{"id":805447,"date":"2020-03-19T09:56:59","date_gmt":"2020-03-19T15:56:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/?p=968709"},"modified":"2020-03-19T09:56:59","modified_gmt":"2020-03-19T15:56:59","slug":"dennis-deyoung-styx-should-do-one-last-tour-for-the-fans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/music-news\/dennis-deyoung-styx-should-do-one-last-tour-for-the-fans\/","title":{"rendered":"Dennis DeYoung: \u2018Styx Should Do One Last Tour for the Fans\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/DennisDeyoung.jpg\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\"><\/div>\n<p>For the past 20 years, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/t\/styx\/\" id=\"auto-tag_styx\" data-tag=\"styx\">Styx<\/a> have put their fans in an impossible situation. Anyone who attends one of their shows not only misses out on seeing founder and ex-frontman Dennis DeYoung, but the current lineup doesn\u2019t even play many of the hit songs he wrote and sang, including \u201cBabe\u201d and \u201cThe Best of Times.\u201d They only recently gave in to years of pressure and added \u201cMr. Roboto\u201d into the set.<\/p>\n<p>DeYoung plays everything in the Styx catalog at his solo gigs, but he doesn\u2019t have the name or any other members of the group, even though his guitarist, August Zadra, does a stellar impression of Tommy Shaw. DeYoung is desperate for a reunion and is happy to look past all the battles of the past, but Shaw, along with guitarist J.Y. Young, refuses to even consider it. They also bash the singer in the press whenever his name comes up and insist that the band\u2019s 1983 concept record <em>Kilroy Was Here<\/em> and the supporting tour, which was all DeYoung\u2019s brainchild, irreparably damaged the band.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt cut our album sales in half because the male audience was absolutely alienated by \u2018Mr. Roboto,&#8217;\u201d Young <a href=\"https:\/\/www.azcentral.com\/story\/entertainment\/music\/2019\/01\/04\/sstyx-guitarist-james-jy-young-yes-they-do-mr-roboto-concert\/2468570002\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">told <em>Arizona Central<\/em> last year of the <em>Kilroy<\/em> era.<\/a> \u201cNot all of them but a large chunk. And our concert tickets were down from sold-out arenas in 1981.\u201d<\/p>\n<p> <!-- .l-article-content__pull--left --> <\/p>\n<p>The whole thing is a giant mess without any sign that the two parties will ever reconcile. DeYoung, however, is carrying on with his career and plans to release his new solo album, 2<em>6 East: Volume 1,<\/em> on April 10th. It\u2019s his first collection of new songs since 2007 and quite possibly his last one. We spoke to him about the album, his hopes for a Styx reunion tour, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, politics, and the eternal legacy of \u201cMr. Roboto.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>What made you decide it was time for a new record?<\/strong><br \/>I didn\u2019t decide that. What happened is that I did a live thing for AXS TV a few years ago and then they gave me the rights to it. Some guy in Mexico posted it about two years ago on YouTube and it\u2019s moving towards a million views. That\u2019s unbelievable for a live concert. We\u2019re talking about <em>me<\/em> now, not Sting. I thought when it was first posted, \u201cShould I leave it up? Yeah. I\u2019ll leave it up.\u201d I was stunned.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"embed-youtube\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" type=\"text\/html\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/XGi52CXRK_k?version=3&amp;enablejsapi=1&amp;origin=https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com&amp;rel=1&amp;fs=1&amp;autohide=2&amp;showsearch=0&amp;showinfo=1&amp;iv_load_policy=1&amp;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\">[embedded content]<\/iframe><\/span><\/p>\n<p>After that happened, I heard from Frontiers Records. Their president Serafino [Perugino] asked me to make a new studio record. This was about three years ago. I said, \u201cWhy?\u201d Can you imagine saying those words? But I really felt it. Even three years ago I said, \u201cHave you looked around and seen that rock music is dead?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Now I don\u2019t mean the music, but the format for which it can be delivered properly to people has been choked at the neck. There\u2019s plenty of classic-rock stations, but the two most dreaded words in the English language to a classic-rock fan are \u201cnew music.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I just said to him. \u201cLook, Serafino, it\u2019s a lot of work. I produce these records. I end up mixing them. I have to write songs.