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“Leaving,” the first single fromStone Heart, made its debut at Number 10 on the Billboard charts and went straight up from there. For the next two weeks, the band bounced from rehearsals to interviews at other major markets throughout the country and back again. They even squeezed in time for a photo shoot and sit-down interview withRolling Stonemagazine.
The band’s rising success made December a difficult month for Danny. BetweenStone Heart’s debut, a spike in Heather’s jealousy, and his stubborn insistence on going to the concert, any progress they made towards repairing their marriage faltered. After one particularly bad row, Danny spent a few nights sleeping at his parents’. He found himself questioning his decisions at every turn.
He and Joey had been trying to make time to hang out and watch a football game together, but Danny’s schedule had made it difficult. Finally, the universe had seen fit to give them both a quiet Monday night, and a playoff berth was hanging in the balance.
“Do you have any idea what Ma would say about this place?” Danny surveyed the mess in Joey’s apartment.
“Exactly why I haven’t had her over. Get that pizza in here, I’m starving.”
After he rummaged in the refrigerator and grabbed a couple beers, Joey pulled some random shirts off the sofa and tossed them to the side. He turned the TV on and clicked to the sports channel. The game was about to start, so the commentators were nattering to fill the time, but Joey hit mute.
“Thought you might want to take a look at this before we get into the game.” Joey tossed a copy of the newestRolling Stoneonto the table. On the cover was a picture of The Kingmakers. Standing clustered together, each one had their arms folded, and they stared at the camera with knowing, satisfied smiles. The headline blared “Return of the Kings.” Danny couldn’t blame any of them for looking smug over that.
“This new double CD of theirs is already putting up huge numbers,” Joey said. “It’s going to be amonster.”
Danny flipped to the cover story. There were several photos of the band, and the article was a combination of essay and interview. He skimmed the essay part since it mostly talked about the band’s history and how the establishment had written them off. He knew that story. He was more interested in what the band had to say.
RS: A lot of people dismissed you when the Stone Heart project got delayed. What’s your secret for staying relevant after all this time?
DJ: No magic formula. Be nice if there was one. The magic’s a crapload of work, sweat, and tears.
Lauren: Well, that’s true—the hard work part—and I think it shows that if you write a song people connect with, that’s meaningful to them on some level, then you’re always relevant.
Stevie: Right. If it punches you in the gut or in the heart and makes you feel something, anything, then you’ve got something there. And I think the level of connection throughout the Stone Heart album is amazing. I know every a new song came into the studio, I felt it.
Augie: Lauren did an epic job writing this time around. We all contributed, but she took it to a whole different level. A song has to come out of your head and your heart.
RS: The head and the heart, huh? What inspired you then, Lauren? There are some powerful songs here.
Lauren: Honestly? I went through some hard personal stuff during the middle of production, and I went down some dark roads for a little while. But instead of turning completely self-destructive—which we all know I’ve done before—I threw everything I was feeling into my lyrics. There are also plenty of fun songs, too, so don’t think the whole thing is one long litany of heartbreak.
RS: So that’s how it got its name, Lauren? As an autobiography of your heart?
Augie: Hey, I’m a Stone too!
Lauren: Actually, it came up organically. We were all taking one day, and someone said life would be easier if you just had a heart made of stone because then you don’t have to feel the hurt.
Ox: Right. But the key is that, yeah, if you’re made of stone, you don’t feel anything bad. But you don’t feel anything good either. And the more we talked, it just felt right.
DJ: And Fitz is encouraging us to do a DVD along with the tour. He said it was a great opportunity to talk about the why behind the songs, the stories behind them. So we tossed it around and thought a semi-unplugged storyteller format would work great.
Stevie: Not sure when we’ll fit that in with the tour starting in January.
Lauren: We’ll find a way to get it done. I think it is a great idea. Gives people more insight into our own thinking and the things that matter to us. I really like the idea of an intimate setting. I think it is a way for me, personally, to feel very close to our fans.
RS: Okay, one last question. What are you all like on tour? What is it like to spend a year on the road with The Kingmakers?
Stevie: Be ready for a wild ride!
DJ: He’s not kidding, but when we’re out on tour, I’m a dream—Lauren’s mental, though.
Lauren: A big pain in the ass is what you are. But I’ll admit, I can be a head case.
Augie: That’s because you’re a perfectionist. You want every show to be flawless for our fans. We all do, but you get a little, well, intense.
Lauren: It’s so important to do a good show. I’ve said it before—people are paying their hard-earned money to buy our music and see us in concert. When they walk out of that arena, I want them to think, “damn, that show was worth every penny I paid!”
Ox: And you never let us forget that. It’s easy to get caught up in everything else. But for the question? If you were on the road with us for a year, you’d see that we’re a family. Most days we love each other, some days we hate each other. At times we fight like cats and dogs. But we’ve never had a fight so bad that we haven’t been able to get past it.
