Songs For The Deaf (2002)
I mean, this surely had to be top 3 at least, right? The record that certified QOTSA as a next-level band. The home of their biggest hits in ‘No One Knows’ and ‘Go With The Flow’ woven into a concept of changing radio stations during a long drive. It’s sublime. But as easily as I could say “It’s got No One Knows on it, duh.” This record offers so much MORE.
Songs For The Deaf is peak Queens for me. The peak in terms of their rotating cast and contributing singers. You have Josh Homme, Mark Lanegan and Nick Oliveri taking vocal credits throughout this album. All of whom help deliver a record that is steeped in variation and a determined attitude to fuck you the fuck up.
Oliveri showcases his range from screaming his lungs on the powerful opener ‘You Think I Ain’t Worth A Dollar…’ to singing sweetly on ‘Another Love Song’. Lanegan’s textbook growl adds extra oomph to the record’s most powerful cuts on ‘Song For The Dead’ and ‘God Is In The Radio’ and Josh does his thing delivering the grooves and hits. This combination alongside the variation in sound really highlighted their talent and ethos as a band who brought the unpredictable. Even after endless listens, I’m still caught off guard by the switch in styles. And what also makes it great is how concise it sounds too.
Honestly, this record makes me miss how interchangeable each role is in Queens. While I’ll continue to love their later records, there was something special harnessed in Songs For The Deaf. It could’ve easily been number one, but I couldn’t let it top this one…
…Like Clockwork (2013)
Oh boy, it’s time to get emotional. Six years after discovering my favourite band through Era Vulgaris comes …Like Clockwork, a record that embedded that love deeper. At the time of its release, I was also going through a tough time and needed to hear something to get me out of that fog and throw me into the next chapter.
To add some context, the record comes after Josh Homme almost lost his life during an operation. Leaving him bedridden and spiralling into a deep depression. While struggling to move forward, he found solace in the support of the people around him which culminated in …Like Clockwork. It was their hardest record to make, but it illustrates all the pain and love wonderfully.
While it keeps a lot of the roots of QOTSA, the record operates at a slightly slower pace. There are still a lot of loud moments throughout (‘If I Had A Tail’, ‘My God Is The Sun’), but it almost chooses to calm down to allow the emotions to be heard. Incorporating the piano for ‘The Vampyre of Time and Memory’, the title track and ‘Kalopsia’ is something that wouldn’t have been heard on previous records, but they really shine through the gritty, pained guitar riffs that exist elsewhere. It also removes the vagueness that existed in the band’s lyrics for a long time, plainly speaking out against bad friendships and adoration for individuals, culminating in a dance with death on ‘I Appear Missing’. To hear so much fragility from a traditionally Hard Rock band was unheard of, but it makes …Like Clockwork so special.