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Stone Temple Pilots were able to turn alternative rock into stadium rock; naturally, they became the most critically despised band of their era. Accused by many critics of being nothing more than ripoff artists who pilfered from Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, and Alice in Chains, the bandmates nevertheless became major stars in 1993. And the influence of those bands was apparent in their music, although Stone Temple Pilots did manage to change things around a bit. STP were more concerned with tight song structure and riffs than punk rage. Their closest antecedents were not the Sex Pistols or Hüsker Dü; instead the band resembled arena rock acts from the '70s -- they made popular hard rock that sounded good on the radio and in concert. No matter what the critics said, Stone Temple Pilots had undeniably catchy riffs and production; there's a reason why over three million people bought their debut album, Core, and why their second album, Purple, shot to number one when it was released. Followin...