Jason Newsted's short-lived metal band Newsted is making a brief comeback live on May 20 at Revolution Live in Fort Lauderdale, FL. In an interview with Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk, Jason explained that the reunion stemmed from playing a show with The Chophouse Band featuring two additional members of Newsted outside himself.
"Kind of by happenstance and how we keep chasing it for fun. That's always been our thing — playing with whoever, whenever," said Jason as transcribed by Blabbermouth.
"About a year ago at this time, The Chophouse Band played at the Maltz Theatre in Jupiter, Florida, and Jesus Mendez, the drummer Newsted, and Jessie Farnsworth, the guitarist, guested at the end of that program. And they came over to HQ, and we jammed a bit on the side. And I think that seed got replanted. And so I had to finish with The Chophouse Band album, so I did that. And then [I] got these guys back together a couple of weeks ago again.
"And it was an epiphanous kind of trip — everybody smiling at each other and happy that we're still alive and everything. So it's really mostly for feeling alive and marking the tenth anniversary [of the formation of the band] and being brothers again."
Jason then clarified that the Newsted show is only a one-off to mark a decade of the band's only album, their 2013 debut Heavy Metal Music. As for the future of Newsted, Jason simply states that you never know what might happen after that show, and that he's open to more if everything feels good.
"I've lived in Florida for 25 years. I've only ever done the acoustic stuff as any kind of public performance… So this is the first time that I reached out to anybody in the circles of people that have come to the art shows and stuff like that. And I said, 'Where's a cool place to play?' And they pointed me to Revolution [Live]. And we checked it out.
"And I talked to some folks there, and they said, 'By all means, dude, bring it down here.' And I talked to Jesus and Jessie, and I've been auditioning guitar players… We found a guy from Caracas, Venezuela. Now he's up in West Palm for a little while — Humberto Perez — and he's a good player. [Former Newsted guitarist] Mike Mushok can't be in it 'cause Staind's got their plate full right now and he's doing his thing.
"It is a one-off thing for fun to mark the time, to mark the date, to show that we're alive, and whoever is lucky enough to be there, that is the deal right there.
"I like the idea of a possible reissue or something of the Heavy Metal Music LP, original LP, for the ten-year thing, possibly. So if these kind of seeds are planted and the reaction that we get on that night and if I get my engine all turned up again, you never know what can happen. But I don't wanna say never on any of it. I really have been enjoying it."
Whether or not Newsted is the upcoming metal band Jason has been working on remains to be seen, but it doesn't seem like it is.