\u201d I didn\u2019t know if I had it in me to sit down and do all this work. But my neighbor and good buddy Jim Peterik is friends with Serafino. The two of them kept working on me. Jim said to me, \u201cDen, the world needs your music.\u201d I said to him, \u201cHave the world text me. I don\u2019t believe it.\u201d But he wore me down. We sat down to write songs and before I knew it, we had eight of them.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What was the idea behind the songs?<\/strong><br \/>It was a concept record from the very beginning. The concept was, \u201cDon\u2019t suck.\u201d I don\u2019t wanna go any further than that. You know when you saw Willie Mays and he\u2019s at the end of his career? I didn\u2019t want to be Willie. I\u2019ll stand on what I did; like it or hate it, there it is. Then I got talked into it.<\/p>\n<p>In the final analysis, I owe Jim Peterik a big thanks. I would have never, ever done a duet with Julian Lennon without him. I never would have written that song [\u201cTo the Good Old Days\u201d]. I never would have had that opportunity to basically wave goodbye and say, \u201cThanks for everything, you people. You have given me this wonderful life.\u201d So I feel good about it.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"embed-youtube\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" type=\"text\/html\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/9ezG38Iirqg?version=3&amp;enablejsapi=1&amp;origin=https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com&amp;rel=1&amp;fs=1&amp;autohide=2&amp;showsearch=0&amp;showinfo=1&amp;iv_load_policy=1&amp;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\">[embedded content]<\/iframe><\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>How did you get Julian on the album?<\/strong><br \/>I don\u2019t know if you know this, but he\u2019s a degenerate gambler and he was late on <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Vigorish\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">the vig<\/a>!<\/p>\n<p><strong>How did it actually happen?<\/strong><br \/>I wanted this album to be a chronology of my life, my feelings, everything. I wrote one about watching the Beatles in 1964. It was going to be a song about that moment when my life changed. It was really a musical homage to all things Beatles, though some people may call it a rip-off. I wrote it like Lennon and McCartney. Remember in the early days, they used to sing the whole song together?<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s what I did. I thought, \u201cMan. I need another singer.\u201d I started thinking about guys I knew and so I thought, \u201cJulian Lennon!\u201d How could I not want to be the Paul to his DNA? I composed an email and was about to send it with this song. I listened one more time and I thought to myself, \u201cHe can\u2019t sing this song. This is my story. And it sounds like a Beatle record.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I thought he\u2019d be criticized. I turned around and went into the other room, sat at the piano and I said, \u201cJulian Lennon and I singing together. What can we do?\u201d I wrote the song. I came back and did a little demo, just piano, and I sent it to him. Now, I don\u2019t know him. Never met him. And so I sent it, never expecting even a response. And he wrote back and said he\u2019d be honored to do it.<\/p>\n<p>I don\u2019t want to sound like a sentimental old fluff, but it meant so much to me to acknowledge, in the best way I could, the great life that his dad\u2019s band and my fans have given me.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"embed-youtube\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" type=\"text\/html\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/-1ZFCe5b5BI?version=3&amp;enablejsapi=1&amp;origin=https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com&amp;rel=1&amp;fs=1&amp;autohide=2&amp;showsearch=0&amp;showinfo=1&amp;iv_load_policy=1&amp;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\">[embedded content]<\/iframe><\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Where does the title of the album come from?<\/strong><br \/>The title of the album is <em>26 East.<\/em> The basement of that house is where John and Chuck Panozzo and myself formed the nucleus of Styx that would eventually, adding guitars players here and there, make a record in 1972. I just wanted to go full circle and bow and leave the stage because that\u2019s what I should do.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Tell me about \u201cAll Due Respect.\u201d You\u2019re clearly singing about cable news in that one.<\/strong><br \/>I say it right in the beginning: \u201cThey got the answers for me and you and royal blue.