Rock frontman Scott Weiland dies

Associated Press

BLOOMINGTON, Minn.

Scott Weiland, the former frontman for the Stone Temple Pilots and Velvet Revolver, has died. He was 48.

A statement on Weiland’s Facebook page said Weiland, who was dogged by substance-abuse problems throughout his career, passed away in his sleep while on a tour stop in Bloomington, Minn.

Weiland’s current band, Scott Weiland & the Wildabouts, had been scheduled to play a show in nearby Medina, Minn.

The singer rose to fame as the frontman of the Grammy Award-winning Stone Temple Pilots, whose hits include “Interstate Love Song,” “Plush,” and “Vasoline.”

The band broke up in 2003 and Weiland went on to front Velvet Revolver, the supergroup that featured former members of Guns N’ Roses, including guitarist Slash and bassist Duff McKagan. Among that group’s hits was “Fall to Pieces.”

The Stone Temple Pilots eventually reunited in 2008 and split again in 2013.

Weiland had a long string of drug- and alcohol-related arrests and stints in rehab. In 1995, he was arrested after deputies found him carrying crack and heroin. He pleaded guilty to felony heroin possession in 1998. His drug arrests contributed to Stone Temple Pilots’ 2003 breakup.