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Give The Mule What He Wants
Regular readers of this blog (assuming there are any) know that my admiration for the music of Josh Homme is a matter of longstanding public record. I’ve been a fan of the man since his days as guitarist for the mighty Kyuss. Since then, I’ve picked up every Queens of the Stone Age album, as well as all of his weird side projects.
Still, yesterday’s release of the fifth QOTSA album, Era Vulgaris, caught me by surprise. Maybe it’s because their last album, 2005’s Lullabies to Paralyze, while good, didn’t blow me away like previous releases. In the back of my mind, I had a nagging doubt that the band had peaked and was about to enter the downside of their career, so I wasn’t breathlessly counting down the minutes until a new release.
However, I am pleased to report that reports of the band’s creative demise were greatly exaggerated. Era Vulgaris rocks both harder and weirder than its predecessor. The first single, “Sick Sick Sick,” is a notable improvement over “Little Sister,” Lullabies’ rather pedestrian lead single. Standout tracks like “I’m Designer,” “3’s & 7’s,” and “Battery Acid” revel in QOTSA’s trademark mix of pummeling guitars and Homme’s crooning vocals. And, as always, there’s the requisite oddball track: this time around it’s “Make It Wit Chu,” an almost bluesy ode to nookie that reminds me, bizarrely enough, of Prince.
Will this end up as my favorite album of the year? It’s too early to tell, but after only one day, it’s already definitely on the short list of contenders.
Other new stuff in heavy rotation:
Machine Head, The Blackening
Pelican, City of Echoes
Dååth, The Hinderers
The Fucking Champs, VI
Dungen, Tio Bitar
Wilco, Sky Blue Sky
Son Volt, The Search
The Fratellis, Costello Music
Battles, Mirrored