\u201d I\u2019m an equal-opportunity insulter. What\u2019s happened is that over the past 30 years we have slowly taken this ugly march that confuses entertainment with news. And so now what do we have? We have all these mooks realizing that if we put these polar opposites to represent the extremes in a room like the WWF, eyes and ears and clicks start happening.<\/p>\n<p>It becomes spectacle. It becomes entertainment. It\u2019s dangerous. It\u2019s killing democracy. It\u2019s going to ruin us because they just want to sell you beer under the guise of ruining the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Do you think the left and right are equally guilty here?<\/strong><br \/>No. The left is more guilty. You want to know why? Because they have all the outlets! Here\u2019s the thing that gripes me. I find myself to be, always have been, center right. Now, if you write that, they\u2019re going to hate me. What I mean by center right is I\u2019m right for two reasons. One, I believe tonight there are people that are willing and able to come into your house, kill you and take everything you have if you give them the opportunity. I believe that because as much as I like human beings, I\u2019m suspicious.<\/p>\n<p>Two, I would like to keep as much of the money that I make for my family, knowing full well that there is a common good and a common wealth that must be addressed, so tax me a good amount of money. I\u2019m not against it. But at some point, you know, I want them to act like parents.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Are you a Trump supporter?<\/strong><br \/>No! No! Are you kidding me? I voted for Obama. Imagine that! I listened to what he said. I\u2019ve voted for Republicans and Democrats all my life. I try to judge the man or the woman knowing full well that as a collective we\u2019re imbeciles. To look at these individuals and think they\u2019ve got the answer \u2014 they\u2019re morons just like you and me and making it up as they go along. Everybody, wake up! These people are not saviors. They are humans.<\/p>\n<p>In the last election, I couldn\u2019t vote. I just couldn\u2019t. I wanted to, but I couldn\u2019t vote for either of them for obvious reasons. Politically, I am the guy who is sick and tired of the extremes who have suddenly started running our country. I don\u2019t want these people. I want them to try and come to \u2026 dare I say middle ground? And I\u2019m pissed at these people like Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity. Both sides now claim that neither side has ever had a good idea ever, which we know is historically untrue.<\/p>\n<p>Look, liberals imagine the world the way it should be, not the way it\u2019s gonna be or the way it is. I applaud that. Without liberal thought, we\u2019re lost. I believe that. But when you ask me, it\u2019s not a level playing field. The left screams about Fox. Do you know whey they\u2019re so successful? The same way Neil Diamond and Barry Manilow were so successful. Not a lot of options for those people! It\u2019s not like me. I\u2019m competing against 10,000 bands just like me. When Fox came out, you can\u2019t beat them because there\u2019s only one.<\/p>\n<p><strong>To switch gears here, are you going to add any of these new songs into your live show?<\/strong><br \/>One I\u2019ve chosen to play immediately is \u201cEast of Midnight\u201d because that was written for Styx fans who are, shall we say, romantically trapped in a time period. And I don\u2019t blame them. That\u2019s why I wrote \u201cTo the Good Old Days.\u201d Those two songs lyrically are about the fans saying, \u201cPlease, Dennis. Take me back for two hours out of the chaos that I live in, the stress and pressures that I didn\u2019t feel when I first heard your music.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"embed-youtube\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" type=\"text\/html\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/aIuCdQtNBgg?version=3&amp;enablejsapi=1&amp;origin=https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com&amp;rel=1&amp;fs=1&amp;autohide=2&amp;showsearch=0&amp;showinfo=1&amp;iv_load_policy=1&amp;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\">[embedded content]<\/iframe><\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>You\u2019ve also been playing Styx\u2019s <em>Grand Illusion<\/em> album straight through at some of your shows<\/strong>.<br \/>That is what I would call the height of nostalgia. People need the ability to, rightly or wrongly, go back and feel the way they did when they were young. And I understand it completely. Listen, music is magic. Of all the arts, none of them come close to music. Music can ignite actual physical change in the body. It gives you goosebumps or raises the hair on the back of your neck. I could stare at the Mona Lisa for the rest of my life, that ain\u2019t happening to me.