It's hard to believe it has been almost thirteen years since Queens Of The Stone Age released its self-titled debut album, but indeed it has. The band has finally cemented plans to reissue the classic record, and have hit the road to play it in its entirety. While I wasn't sure if it could still stand on its own after all these years, I decided to go and hear it for myself. I am happy to report that the songs still sound great.
Opening the show was the Dough Rollers, a young four-piece band out of New York. At first I thought it was an odd choice but, as they rolled through their thirty-minute dirty Delta Blues-influenced set, it seemed to make perfect sense. The band was filled with raucous, guitar-driven showmanship, and the sold-out crowd seemed to love it. I was very impressed, and look forward to seeing this band again soon.
Following a brief intermission, Josh Homme and company hit the stage and immediately launched into “Regular John” (the first track from their self-titled record) and, as they ripped through stellar versions of every track from the record (including “Walkin' On The Sidewalks,” “Mexicola,” and “I Was A Teenage Hand Model”), I noticed something about the band that I had never seen before: they really seemed to be enjoying themselves. Although Mr. Homme was clearly the focal point, Queens really operated as a unit and the entire show seemed like an almost effortless affair. Bassist Michael Shuman and drummer Joey Castillo kept the rhythm tight and heavy while guitarist Troy Van Leeuwen traded riffs with Homme quite nicely.
After wrapping up their set with "You Can't Quit Me Baby,” Queens returned for two encores both of which included songs like “Burn The Witch,” “Go With The Flow,” and the perennial favorite, “Little Sister.” All in all, it was a great show from the band, and I left hoping that there is some new music in their future soon.
Artist:
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Photos:
Raymond Ahner's photo essay of Queens Of The Stone Age's show at Fox Theater on April 11, 2011. Includes shots of the Dough Rollers.
Album:
The Queens Of The Stone Age reissue comes out on May 17, 2011 via Rekords Rekords/Domino. Pre-order it here on Amazon .
