Era Vulgaris

by

Queens of the Stone Age

Edit

This album is beginning to end a sonic work of art. I don't think I would call it a concept album, but it certainly has a cohesive feel that makes listening to it end too soon. Maybe it's a hint of classic progressive rock attitude. At the conclusion of this CD...I hit play again. I have liked QOTSA albums before, but I don't remember being as addicted to anything they have done like this album. There are great guitar parts, soulful singing by Josh Homme and Mark Lannegan, searing six string solos, layered sound textures, rock solid rhythm/percussion, burning bluesy roots, quirky thoughtful lyrics and melodic growling bass. They threw everything in but the kitchen sink into this amazing sonic brew...buy it and put it on repeat!

Supposedly inspired by Josh's daily drive through Hollywood, the entire album comes across as a cold robotic dreamscape where musicians just play what they're told to over and over until the song ends with no variations allowed--no humanity. From a strictly artistic perspective the songs may do an excellent job of capturing the hollowness of life and music in Hollywood, however hollow songs do not create an experience that ultimately proves worth listening to again and again.

The album opens with a pair of serviceable songs ("Turnin' on the Screw" and "Sick, sick, sick") that tease the listener of potentially stronger material to come, but nothing stronger ever materializes. Most of the songs follow a pattern that seems familiar enough, with thought provoking lyrics based on word-play and with dissonant lead guitar riffs and heavy buzzing bass/rhythm sections (ie: "I'm Designer" and "Into the Hollow"), but further listening shows that the creative instrumental flourishes and careful craftsmanship of past albums are nowhere to be found.

When "Misfit Love" begins you may find yourself bobbing your head with the groovy robot-funk of the opening riff. But about 4 minutes into the nearly 6 minute song (the longest on the album) you'll begin to wonder if the band is still playing or if they've gone to sleep and Josh is just singing over the same 5-second sound-loop over and over. Most of the album retains this same rough yet sleepy vibe. If "Lullabies to Paralyze" could be characterized as a nightmare-themed album then "EA" is easily classified as an album of empty dreams. Though Josh's lyrics occasionally deal in disturbing imagery, the music from the second half of the album is mostly pleasant and relaxing in spite of QoTSA's signature droning guitar sound. The final three tracks in particular ("Suture Up Your Future", "River in the Road", and "Run, Pig, Run") are perfect examples of this with Josh's voice and the entire instrumental ensemble blending together into one big nap-inducing mesh of noise on each of these songs. While they are all decent enough songs, placing them in succession at the close of the album makes for a very forgettable ending to "Era Vulgaris".

One of the things that made "Songs for the Deaf" such a captivating listen was the obvious influence of multiple guest musicians throughout the album. However, much like "LtP", the contributions of guest musician's are completely marginalized on "EA". Julian Casablancas of the Strokes makes a guest appearance as does former mainstay Mark Lanegan--and Trent Reznor even contributed backing vocals to one track--but you'll be hard-pressed to hear which songs they appear on let alone what vocal or instrumental sections they contribute, and Reznor's contribution was left off the album entirely. (And no, that's not Lanegan singing on "Make It Wit Chu", it's just Josh giving a practically perfect--though not nearly as seductive--impersonation.)

"Era Vulgaris" has its moments, but in the end it's all about describing the current state of the entertainment industry. Standout tracks such as "3's & 7's" and "Make It Wit Chu" purposefully underscore the complete mediocrity that permeate both the rest of "Era Vulgaris" and the current popular music scene at large.