<\/p>\n<p>People come up to me and they thank me. Nobody thanks a 73-year-old for anything anymore. They come up and thank me for the music constantly and say what an impact I had on their lives. You know what I think? I was just trying to beat Queen and Foreigner. That\u2019s what I was trying to do.<\/p>\n<p><strong>It\u2019s interesting that when you go and see Styx, there are so many songs they just don\u2019t perform.<\/strong><br \/>That\u2019s because they\u2019re mine. They\u2019ve taken a stance. But since the last time we\u2019ve talked, they\u2019ve added \u201cRoboto.\u201d It\u2019s like going into a deli and the guy going like, \u201cNo, we\u2019re not giving you any corned beef.\u201d \u201cWhat?!? I\u2019m in here for the corned beef!<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"embed-youtube\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" type=\"text\/html\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ijXeEPo3lM4?version=3&amp;enablejsapi=1&amp;origin=https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com&amp;rel=1&amp;fs=1&amp;autohide=2&amp;showsearch=0&amp;showinfo=1&amp;iv_load_policy=1&amp;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\">[embedded content]<\/iframe><\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>They still bash that song, though. Aren\u2019t you tired of hearing that?<\/strong><br \/>They\u2019re doing that while they\u2019re playing it! Look, when J.Y. and Tommy and myself were the only ones left in the band, I got really sick. And I\u2019m still carrying the scars of that Influenza A I got. I still have light sensitivity. It doesn\u2019t go away.<\/p>\n<p>They wanted to assume control, the two of them. And need I say there\u2019s an increase of a third of the money as well? They wanted the power to do that and they did it. But you can\u2019t tell your fan base we got rid of this load over here because he was sick and couldn\u2019t go on tour when we wanted him to, so they came up with this story that they\u2019ve told for 20 years.<\/p>\n<p>They said in 1999 that the reason they had to replace me was because of something that happened in 1983. And we\u2019d just done two successful reunion tours in 1996 and 1997 and we were recording a new album! But if you tell a lie long enough and with enough enthusiasm, people are going to believe it. And I didn\u2019t respond right away because I was sick. They wanted to tell that story: \u201cIf you didn\u2019t like \u2018Mr. Roboto,\u2019 which apparently tens of millions of people disagree with, he\u2019s to blame.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s what they don\u2019t understand and I\u2019ll say this on the record: All boats rise with the tide. Styx fans were not in a contest to see which member they liked best. They liked the band. Most of them loved the variety.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"embed-youtube\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" type=\"text\/html\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/v_LC0HAu8Us?version=3&amp;enablejsapi=1&amp;origin=https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com&amp;rel=1&amp;fs=1&amp;autohide=2&amp;showsearch=0&amp;showinfo=1&amp;iv_load_policy=1&amp;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\">[embedded content]<\/iframe><\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>And for context here, when you brought Tommy into the band in 1975, you\u2019d already had a big hit with \u201cLady.\u201d He was joining a successful band.<\/strong><br \/>The reason that I\u2019m focusing on John, Chuck, and I is that we were the closest. We lived on the same street. We had the same ethnic background. That\u2019s what kept the band going. Over the years we had various guitar players. Every guitar player that joined us, joined a successful band.<\/p>\n<p>Every guitar player that joined the band, they joined because we had gigs. J.Y. joined in 1970 after his band had imploded. He was looking to make money. We had the gigs and he joined us. We were a cover band. It was only temporary in his mind. But then boom! He and I joined together and the Styx sound was forged.<\/p>\n<p>But it was only temporary for him. He wanted to run his own band. So every guitar player joined a successful band, including Tommy Shaw. He joined a band that had just recorded an album that would go on to sell 2 million copies, a band that had a gold album and a Top 10 single. But the core was always the Panozzos and me.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Do you get any money from their ticket sales these days?