Them Crooked Vultures | |
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Background information | |
Origin | Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
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Website | themcrookedvultures |
Them Crooked Vultures is an American rock supergroup formed in Los Angeles in 2009 with American musician Josh Homme on lead vocals and guitar, English musician John Paul Jones on bass and keyboards, and American musician Dave Grohl on drums and backing vocals. Chilean-American guitarist Alain Johannes also joins the group during live performances.
The band began recording in February 2009, and performed its first gig in Chicago on August 9, 2009, followed by a European debut on August 19. On October 1, the group embarked on the worldwide (excluding Africa, South America, and most Asia) Deserve the Future Tour with dates going into 2010. The band's first single "New Fang" was released in October 2009, followed by its self-titled debut album the following month, which debuted at No. 12 on the Billboard 200. The group won the 2011 Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance for "New Fang".
After going on hiatus in 2010, each member of the band has expressed interest in reuniting to record a new album, with conflicting schedules being cited as the primary delay of a full-scale reunion. In September 2022, Them Crooked Vultures reunited for a pair of performances at both London's Wembley Stadium and the Los Angeles Kia Forum, both as part of tribute shows in honour of Foo Fighters' late drummer Taylor Hawkins. In both shows, the group were also joined by Greg Kurstin on keyboards.
A collaboration between Josh Homme, John Paul Jones, and Dave Grohl was first publicly mentioned by Grohl in a 2005 interview with Mojo , in which he declared "The next project that I'm trying to initiate involves me on drums, Josh Homme on guitar, and John Paul Jones playing bass." In a 2019 post on his Facebook page, Jimmy Page suggested that he could have been part of the band as well, based on conversations he had with Grohl. [1] Of the nascent project, Homme's ex-wife Brody Dalle commented in July 2009 that "I'm not at liberty to talk about it [...] but I think [the project] is pretty amazing. Just beats and sounds like you've never heard before." [2] After finding that the name Caligula was already taken, the members arbitrarily chose "Them Crooked Vultures" as a name with no significance. [3]
British music magazine NME reported in July 2009 that the trio had begun recording in Los Angeles. [4] The band performed its first show at the Metro, Chicago on August 9, 2009, at midnight. [5] [6] The band played all original material during its 80-minute set, debuting such songs as opener "Elephants", "Scumbag Blues", "Caligulove" and closing song "No One Loves Me & Neither Do I". [7] The band made its European debut on August 19 with a performance at Melkweg in the Netherlands, the same day on which a short video clip of studio footage was uploaded by the band, featuring the song "No One Loves Me & Neither Do I".
With subsequent festival performances in Europe at Pukkelpop and Lowlands, the band first performed in the United Kingdom at London's Brixton Academy supporting English alternative rock band Arctic Monkeys on August 26. [8] The trio subsequently performed at the Reading and Leeds Festivals on August 28 and 29, playing the Leeds Festival first then moving onto Reading the next day. [9]
Them Crooked Vultures was released by Interscope Records in North America, and Sony Music internationally. [10] On October 21, radio personality Alan Cross announced the lead single for Them Crooked Vultures debut album to be "New Fang" which premiered on October 26. The single was released on November 2 worldwide as a free download. [11] Icon vs. Icon subsequently announced that the album would be released on November 17, 2009. [12] On November 3, the band gave a free copy of "Mind Eraser (No Chaser)" to fans that had bought tickets to a live performance and offered it on iTunes as a free download. On November 9, Them Crooked Vultures started streaming their full album on their website, and also through a link to their mailing list with the title "Fuck Patience, Let's Dance."
On September 1, the band announced two 2009 tours of North America and the United Kingdom, in October and December respectively. [13] The 2009 tour was titled Deserve the Future Tour and the UK leg sold out in just under 12 minutes, making it one of the quickest sold tours in the UK — without the band even officially releasing a song to date. On September 21, the band also announced three Germany dates for December 2009.
On November 17, 2009, the single "New Fang" was released as a downloadable song for Rock Band 2. On October 26, 2010, the song titled "Dead End Friends" was included as an on-disc track for the game Rock Band 3.
On January 25, 2010, it was confirmed that the band would perform at the Download Festival 2010.
