From the ashes of Kyuss comes the new band Queens of the Stone
Age,featuring former Kyuss founder/guitarist Josh Homme, drummer
Alfredo Hernandez and bassist Nick Oliveri. Hailing from Palm
Desert, CA, Kyuss released four albums that continue to influence
bands who have fallen underthe categorization of "stoner rock" (Fu
Manchu, Sleep, Monster Magnet) before disbanding in 1995. Kyuss,
particularly Homme, witnessed a growth from a desert band to
cult-status over the years; at their last show in1995, fans solicited
cries of "Josh is God!" to the then 22 year-old guitarist and main
songwriter.
A band's band, Kyuss toured with suchartists as Metallica, Ween,
Soundgarden, White Zombie, Masters of Reality and Faith No More,
ultimately reaching a legendary level internationally after their
demise.
After Kyuss disbanded, Homme relocated to Seattle and ended up
touring with the Screaming Trees for two years. He also embarked on
producing a series of ongoing albums titled Desert Sessions for the
Man's Ruin label, featuring collaborative works by a revolving cast of
musicians like Ben Shepherd and John McBain (Man's Ruin also
released a Kyuss/Queens of the Stone Age split EP in December of
1997). He rejoined with Hernandez, who played drums on Kyuss' last
LP, and the two recorded what is now the debut album, Queens ofthe
Stone Age. Self described as an extremely heavy band, with bold
hooksand mature melodies, the current incarnation of Queens was
formed in early1998 when Homme and Hernandez asked Oliveri to
join them; Oliveri had originally played in Kyuss on the first two
albums, leaving after Blues Fo rthe Red Sun to enjoy a long stint with
The Dwarves as "Rex Everything."
For Homme, the transition from Kyuss to Queens was a natural
progression."We've just taken Kyuss songs and made them more
finite, with more of atrance-like feel." Homme assures Kyuss fans
that although there is growth and some departure with the new
Queens record, the difference is not monumental. "We're definitely
taking a step away from Kyuss a bit, and have more focused songs
on this record, but we're still driving in the same direction." Homme
likens the difference between the last Kyuss record (...And the
Circus Leaves Town) and the new Queens record, to Iggy Pop's Lust
For Life and The Idiot recordings. Indeed, the band's current Iggy Pop
and Can influences are evidenced in the moresparse, trance-like
grooves of Queen's sound.
Co-produced by Homme and Joe Barresi (Hole, Kyuss, Fu Manchu,
Weezer) theself-titled debut is a brilliant collection of solid low-end
rumble, melodichooks, intelligent lyrics and smart arrangements for
an overall more mature and clean sound. Creating a new aspect for
the band is Homme's debut as leadsinger. With smooth, understated
yet commanding vocals, one may be surprisedthis is his debut as a
vocalist. "Kyuss, as with Queens, was the sum of allparts." Homme
explains. "My part was to concentrate on guitar, and John's(Garcia,
former Kyuss singer) was to sing. It was a very minimalist approach,
which we still apply to our music and our lives today."To be sure,
Queens is a full band effort, with Hernandez's solid and wicked
drumming and Oliveri's low-end bass heaviness perfectly rounding out
standout selections like the melodic, Stooges-esque, "If Only," the
slow, sexy heaviness of "Walkin' on the Sidewalks," the minimalistic,
robotic quality of the hooky, "You Would Know," the driving "Regular
John" and the sparse "I Was A Teenage Hand Model." As with the
sound of Queens, the band members apply their fundamental
musical approach to life as well - life is good as long as they can
play music and have fun.
The self-titled debut, Queens ofthe Stone Age, was released on
Loosegroove Records October 6, 1998