<\/strong><br \/>We had to come to an agreement. The reason I sued them \u2026 and they made this big thing, \u201cThey sued me!\u201d They took the name after they replaced me. The used it for a year and a half on the road and I never sued them or said a word to them. They never paid me a dime. And then I saw the <em>Behind the Music<\/em> segment where they started this campaign of going after my music and me. I cried. I cried and I called my lawyer.<\/p>\n<p>Throughout that year and a half I was hopeful they\u2019d just call me back in and say, \u201cYou\u2019re better now, let\u2019s go.\u201d But they were out to get me. The only reason I sued them was to get my share of the Styx name. I\u2019m part owner. I mean, am I starting to sound like a whiner?<\/p>\n<p><strong>No. This feels very justified to me.<\/strong><br \/>Here it is. I\u2019m a lucky guy, buddy. I still go out and play. They pay to see me. I\u2019m not even in the band I made famous. I don\u2019t want to sound like a whiner. I have moved on. I have probably said over and over again we should do one last tour for the fans. I don\u2019t have to have the name. Let\u2019s go do 80 or 100 shows. Let\u2019s put Moe, Larry, and Curly back on the stage.<\/p>\n<p><strong>When was the last time you spoke to Tommy or J.Y.?<\/strong><br \/>Twenty years.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"embed-youtube\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" type=\"text\/html\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/VMFVkGA1Qfw?version=3&amp;enablejsapi=1&amp;origin=https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com&amp;rel=1&amp;fs=1&amp;autohide=2&amp;showsearch=0&amp;showinfo=1&amp;iv_load_policy=1&amp;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\">[embedded content]<\/iframe><\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>If you were talking to them right now, what would you say?<\/strong><br \/>I\u2019d say, \u201cLet\u2019s get together and give the fans one more run at this thing and then I\u2019ll ride off into the sunset. You\u2019ll keep doing your Styx thing and using the name. I don\u2019t care. I want it one more time for our fans.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>And can I say this? I want to be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame because we deserve to be. I\u2019m sickened by the fact that we\u2019re not. I know that\u2019s going to look really bad in print. There was a time the Hall was controlled and run by a certain mentality, which I respect. I do. The people who raise the money and got it, those people have the right to put who they want in there. It\u2019s their deal.<\/p>\n<p>But in recent years, too many of our peers have gotten the nod. Is the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame the be all, end all? Of course, it isn\u2019t. But it\u2019s the only one. Would you like to be in the Rock Journalism Hall of Fame, if there was one, even if they said all your articles were poo-poo? We\u2019re human. We\u2019re looking for a pat on the head. We\u2019re asking for someone to tell us, \u201cNice job! You\u2019re not as bad as we thought.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Journey got in recently. Maybe it\u2019ll happen in a few years.<\/strong><br \/>I don\u2019t want to die first. Simply put, Rush inducted Yes. But there is no Rush without Yes. Led Zeppelin and Yes made a baby, it was Rush. I look at that and think, \u201cWow!\u201d Number one, I want the fans to see this thing that I gave my life to. It defines who I am outside of being a father and a husband.<\/p>\n<p><strong>I still don\u2019t understand why Tommy and J.Y. continue to bash you and then go onstage every night and play your music.<\/strong><br \/>Look, they\u2019ve decided to try and capture that percent of the audience that may have been turned off by anything that wasn\u2019t how they define the band now in retrospect. But I was there. \u201cRenegade\u201d was not a rock song. I made it into a rock song. Image is different than reality.<\/p>\n<p><strong>They speak about <em>Kilroy Was Here<\/em> like it was the worst thing that ever happened to mankind.<\/strong><br \/>Here\u2019s the thing. You were too young to see it. It was really my brainchild and I wanted to do three things. I wanted to get us on film. This was before MTV. I didn\u2019t know MTV was going to be invented, but I knew being on film was important. How did I know? The Beatles. And so I come up with this story because these fundamentalist dudes were burning records and the only reason Styx was in there because they are idiots. \u201cOh, it\u2019s the river in hell.\u201d They thought there were backwards satanic messages. I was actually on <em>Nightline<\/em> and <em>Donahue<\/em> talking about this stuff.