On February 6, 2010, the band performed the songs "Mind Eraser, No Chaser" (now the second single) and "New Fang" as musical guests on Saturday Night Live . Dave Grohl also appeared in a sketch near the end of the show. A week later, the band appeared on the PBS show Austin City Limits broadcast February 13, 2010. The band appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on April 13–14, 2010.
The band also confirmed a series of festival appearances for 2010, including the Coachella Music Festival on April 16, Roskilde Festival, [14] the Peace & Love Festival in Borlange, Sweden on July 1, 2010, [15] and Hove Festival in Arendal, Norway on June 30, 2010. [16] The band closed the show on the Alternastage at Rock Am Ring, Nürburg, Germany, playing after midnight on June 7, 2010. [17]
In March, it was announced that the group were to play at The Royal Albert Hall in aid of The Teenage Cancer Trust [18] with support coming from Little Fish. [19] [20]
On April 20, 2010, Them Crooked Vultures released a digital 45 onto iTunes featuring the songs "Mind Eraser, No Chaser" and the song "Hwy 1" on the A side. "Hwy 1" wasn't featured on the band's self-titled album but was usually played live. For those reasons, the version of "Hwy 1" featured was recorded live in Sydney, Australia. The B-side featured "Vulture Speak", an interview with the band members.
Grohl said in an interview that they are working on a second album that will be "more powerful than the first one". [21] John Paul Jones also stated in an interview while touring in New Zealand that they will be recording a new album. When asked about the futures of Grohl and Homme's bands Jones said that they will get their frontmen back "eventually". [22] A video was uploaded to the band's official YouTube channel entitled 'Fresh Pots' which NME claimed was filmed during recording for their follow-up album. [23] Grohl clarified after the video's release that it was filmed a year prior, during the self-titled album's recording sessions. [24]
On November 12, 2010, in an interview with BBC 6 Music, John Paul Jones has confirmed that the band is ready to resume working on putting together new material for a fresh release, and will go into the studio very soon. Jones has also stated that they are tentatively a year or so away from completing the CD, hinting on a possible late 2011 release. [25]
In November 2011, touring member Alain Johannes noted that there are definitely plans to record a second studio album, stating: "The way that the cycles happen, you know, Dave jumped right into Foos, and then Josh toured more than a solid year with Queens for the self-titled album. So I expect at some point after the Queens cycle that there will be [another album]." [26]
In December 2012, when asked about the band's future, Dave Grohl stated: "We've talked about it, I know that someday we'll get back together and do stuff, because we love playing with each other." [27] Grohl once again mentioned a possible reunion in an interview with Zane Lowe on Apple Music's Beats 1 radio station in June 2017. [28] [29]
In an interview with The Guardian in August 2019, Grohl stated: "It's still hard to accept that I got to play in a band with [John Paul Jones]. Technically we're still a band. [...] We practice once every decade, and we're coming up on another decade aren't we? I don't have any official news but there's always something cooking." [30] In a further interview with NME , Grohl elaborated: "We've talked. We've got together. I never say never. If you want me to be your drummer, we either have to be best fucking friends or you have to be better than Josh Homme and John Paul Jones. If those guys call and say that it's time to go, then I'm gonna go because that's the band. That's the band that I want to be the drummer of forever. Josh and I talk about it all the time. I know that John would love to as well. It's also like herding cats. So, we'll see." [31]
In September 2022, the band reunited for two tribute shows dedicated to late Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins. At Wembley Stadium, the group performed "Gunman" as well as covers of Elton John's "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" and Queens of the Stone Age's "Long Slow Goodbye". At the KIA Forum show, they reprised the same set, albeit with "Dead End Friends" played instead of "Gunman". During both performances, the group was also joined by Greg Kurstin on keyboards and Alain Johannes on guitar.
