Songs for the Deaf,the third full length album from Queens of the Stone Age, is a witty attack on the commercial radio format. Satirical radio DJ ramblings are used as little interludes or transitions between many of the songs on the album.
This album differs from the other two albums due to the philosophy carried by core member Josh Homme. His view is that with a first album you shoud establish a new sound, the follow up should be more contemporary though still keeping with the style, then with the third album experiment with the sound you introduced with the first release. The sound to this album could be described as challenging.
The two core members of Queens of the Stone Age, Josh Homme and Nick Oliveri, previously played together, during the early 90’s, in the stoner rock band Kyuss. Dave Grohl, who previously played drums for Nirvana, was so keen to play with the Queens of the Stone Age that he put his role as frontman for The Foo Fighters on hold.
Queens of the Stone Age are more accessible than Kyuss and have had more commercial success. However, their songs are not as accessible as the average radio song, due to their “original” aspect. New music can often be difficult to introduce to a mass audience.
The opening track,"Millionaire", features screamed vocals by Nick Oliveri. This gives the track just what it needs as an opener, along with the driving deep guitar riff and deep heavy drumming this song is the perfect aggressive opener to an album. Later in the record is "Six Shooter" which features more screamed vocals by Nick Oliveri. This track features an array of sporadic drumming and dissonant sounding riffs. Truly a short burst of energy.
The second track on the album, “No One Knows", sees Josh Homme on vocals and has a very catchy tune. This is a great example of a song that has commercial radio appeal without sounding blandly formulaic. It is one of the group’s most successful releases and drew a lot of attention towards them. The song features alternating tunes, syncopated guitar patterns, bass solos, guitar solos, the groups signature overly elaborate riffs and vocals of varying dynamics.
"A Song for the Dead", the fourth track, introduces another vocal variation by featuring guest vocalist Mark Lanegan who can be compared to the raspy tones of Tom Waits. This track is one of the darkest sounding tracks on the album. The track begins with a guitar riff and slowly over the first 40 seconds the drums are introduced through a series of short fills, bringing with them the rest of the group. The first half of the song is filled with dissonant sounding chords and little guitar licks. At around three minutes there are several guitar solos before reverting back to the original dissonant parts.
Later on there is a better example of Mark Lanegan singing on "Hanging Tree". For this gloomy track he sings with a dark tone which suits it perfectly. A deep riff based on hammer-ons and pull-offs drives this piece while the high pitch tones of the lapsteel add some melody to the mix. At around two minutes twenty there is a sporadic guitar solo. These piece is written in a rare 5/4 timing.
Homme uses a distorted bottom-heavy guitar sound that gives the tracks either a dark somber tone or a driving energy. "The Sky is Falling" is an example of a song in which the guitar riff repetitive but the song changes with section near the end with a variation in guitar tone and style using Hispanic/Latin sounding scales. This track is filled with different vocal melodies, Homme moves from a deeper vocal line in the verses to a falsetto descending melodies in the chorus lines. The dynamics of the vocals keep the interest. This song is written in simple triple time.
Track eight on the album is “Go With the Flow” another perfect example of a more commercial hard rock song. Just as “No One Knows” this was also chosen as a single, and did well. These two tracks can also be compared to the other two more commercial tracks on the album, “Gonna Leave you” and “Do it Again”. “Do it Again”
“God Is in the Radio” can be compared to “Leg of Lamb” from their previous album “R rated” Once again it features the croaky vocals of Mark Lanegan. It features a good strong riff and slightly dissonant lead guitar parts mimicking it several octaves higher. At three minutes forty the piece crescendos to near silence, before building up again to a guitar solo.
"A Song for the Deaf" features a variety of interesting sound effects such as high pitched screams in the background. The driving guitar riff sounds similar to "A Song for the Dead" but the song is in a fast waltz time. The verses have a slight atonal edge to them, the choruses are in a major key, and there is an interesting bridge where the guitars play a harmonized riff. The drums throughout sound deep, giving the piece an even darker tone. The breakdown features a bass riff and heavy guitar chords striking over the top. The final verse has a varied array of chilling screams in the background.
I like the hidden track "Mosquito Song". It sounds quite different to the rest of the album, featuring 12-string acoustic instruments, orchestration and even an accordion, rather than heavy electric guitar. However, the gentle sound of the song belies the dark lyrical content of cannibalism. The song sounds rather folkish though the guitar solo and trombones towards the end give it a slightly Spanish tint. At Two minutes twenty there is a haunting piano part accompanied by vibrato violin parts. Later on the use of timpani and a marching snare give it a more energetic feel. Towards the end it all crescendos into the original riff and another verse with a small piano accompaniment.
There is another hidden track, "Everybody's Gonna be Happy", a cover of the early Kinks song. This may seem like an odd song to have chosen as there are many more well known and arguably better Kinks songs that could have been chosen, though that is probably why the group chose this song because it might not be done by anyone else. Songs for the Deaf features a lot of heavy guitar riffing but also plenty of catchy melodies and a variety of sounds.
