad's words of wisdom: "There is music that sucks and music that's great," his dad said. "I've given you the skills to make great music." Talk about pressure.
Still, Scott feels as though "Blood Stained Love Story" is the statement album the band has been working toward for a long time.
"I think it represents first and foremost that we're label-less," Scott said. "I think the critics have tried to shove us into a box. For so many years we were a rap-rock band and then we were alternative radio band and then we were just another drug-crazed, female-gorging rock 'n' roll band. I think this album proves we're going to be around for a long time and that we see 10 moves ahead."
He added, "We just want to be a classic rock 'n' roll band. We want to be in the fraternity of the great ones like Aerosmith and Kiss and AC/DC. We just want to tour and play our songs."
And what should fans expect at Saliva's gig Sunday at the Eastwood Expo Center in Niles?
"It's a brand new show," Scott said, "It's a brand new breed of whoop-a--, and you'll leave walking 50 feet off the ground."