Them Crooked Vultures has been described as hard rock [32] [33] and alternative rock. [34] According to Louder Sound, "Them Crooked Vultures is loaded with ample elements of sludge metal, noise rock, grunge, stoner rock, and a generous dash of classic psychedelic rock sensibilities." [35]
Official members
Touring members
Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | Certifications | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
US [36] | AUS [37] | BEL [37] | CAN [38] | FRA [39] | GER [40] | IRE [41] | NZ [37] | NOR [42] | UK [43] | |||
Them Crooked Vultures |
| 12 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 38 | 13 | 16 | 2 | 5 | 13 |
Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
US Bub. [48] | US Alt. [49] | US Rock [49] | AUS [50] | BEL (FL) [51] | CAN [49] | CAN Rock [52] | MEX [48] | UK [43] | UK Rock [53] | ||||
"New Fang" | 2009 | 24 | 10 | 14 | 70 | 69 | 39 | 1 | 15 | 156 | 10 | Them Crooked Vultures | |
"Mind Eraser, No Chaser" | — | 39 | — | — | — | — | 33 | — | — [upper-alpha 1] | 23 | |||
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. |
The Grammy Awards are awarded annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. [55]
Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
---|---|---|---|
2011 | "New Fang" | Best Hard Rock Performance | Won |
David Eric Grohl is an American musician. He founded the rock band Foo Fighters, of which he is the lead singer, guitarist, and principal songwriter. From 1990 to 1994, he was the drummer of the grunge band Nirvana.
John Paul Jones, is an English musician, songwriter, and record producer who was the bassist and keyboardist for the rock band Led Zeppelin. Prior to forming the band with Jimmy Page in 1968, he was a session musician and arranger. After the death of drummer John Bonham in 1980, Led Zeppelin disbanded, and Jones developed a solo career. He has collaborated with musicians across a variety of genres, including the supergroup Them Crooked Vultures with Dave Grohl, Josh Homme, and Alain Johannes. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995 as a member of Led Zeppelin.
Queens of the Stone Age is an American rock band formed in 1996 in Seattle, Washington. The band was founded by vocalist and guitarist Josh Homme, who has been the only constant member throughout multiple lineup changes. Since 2013, the lineup has consisted of Homme alongside Troy Van Leeuwen, Michael Shuman, Dean Fertita, and Jon Theodore. The band also has a large pool of contributors and collaborators. Queens of the Stone Age are known for their blues, Krautrock and electronica-influenced style of riff-oriented and rhythmic hard rock music, coupled with Homme's distinct falsetto vocals and unorthodox guitar scales.
Songs for the Deaf is the third studio album by the American rock band Queens of the Stone Age, released on August 27, 2002, by Interscope Records. It features guest musicians including Dave Grohl on drums, and was the last Queens of the Stone Age album to feature Nick Oliveri on bass. Songs for the Deaf is a loose concept album, taking the listener on a drive through the California desert from Los Angeles to Joshua Tree, tuning into radio stations from towns along the way such as Banning and Chino Hills.
Oliver Taylor Hawkins was an American musician who was best known as the drummer and a vocalist of the rock band Foo Fighters, sharing vocals with Dave Grohl. Joining the band in 1997, Hawkins quickly became one of the group's most recognizable faces. He remained the band’s drummer for over 25 years until his sudden death in 2022. Hawkins recorded eight studio albums with Foo Fighters between 1999 and 2021. Before joining the band, he was a touring drummer for Sass Jordan and Alanis Morissette, as well as the drummer of the progressive experimental band Sylvia.
Foo Fighters is an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1994. Founded as a one-man project by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl, the lineup now consists of Grohl, Nate Mendel (bass), Chris Shiflett and Pat Smear (guitars), Rami Jaffee (keyboards), and Josh Freese (drums). Drummers William Goldsmith and Taylor Hawkins, along with guitarist Franz Stahl, are former members of the band.
Joshua Michael Homme is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known as the founder and only continuous member of the rock band Queens of the Stone Age, which he formed in 1996. Homme is the band's primary songwriter and mainly sings lead vocals and plays guitar. He also plays drums in the rock band Eagles of Death Metal, which he co-founded in 1998.
The Desert Sessions are a musical collective series, founded by Josh Homme in 1997. Artists such as Brant Bjork, PJ Harvey, Twiggy Ramirez, Dave Catching, Nick Oliveri, Mark Lanegan, John McBain, Ben Shepherd, Josh Freese, Chris Goss, Alain Johannes, Troy Van Leeuwen, Dean Ween, Les Claypool and many others from the Palm Desert Scene have contributed as songwriters and musicians.