Queens of the Stone Age
Songs for the Deaf, the third full length album from Queens of the Stone Age, is a witty attack on the commercial radio format. Satirical radio DJ ramblings are used as little interludes or transitions between many of the songs on the album.
This album differs from the other two albums due to the philosophy carried by core member Josh Homme. His view is that with a first album you shoud establish a new sound, the follow up should be more contemporary though still keeping with the style, then with the third album experiment with the sound you introduced with the first release. The sound to this album could be described as challenging.
The two core members of Queens of the Stone Age, Josh Homme and Nick Oliveri, previously played together, during the early 90’s, in the stoner rock band Kyuss. Dave Grohl, who previously played drums for Nirvana, was so keen to play with the Queens of the Stone Age that he put his role as frontman for The Foo Fighters on hold.
Queens of the Stone Age are more accessible than Kyuss and have had more commercial success. However, their songs are not as accessible as the average radio song, due to their “original” aspect. New music can often be difficult to introduce to a mass audience.
The opening track,"Millionaire", features screamed vocals by Nick Oliveri. This gives the track just what it needs as an opener, along with the driving deep guitar riff and deep heavy drumming this song is the perfect aggressive opener to an album. Later in the record is "Six Shooter" which features more screamed vocals by Nick Oliveri. This track features an array of sporadic drumming and dissonant sounding riffs. Truly a short burst of energy.
The second track on the album, “No One Knows", sees Josh Homme on vocals and has a very catchy tune. This is a great example of a song that has commercial radio appeal without sounding blandly formulaic. It is one of the group’s most successful releases and drew a lot of attention towards them. The song features alternating tunes, syncopated guitar patterns, bass solos, guitar solos, the groups signature overly elaborate riffs and vocals of varying dynamics.
"A Song for the Dead", the fourth track, introduces another vocal variation by featuring guest vocalist Mark Lanegan who can be compared to the raspy tones of Tom Waits. This track is one of the darkest sounding tracks on the album. The track begins with a guitar riff and slowly over the first 40 seconds the drums are introduced through a series of short fills, bringing with them the rest of the group. The first half of the song is filled with dissonant sounding chords and little guitar licks. At around three minutes there are several guitar solos before reverting back to the original dissonant parts.
Later on there is a better example of Mark Lanegan singing on "Hanging Tree". For this gloomy track he sings with a dark tone which suits it perfectly. A deep riff based on hammer-ons and pull-offs drives this piece while the high pitch tones of the lapsteel add some melody to the mix. At around two minutes twenty there is a sporadic guitar solo. These piece is written in a rare 5/4 timing.
Homme uses a distorted bottom-heavy guitar sound that gives the tracks either a dark somber tone or a driving energy. "The Sky is Falling" is an example of a song in which the guitar riff repetitive but the song changes with section near the end with a variation in guitar tone and style using Hispanic/Latin sounding scales. This track is filled with different vocal melodies, Homme moves from a deeper vocal line in the verses to a falsetto descending melodies in the chorus lines. The dynamics of the vocals keep the interest. This song is written in simple triple time.
Track eight on the album is “Go With the Flow” another perfect example of a more commercial hard rock song. Just as “No One Knows” this was also chosen as a single, and did well. These two tracks can also be compared to the other two more commercial tracks on the album, “Gonna Leave you” and “Do it Again”. “Do it Again”
“God Is in the Radio” can be compared to “Leg of Lamb” from their previous album “R rated” Once again it features the croaky vocals of Mark Lanegan. It features a good strong riff and slightly dissonant lead guitar parts mimicking it several octaves higher. At three minutes forty the piece crescendos to near silence, before building up again to a guitar solo.
"A Song for the Deaf" features a variety of interesting sound effects such as high pitched screams in the background. The driving guitar riff sounds similar to "A Song for the Dead" but the song is in a fast waltz time. The verses have a slight atonal edge to them, the choruses are in a major key, and there is an interesting bridge where the guitars play a harmonized riff. The drums throughout sound deep, giving the piece an even darker tone. The breakdown features a bass riff and heavy guitar chords striking over the top. The final verse has a varied array of chilling screams in the background.
I like the hidden track "Mosquito Song". It sounds quite different to the rest of the album, featuring 12-string acoustic instruments, orchestration and even an accordion, rather than heavy electric guitar. However, the gentle sound of the song belies the dark lyrical content of cannibalism. The song sounds rather folkish though the guitar solo and trombones towards the end give it a slightly Spanish tint. At Two minutes twenty there is a haunting piano part accompanied by vibrato violin parts. Later on the use of timpani and a marching snare give it a more energetic feel. Towards the end it all crescendos into the original riff and another verse with a small piano accompaniment.
There is another hidden track, "Everybody's Gonna be Happy", a cover of the early Kinks song. This may seem like an odd song to have chosen as there are many more well known and arguably better Kinks songs that could have been chosen, though that is probably why the group chose this song because it might not be done by anyone else.
Songs for the Deaf features a lot of heavy guitar riffing but also plenty of catchy melodies and a variety of sounds.