Songs for the Deaf

"It's bands like Queens of the Stone Age that put your faith back in new rock. This album has attitude, the playing is hot, and most importantly - it's heaps of fun to listen to.

The band essentially are Josh Homme and Nick Oliveri, who both originated from the stoner rock band Kyuss. While that group was very good (in a heavy Sabbath riffy kind of way), QotSA take the excitement a step further with a more cerebral style of head banging and a sense of humour to boot.

Moody, screamin' crooner, Mark Lanegan (ex-Screaming Trees) appeared on the Queens debut album, 'Rated R' and his vocal stylings are more prominent this time around. The other key ingredient is Dave Grohl (aw, you know - Foo Fighters and Nirvana) who does what he does best by contributing some fantastic drumming. (The Phil Collins of grunge?)

A definite contender for 'Rock Record of The Year', it is highly advised that you get 'Deaf' a.s.a.p. - your ears will love you for it!"
- GEOFF (August, 2002)

"With 'Songs for the Deaf', the Queens get louder and weirder and let their bone-bred artiness run loose. This is prog grunge for the unpretentious, and it's funny as hell as the band settles into the arena-rock stylings that come naturally (singer-guitarist Josh Homme and bassist Nick Oliveri are two of rock's most elaborately accomplished musicians)... Whether the ace metal is speedy or onerous (or both, as in the case of "Six Shooter," with its shrieking insanity), it is always deployed in the service of the eccentric song structures, and every track becomes a splendid, mysterious thing."
- Rolling Stone

"It all depends how you like your rock. If you like it with big airy spaces, lots of affirmation and a nice happy ending you should buy the Coldplay album. But if you like it tricky, claustrophobic, but with plenty of swoons and thrills you should get to grips with this big, dense monster of a record."
- BBC