California's Queens of the Stone Age emerged from the rubble of the sudden split of seminal stoner rock band Kyuss in 1995, featuring an all-star lineup of sorts with Kyuss' guitarist Josh Homme joined by former members of Soundgarden, Monster Magnet and Screaming Trees. The lineup didn't last long, and the band soon settled on personnel selected from the pages of Kyuss' history, with Josh leading the charge as frontman on guitar and vocals (although they've consistently featured additional guitarists and vocalists over the years) for their debut. Over the years, they've gone through numerous lineups, including a tour of duty by someone you'll see mentioned around this blog repeatedly, drummer Dave Grohl, and minor contributions by such legends as Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top fame, Rob Halford from Judas Priest and Elton John who... well, is Elton John. Queens of the Stone Age has garnered a great deal of commercial and critical success in their illustrious 17-year history, thanks largely to their genre-bending sound which features clear alternative, metal, punk, prog and psychedelic influences and appeals to a broad audience. It doesn't hurt that they do it with convincing confidence and execution.
Queens' second album, Rated R, is my favorite of their work to date, although I'm not as well-versed in their later stuff as I should be. It's a bold progression from the driving desert music of their debut (and Kyuss before them), adding a broader variety of styles and instruments while maintaining (or perhaps expanding on) the humor, driving rock feel and tripped out vibe: it's just so interesting and weird throughout. To me, the album feels like a single, solid work, but I'm including "The Lost Art of Keeping a Secret", which stands on its own as a really enjoyable and interesting, if succinct, little song. From the tidy drum intro to the subdued verse-section guitar riff with chord progression punctuated by vibraphone, into the alt-rock chorus (backed by bari sax), through the awesomely offbeat backing vocals, this is a fun and definitive tune, start to finish. Enjoy!
No comments:
Post a Comment