Mike Mushok
Staind
Staind guitarist Mike Mushok doesn’t take anything for granted. "We’ve seen too many bands come and go to ever feel like we have a sense of security," said Mushok. "You look at any band that’s had any kind of longevity, and you have to have the music. Whether you’re playing a heavy song or not, there has to be a catchy riff there. Once that riff is there, Aaron [Lewis, Staind’s vocalist], does a great job of finding a really nice melody to go over it."
Mushok knows a thing or two about crafting hit songs. Staind’s decade–long career is marked by more than 13 million in album sales worldwide, and five #1 singles spanning three different radio formats, including the monster hits, "Outside," and "It’s Been Awhile." The Atlantic Records recording group’s latest album, The Illusion of Progress, marks the band’s fourth consecutive studio album to debut in the top 3 on the Billboard 200, and features the #1 alternative rock song, "Believe." Mushok, along with bandmates Aaron Lewis, Jon Wysocki, and Johnny April, recorded the bulk of the album at Lewis’s home studio, a converted barn in Western Massachusetts with producer Johnny K (3 Doors Down, Disturbed, Avenged Sevenfold). The album marks the first one in which Mushok solos, as well as the first where he wrote and recorded on a standard guitar, rather than his customary baritone.
All sales accolades and radio hits aside, Mushok believes the true reward is seeing Staind’s music affect the lives of their fans. "For me, that was one of the big adjustments we really had to make early on. One day you’re in Springfield, MA, writing some tunes, and the next thing you know those same tunes are really affecting people. That’s really an eye opener; it’s really a powerful thing."
