Puddle of Mudd enjoyed by those in their ‘90s

Spencer Patterson

Monday, Nov. 17, 2003 | 9:28 a.m.

As the music industry brims with bands copping '70s and '80s sounds, Puddle of Mudd stands as a throwback to the most recent decade gone-by.

Crunchy guitars and anguished lyrics sung through gritted teeth are the foursome's stock and trade, a style termed grunge not so long ago.

In most cases, what was recently in is now completely out. But in its short three-year existence, Puddle of Mudd has become a notable exception to that almost universal constant.

The band -- the brainchild of Kansas City, Mo.-born singer/guitarist Wes Scantlin -- saw its major-label debut, "Come Clean," race to No. 9 on the Billboard album charts in 2001. It spawned four popular modern rock singles, including a pair of top-15 Billboard Hot 100 hits, "Blurry" (No. 5) and "She Hates Me" (No. 13).

If Scantlin and his mates are put off by comparisons, they didn't show it Sunday night, preceding their show with a CD by Alice in Chains, the defunct '90s outfit to which they sound most similar.

And the crowd of 1,700 proved that if fabs are willing to party as if it were 1992, there are plenty of music fans eager to hear the sound of grunge.

Surprisingly, the audience ranged greatly in age. As expected, the high school and college set was represented, crowded mostly near the stage where they thrashed their heads and pumped their fists for the duration of the 70-minute set.

But the rest of the venue was packed with men and women in their 30s, 40s and well beyond. Many held up cell phones during the show, perhaps offering proof to their kids that they really were watching Puddle of Mudd.

POM's performance got off to a slow start, partly the result of a back-loaded set list that left most of the group's best-known songs for the final half hour.

The music also seemed a bit sluggish early. Bassist Doug Ardito and second guitarist Paul Phillips bounced around the stage enthusiastically enough, but that didn't mask the sounds of a band worn down by the road.

"We've been playing for about five nights in a row now, maybe six. We really don't know anymore," Scantlin admitted.

The fatigue was most evident in Scantlin's vocals, which were difficult to make out at times and a bit shrill at others.

But the 30-year-old frontman and his band drew on some reserve strength as the night wore on, sending their fans home with a furious finishing segment.

The familiar chorus to the anthemic "Blurry" ("Can you take it all away/ Can you take it all away / Well you shoved it in my face / This pain you gave to me") got The Joint jumping.

"Away From Me," the first single from upcoming sophomore release "Life on Display" (due Nov. 25), was also well received, a sign that album should chart high in the weeks to come.

The night's most frenzied reaction, however, came as Scantlin played the opening bars of "She Hates Me," dedicating the song to "the ladies out there."

The crowd sang the first verse and part of the chorus to the expletive-laced, Nirvana-esque concoction.

Puddle of Mudd also performed the song -- F-Bombs and all -- in its previous Vegas appearance at last year's televised "Billboard Music Awards" show.

After drummer Greg Upchurch made a rather comedic appearance at the microphone, the band returned for a one-song encore, "Control." Halfway through the song, Puddle of Mudd detoured briefly into Black Sabbath's "War Pigs," a welcome surprise on an otherwise scripted occasion.

The show's chief revelation was actually opening act Magna-Fi, a hard-rocking Las Vegas quartet. The band served up its brand of thunderous music with great energy, sounding more like the future of heavy rock than its past.