Stone Temple Pilots return with new frontman

Stone Temple Pilots have revealed who will act as the band's frontman after the deaths of Scott Weiland and Chester Bennington.

Jeff Gutt has been chosen in an audition of 15,000 applicants to replace Linkin Park's Bennington, who took over from their original frontman Weiland in 2013.

STP, made up of brothers Robert and Dean DeLeo and drummer Eric Kretz, chose the 41-year-old singer from Michigan this week.

"We wanted someone who would not only do our earlier songs justice, but would also write new songs and carve out a different path forward with us," they said.

"It took some time, but we found our guy."

Weiland and the three remaining members formed the group in 1989 and were California's major grunge band during the early 90s.

The three members eventually fired Weiland in 2013 and Bennington took over.

Two years later, Bennington left to focus on Linkin Park and Weiland died of a drug overdose.

Earlier this year, Bennington hanged himself at his home in California .

Gutt told Rolling Stone that he considered Weiland a model since first hearing the band's debut album.

"Walking in on that first day, it was crazy," he told the magazine.

"I mean, you have dreams about things like this."

According to a press release, their new song Meadow will feature on the band's new album, due out in spring 2018.