Additional personnel: Charlie Bisharat, Gerry Hilera, Peter Kent (violin); Evan Wilson, Matt Funes (viola); Suzie Katayama (cello); Brendan O'Brien (piano, keyboards, percussion, background vocals); Barrett Martin (bass marimba).

"Down" was nominated for the 2001 Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance.

It would be tempting to scour No. 4, Scott Weiland's reunion with Stone Temple Pilots, for insights into his troubles, yet the group consciously avoids this throughout the album. That's for the best, since it's their hardest effort since their debut, Core. "Down" and "Heaven & Hot Rods" provide a powerful, brutal opening for No. 4 -- it's as if STP decided to compete directly with the new generation of alt-metal bands who prize aggression over hooks or riffs. With these two songs, the band's attack is as vicious as that of the new generation, but they retain their gift for gargantuan hooks. Much of the album hits pretty hard -- most explicitly on "No Way Out," "Sex & Violence," and "MC5," -- and even the ballads and neo-psychedelic pop have none of the swirling production that distinguished Tiny Music. That sense of adventure is missed, because even if the album finds STP returning to the muscular hard rock that made them, they always sounded better when they concentrated on melodicism. No. 4's most effective moments have a variety of sonic textures and color -- "Pruno" tempers its giant riffs with spacy verses; "Church on Tuesday" is a great pop tune, as are the trippy "Sour Girl" and "I Got You"; and the psychedelic "Glide" and closing ballad, "Atlanta," have a sense of majesty. These songs anchor the heavier moments, instead of the other way around, and it all plays well together. As a matter of fact, No. 4 is as tight as Tiny Music. Even if it isn't as grandiose or sonically compelling as that effort, it's a record that consolidates all their strengths. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

After dabbling in Beatlesque psychedelia on 1996's TINY MUSIC (SONGS FROM THE VATICAN GIFT SHOP, Stone Temple Pilots took a more straightforward rock approach with 1999's NO. 4. During the three years between albums, Scott Weiland released a solo album amidst a sea of personal problems, while the rest of Stone Temple Pilots joined forces with Ten Inch Men vocalist Dave Coutts for the one-off side project Talk Show. The time apart helped contribute to an STP record with much darker overtones than the sunnier TINY MUSIC.

Weiland's lyrics in particular allude to many of his past problems. The grinding "Pruno" tracks his falling into a downward spiral while the pounding guitars and ambient breaks of "No Way Out" help provide a background for lyrics that address his feelings of helplessness. In keeping up with the harder sounds of Korn and Limp Bizkit that dominated the pop charts in the late '90s, guitarist Dean DeLeo churns out heavy riffs throughout the Jurassic stomp of "Down" and "Heaven & Hot Rods." Balancing out these pounding tracks is more melodic fare, including the chiming "Glide" (complete with zither and fuzz bass), the acoustic "I Got You," and the lushly wistful "Atlanta."