In Your Honor is the fifth studio album by American rock band Foo Fighters, released on June 14, 2005, through Roswell and RCA Records. It is a double album, with the first disc containing heavy rock songs and the second containing mellower acoustic songs. Frontman Dave Grohl decided to do a diverse blend of songs, as he felt that after ten years of existence, the band had to break new ground with their music. The album was recorded at a newly built studio in Northridge, Los Angeles, and features guests such as John Paul Jones, Norah Jones, and Josh Homme. Its lyrics deal with both resonating and introspective themes, with a major influence from Grohl's involvement on the campaign trail with John Kerry during the 2004 presidential election. It was the first album to feature keyboardist Rami Jaffee, although he would not join the band as full-time member until 2017.
"No One Knows" is a song by American rock band Queens of the Stone Age written by band members Josh Homme and Mark Lanegan. It was the first single and second track from their third album, Songs for the Deaf, and was released on November 26, 2002. "No One Knows" was a chart success, becoming the band's first single to chart on the Billboard Hot 100 and their only single to top the US Alternative charts. The song was also critically acclaimed, receiving a nomination for Best Hard Rock Performance at the 2003 Grammy Awards.
Alain Johannes Mociulski is a Chilean-American multi-instrumentalist and vocalist, whose primary instruments are guitar and bass. He is a founding member of several bands, including the alternative rock group Eleven, and has been involved with acts such as hard rock band Queens of the Stone Age, Them Crooked Vultures, PJ Harvey, Chris Cornell, Arctic Monkeys, Mark Lanegan and The Desert Sessions, both as a musician and as a producer.
Dave Grohl is an American singer, songwriter, and musician whose discography consists of 16 studio albums, six live albums, eight compilation albums, six EPs, and four soundtracks, and also includes his other collaborations and work as a studio musician with 26 additional artists. A large portion of his releases have come as the drummer of Nirvana (1990–1994) and as the frontman of Foo Fighters (1995–present).
Josh Homme is an American rock musician who has released 18 studio albums and collaborated with over 25 different artists. He started playing guitar in the 1980s and formed a band with Palm Desert, California schoolmates John Garcia and Brant Bjork, initially under the name Katzenjammer, then Sons of Kyuss, and later shortened to simply Kyuss. The band released an EP called Sons of Kyuss (1990) when Homme was 16 years old, before going on to record four critically acclaimed studio albums and a greatest hits release without breaking through to mainstream success. After the breakup of the band in 1995, Homme considered abandoning his music career, but was persuaded by vocalist Mark Lanegan to join the Screaming Trees on tour as second guitarist.
Them Crooked Vultures is the studio album by American rock supergroup Them Crooked Vultures. It was released on November 13, 2009. The first single from the album, "New Fang", was released on October 26, 2009, followed by "Mind Eraser, No Chaser" on November 3. The album debuted at number 12 on the Billboard 200, selling 70,000 units in the US in its first week.
"Mind Eraser, No Chaser" is the second single released by rock supergroup Them Crooked Vultures. "Mind Eraser, No Chaser" was released on November 3, 2009 as the second single from the band's self-titled debut album (2009). It was released as iTunes's Single Of The Week as part of promotion for their debut album. The song features vocals from both guitarist Josh Homme and drummer Dave Grohl.
"Bubbles" is the fifth single taken from Scottish rock band Biffy Clyro's fifth studio album, Only Revolutions. Josh Homme from Queens of the Stone Age, Kyuss and Them Crooked Vultures provides additional lead guitar in the song. Despite being one of the lower charting songs from the album, it has spent more weeks in the top 100 than any other Biffy Clyro song.
...Like Clockwork is the sixth studio album by American rock band Queens of the Stone Age, released on June 3, 2013, on Matador Records in the UK, and on June 4 in the United States. Self-produced by the band, it is the first Queens of the Stone Age album to feature full contributions from bassist Michael Shuman and keyboardist and guitarist Dean Fertita, who both joined the band in 2007 to tour in support of the band's fifth studio album, Era Vulgaris, and record its bonus tracks.
Eagles of Death Metal is an American rock band from Palm Desert, California, formed in 1998. Founded by Jesse Hughes and Josh Homme (drums), the band also includes a wide range of other musicians who perform both on the band's studio albums and at live shows. Hughes and Homme are the only permanent members of the band, with Homme rarely performing at live shows due to commitment to his other band, Queens of the Stone Age. The band's current touring lineup includes Hughes alongside Leah Bluestein (drums), Scott Shiflett (guitar), Jennie Vee (bass) and Rex Roulette (guitar).
Play is a 23-minute instrumental composition composed and performed by Dave Grohl and released in 2018.
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