Spinnerette - Spinnerette

YOURZ

Okay, Ms Brody Dalle has rock credentials oozing out her skin like her many and varied tattoos, starting with Sourpuss in Australia when she was 14.  By the time she was 18, she had married Tim Armstrong from Rancid, moved to LA and formed The Distillers.  Four albums later, both band and Armstrong were no longer.  Enter Josh Homme, more marriage, a sprog and domestic bliss, of a sort.

While not owing anything to the QOTSA sound, access to the growing collective of musicians associated with the Queens meant all she had to do was write the songs and let them be recorded.  Unfortunately, what we end up with here, for a major part of this album, is fairly derivative sounding, with a number of tracks that would most certainly not have made the cut for her husband's various projects.

But this self-titled effort is not without its moments.  Openers Ghetto Love, All Babes Are Wolves and Cupid set the bench mark high before the cracks start showing.  It isn't until 6 tracks later she partly redeems herself with the quite splendid Driving Song followed closely by Impaler and the closer A Prescription For Mankind.


This should have been an EP is all I'm saying.

VERDICT: TURN IT DOWN


MINE

OK, the gremlins got in and deleted my comment.  How did that happen?  Grrrrrr, I can't even remember clearly what I said!  Apart from, it's not really my thing.  Well-done and all that but generally just - ordinary.  Notwithstanding the babeliciousness of Ms Dalle....

VERDICT: TURN IT DOWN

For more information:  http://www.spinnerettemusic.com/

Queens Of The Stone Age - Lullabies to Paralyse

MINE

The boy music just never lets up... but actually I've been reasonably impressed by QOTSA.  Perhaps because I just loved track one on their debut album, Rated R.  So if you've never heard Feel Good Hit of the Summer take a clicky walk and have a listen.

See what I mean? Two minutes 46 seconds of a rawk mantra that just rolls you along.  Ironically used by the LAPD in its anti-drunk driving campaign... but that's another Josh Homme story.  Which I'm sure YourZ has more than enough of for this post.

YourZ is a rabid Josh fan, and I can see why.  We both love the Eagles of Death Metal - and when the pointy stick finally lands on Them Crooked Vultures, stand back, the gushing from my beloved will knock you over.  QOTSA's not really my cup of tea, although it's still well put together with more real singing and a decent mix.  Does this mean I have to admit - his boy music is actually Man Music?  Oh, the ignominy...(YourZ sez: fuck yeah, I win!)

VERDICT: TURN IT DOWN

YOURZ

While the music press has been lauding Jack White's prodigious output over the last decade, I've been plumping for Josh Homme.  I mean, look at his track record - first Kyuss, (okay maybe not strictly in the last decade but...), the Desert Sessions, QOTSA, Eagles Of Death Metal, production for Arctic Monkeys and various others and, of course, Them Crooked Vultures.  What's Jack White done, huh?  (Okay, I know what he's done - I've admitted it on these very pages but give me some latitude, 'kay?)

Not only this, but he plays Matons (most of the time), which is also my axe of choice.  And he is married to Brody Dalle, one of the sexiest rock chicks to come out of Oz.  The man has is all going on.  But enough of this insipid gushing...

Lullabies... is the fourth full length release from QOTSA and the first released after bassist Nick Oliveri was fired for fucking up once too often.  When I first heard this album, I was kinda missing the crazy shit Nick usually brought to the table but after a few listens, I realised there was enough crazy on this album to satisfy even the most discerning of rock loonies (of which I am proud to say I'm one).

I must listen to this album (and all QOTSA's output) at least once every couple of weeks and there isn't a single track on it I don't want to hear again.  There is just so many flavours, though, it is hard to pick out which tracks are favourites 'cause it depends on my mood on the day.  But notable mentions have to be Tangled Up In Plaid, Little Sister (the cow bell fuckin' rocks) and the dirty blues that is You Got A Killer Scene There, Man... (which also features Shirley Manson from Garbage on backing vox).

All indications are there is gonna be another QOTSA album released this year.  Coupled with the rumours of a full-blown tour later as well, 2010 is shaping up to be a very rocking good year indeed.

VERDICT: TURN IT UP, put it on repeat and rock out

For more information: www.qotsa.com

In our collection we also have Queens Of The Stoneage (debut), Rated R, Songs For The Deaf and Era Vulgaris