Eagles of Death Metal are the product of Jessie Hughes and childhood friend Josh Homme (who also happens to helm Queens of the Stone age). The band formed after Hughes went through a divorce, and Homme came to his rescue. “I was married square going into an ugly divorce, when Josh says ‘Here’s a song I wrote,’ drives me across Hollywood in my mom’s car and now here I am talking to you,” he said in an interview with FHM. Pretty goddamn rock and roll. I wish I was friends with Josh Homme.
Regardless of their name, which speaks to something slightly more malevolent, they play throwback, 70s garage rock, amalgamating everything good the other side of ’83; bombastic, Stonesish riffs over fuzzy bass and a 70s sleaze fit for a velor suit and a vintage Camero. The riffs in “I used to couldn’t dance (tight pants)” pop between the speakers, channeling Keith Richards while Jessie Hughes croons soul over Motown harmonies: “It used to be a massacre/I never got a second glance/now I’m kinda lethal on the dance floor/check it, tight pants huh!” The lyrics jump from tongue-in-cheek fun of “I used to couldn’t dance…”to the straight, delicious sleaze of “High Voltage” (You want to hit it don’t lie/you want to come in from the west side/I want to be the showcase of her nasty boy collection.)
But midway through the album, they drop a truth bomb with “Now I’m a Fool.” It’s instantly infectious, a massive rock and roll ballad. Hughes uses falsetto in all the right places, the bassline is elegant and reserved, moving the song along, but not being too pushy, and the guitars shimmer over everything, a sparkling cloud nearly obscured by rain. Considering the content of the six previous songs, it’s hard to judge Hughe’s sincerity when he sings “Not to say you’re the one/but I put down my guns/and then you went Hollywood on me,” but it sounds like he just might have endured a devastating enough heartbreak to mean it.
From Heart On:
I Used to Couldn’t Dance So Good (Tight Pants)
And this video…Jack Black, Josh Homme, David Grohl! See if you can spot any more cameos:
[youtube]http://youtube.com/watch?v=xe6p-5tUh3M[/youtube]