<\/p>\n<p>I thought to myself, \u201cThe band that just gave you \u2018Babe\u2019 are satanists? This is dangerous shit.\u201d This is before the PMRC. I wrote a story about rock being being banned by a fundamentalist. He\u2019s really an entertainer. He\u2019s not a religious guy. He\u2019s just a big-mouthed charlatan who owns his own TV network. And he\u2019s a big bullshitter. That\u2019s the original story. And he gets rock banned because he says that everything bad happening in the country was because of this stuff.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"embed-youtube\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" type=\"text\/html\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/uc6f_2nPSX8?version=3&amp;enablejsapi=1&amp;origin=https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com&amp;rel=1&amp;fs=1&amp;autohide=2&amp;showsearch=0&amp;showinfo=1&amp;iv_load_policy=1&amp;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\">[embedded content]<\/iframe><\/span><\/p>\n<p>It was just a story. I thought to myself, \u201cLet\u2019s do something different. Do I have to go back to Madison Square Garden and stand on the stage and do songs?\u201d I wanted to push the envelope. And so I did it. Did I push too far? Maybe.<\/p>\n<p>The two overriding factors are that the First Amendment is due respect. Number two, watch out. \u201cThe problem is plain to see\/Too much technology\/Machines to save our lives\/Machines dehumanize.\u201d That\u2019s what I was trying to say about these Japanese robots because Japan ruled the world in technology in 1981 and 1982 when I was writing it. I was saying, \u201cWe have to make a bargain with these machines creating.\u201d I didn\u2019t know there was going to be the internet. I didn\u2019t know there was going to be AI.<\/p>\n<p>I just looked around at my working-class buddies who went to factories to make money. You see what happened. It decimated those people I loved and grew up with. It turned them into opioid users, alcoholics, and victims of suicide because the machines took their place and they couldn\u2019t earn the money and dignity that people need to have a decent life. That\u2019s what I believed. It wasn\u2019t like, \u201cOh, Dennis. He\u2019s so precious.\u201d I just knew machines could replace human beings.<\/p>\n<p><strong>To wrap up, are you thinking yet about a release date for Volume 2 of your new record?<\/strong><br \/>No. I don\u2019t really care. The songs are recorded and I\u2019m really happy people are enjoying them. I didn\u2019t do this for people to hate what I\u2019m doing. I didn\u2019t do it so people could say, \u201cDennis DeYoung\u2019s music, he\u2019s a poo-poo face.\u201d Quite the opposite.<\/p>\n<p>Over my life, I\u2019ve had people look at Styx songs and you\u2019d think we invented the coronavirus. It\u2019s insane because they had a point of view that was different than what we did musically. This is music, kids. Take a breath!<\/p>\n<p>As far as the second ones goes, the songs are mostly recorded. After I talk to you and everyone and see what they think, I\u2019ll probably put a song or two new on it. At this point in my life, I\u2019m not here to reinvent the wheel. I\u2019m here to be liked. Should I be ashamed of it? I\u2019m not.<\/p>\n<div class=\"pmc-contextual-player\">\n<h3> Popular on Rolling Stone <\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/music\/music-news\/dennis-deyoung-interview-styx-interview-solo-album-mr-roboto-968709\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">via:: Rolling Stone<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>For the past 20 years, Styx have put their fans in an impossible situation. Anyone who attends one of their shows not only misses out on seeing founder and ex-frontman Dennis DeYoung, but the current lineup doesn\u2019t even play many of the hit songs he wrote and sang, including \u201cBabe\u201d and \u201cThe Best of Times.\u201d [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[98],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-805447","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-music-news"},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-07-18 22:11:32","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSMT The Mountain","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/805447","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=805447"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/805447\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=805447"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=805447"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=805447"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}