The Double Doghouse

hey yall! this week, i’m checking out Queens of the Stone Age for the first time with Songs for the Deaf, released in 2002.

Queens of the Stone Age structure Songs for the Deaf as a drive through SoCal, tuning into different radio stations along the way. the conceit is pretty funny at times – the opening audio bits call the station “KLON”, or “Clone Radio” (which plays the same music as everyone else), and they return to that well a few other times for some pretty funny bits.

part of the conceit is that the band moves through a few different hard rock sounds (and has different band members provide vocals) as they go from station to station along the drive. i quite enjoy the run from No One Knows to The Sky is Fallin’, and i think its my favorite segment of he record. the opener, You Think I Ain’t Worth a Dollar, but I Feel Like a Millionaire, took quite a bit to warm up for me, but instrumentally it’s an blisteringly intense track thats incredibly fun to listen to – the “mellow off” into No One Knows and First It Giveth, both of which were singles for the record, help them shine, then Song For the Dead provides an excellent highlight of the guest drummer for most of the record, Dave Grohl. The Sky Is Falling takes it wayyy back, and provides a more cinematic and sweeping approach in its instrumentation. Six Shooter represents another station change, and immediately plunges back off the deep end – Nick Oliveri returns from the vocals on You Think I Aint Worth a Dollar for an intense, if brief, vocal performance. God Is In the Radio is another highlight a dark, roiling track from the back half that I really enjoy.

running underneath the radio conceit is a lyrical body that feels like sobering up. the opening track is very “pedal to the floor”, as it were, but by the time the musings from No One Knows and First It Giveth makes it back to The Sky Is Fallin’, the vibes are catastrophic. Six Shooter and Hangin’ Tree are both focused on encounters with death – i particularly like how, structurally, Hangin’ Tree inverts the chorus/verse structure, with short but slowly delivered verses and longer choruses. plus the bridge on this song is just a blast. Go With the Flow was the second single off the record – i saw some comments elsewhere online that suggested this about about someone who moves from relationship to relationship, but when paired with Gonna Leave You and Do It Again, it feels way more like both tracks are abstracting a relationship to drug use discussed earlier on the record, a toxic “abuse, distance, return” cycle.

all around, extremely good listen.

faves – No One Knows, First It Giveth, Song for the Dead, The Sky Is Fallin’, God Is In the Radio
dislikes –

Songs for the Deaf – 8/10

i’ll be back next week to listen to Power of the Dragonflame, from Rhapsody of Fire – in the meantime, please let me know what album you’d like me to review below!