Before Chester Bennington sang, screamed, and serenaded audiences of millions throughout his storied career in LINKIN PARK and a host of other projects, the frontman cut his teeth from 1993 to 1998 in his first proper band: the Phoenix, Arizona-based post-grunge act GREY DAZE. In 2017, Chester announced the band's reunion which would see the surviving members re-working and re-recording a collection of songs they had started two decades ago. The project was shelved in July 2017 after Chester's passing. But with the blessing of Chester's family and widow, Talinda, the band regrouped in 2018 and the recently finished album represents an important, yet-unheard chapter — the origin story of one of modern rock's most recognizable voices — and also a full circle moment among friends. The first single from the upcoming tribute album, a track called "What's In The Eye", has just been released, accompanied by a Zev Deans-directed video featuring old footage of Chester. The song was originally recorded in the 1990s, but has since been reworked for GREY DAZE's forthcoming LP, which is scheduled for release this spring via Loma Vista Recordings. "Over the years, we'd become more knowledgeable, more experienced, and had more resources, so we decided to pick a selection of songs from our previously released albums and re-record them the way they deserved to have been treated back in the '90s when we initially wrote and released them," GREY DAZE explained. "By February 2017, we started recording and in June, Chester and Sean announced the reunion, with a live performance planned for that fall. Unfortunately, as we all know, that never happened." Among the guest musicians set to appear on the recordings are Chester's 23-year-old son Jaime Bennington, KORN's Brian "Head" Welch and James "Munky" Shaffer, P.O.D.'s Marcos Curiel, BUSH's Chris Traynor, as well as Ryan Shuck, Chester's bandmate in DEAD BY SUNRISE. The resulting album will be released via Loma Vista Recordings. In a new interview with Kerrang!, GREY DAZE drummer Sean Dowdell spoke about how the band formed in the first place and his first impressions of the frontman. "He and I had a connection in writing music together," Sean said. "We loved to write lyrics because we both have a talent to express emotional intent. I just got him on that level. I could tell what he was trying to convey and I could help shape it. He was a genius in the ability to express his emotions into metaphor." Regarding what fans can expect from GREY DAZE's forthcoming album, Sean said: "There is a depth in the lyrics on this record. Chester sings every word like he believes every single emotion attached. It's bittersweet for me. There's that big, obvious looming thing that he's not here to share this with me. But I'm very proud in how we curated this music. We took almost three years to make this record after he passed. I think he'd be quite proud of what we did." Last month, Talinda Bennington explained that releasing the GREY DAZE album will help "shine a light on" where her "husband started and hopefully give fans a better understanding of his art and a more full picture of his journey through this incredible music." In a 2001 interview with Revolver magazine, Chester described GREY DAZE's musical style as "early-'90s -style rock. It wasn't pop rock, it wasn't heavy metal. It was in between grunge and good rock. We didn't know what we were doing. We were just writing songs and singing. It was a four-piece band. Some of our songs were more rock. Others were more, I don't know, alternative? I've always been into punk and classic rock. The first few years of being a musician, it was all cover band stuff, and we'd throw in a few originals. The last band I was in, I was in it for almost eight years. We made two albums, and tried really hard." He added: "I definitely know why it didn't go anywhere: We all wanted to make it, but we all wanted to make it for different reasons. It wasn't all about making good songs, where anything else that comes from that is a fringe benefit." Bennington was found dead in his Los Angeles-area home in July 2017 after hanging himself. LINKIN PARK headlined an all-star tribute concert for Bennington in October 2017 in Los Angeles but has not announced any future plans for recording or touring.
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It’s the voice of Chester you all know, remember and love but in a whole new light. "What's In The Eye" out now!... Posted by Grey Daze on Wednesday, January 15, 2020
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