Dave Grohl's primary band Foo Fighters have a new greatest hits collection out this week, and though it has two new songs on it (including the single "Wheels"), Grohl is focusing his new output on the supergroup Them Crooked Vultures. The band reunites Grohl with Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme (Grohl played drums on QOTSA's Songs for the Deaf) and adds Led Zeppelin bass player John Paul Jones. The result is a throwback power trio whose debut album is full of swampy riffs, doomsday vocals and lots and lots of volume.
The band is currently offering up a free song on iTunes called "Mind Eraser, No Chaser." Built around a psychedelic guitar loop, the tune is the perfect blend of classic rock and modern guitar music tropes. Homme and Grohl share vocal duties, including a call-and-response section where Grohl shouts "All I wanna do is have my mind erased!" It's mostly just refreshing to hear Grohl behind the skins again, as his drum style is uniquely savage and — keeping in step with the rest of the band — extremely loud.
It's a big week for fans of Grohl's rhythmic skills, as this week also marks the release of Nirvana's "Live at Reading," the album and DVD of the legendary band's notorious set at the Reading Festival in 1992. It's the portrait of a band absolutely hitting on all cylinders and unleashing a difficult, anthemic set to a rabid festival crowd. Grohl's work behind the kit is fantastically brutal, especially on the rarity "Been a Son."
In the meantime, Them Crooked Vultures' debut album self-titled debut will hit stores on November 17.
Back in the late 1990s (when album sales were robust and a CDs actual release date was more important than its leak date), every Tuesday in November and December was a "Super Tuesday," usually featuring a handful of big-name releases all hitting stores at the same time. Artists competed for gargantuan first-week album sales and spots on "TRL." 10 years ago, November 2 was one of those massive Tuesdays, featuring a handful of big acts putting out new, high-profile records. Foo Fighters dropped There's Nothing Left to Lose (their most successful album and the winner of the Grammy for Best Rock Album in 2000). On the same day, Mariah Carey unleashed Rainbow, lead by the smash hit "Heartbreaker" (a collaboration with Jay-Z). Counting Crows busted out their third release This Desert Life, which picked up some traction when first single "Hanginaround" became something of a graduation anthem for high school seniors. Lil Wayne put out Tha Block is Hot, his watershed solo debut on Cash Money. Elsewhere in hip-hop, Flipmode Squad's Rah Digga released her underrated solo debut Dirty Harriet, while the Roots put out their excellent live album The Roots Come Alive.
But with all those names putting out albums on November 2, 1999, who played live on "TRL" that day? Rage Against the Machine, who performed in Times Square to celebrate the release of their third album The Battle of Los Angeles, their most accomplished, complex and mature album. Lead by the single "Guerrilla Radio," the band balanced the savagery of Tom Morello's guitar assault with the funky low end and Zack De La Rocha's pointed agit-prop rapping. The band broke up soon after but reunited a few years back, though The Battle of Los Angeles was the last original album they put out. But it still holds up, and it's amazing to think that a collective could be so well versed in politics but also know how to move a crowd so well. Check out the excellent video for "Guerrilla Radio."
Sometimes working on side projects can pull a band apart and lead to their break-up. But there are other instances where key members taking time off from a giant act can help everybody recharge their batteries. Though Foo Fighters is Dave Grohl's main squeeze, he hasn't been hurt by dalliances with Queens of the Stone Age, Probot or Them Crooked Vultures. The members of Linkin Park also haven't had any trouble keeping their core strong while branching out into other areas of the music world. Mike Shinoda has had a successful run as part of Fort Minor, and Chester Bennington is currently enjoying success as the frontman of Dead by Sunrise.
Dead by Sunrise combines Bennington with members of arena-goth act Orgy. Interestingly, the Orgy members also have an electronic side project called Julien-K. The family tree runs so deep, in fact, that Bennington joked that they could plan an entire festival featuring only his bands and the connected side projects. "We're going to call it the Narcissism Tour," he joked to MTV News at the Ulalume Festival. "It'll be Linkin Park, Orgy, Fort Minor, Dead by Sunrise, Circuit Freaks, Julien-K and JK DJs."
"That's like a seven hour work day," added guitarist Ryan Shuck.
Be sure to check out the Ulalume Music Festival playlist, which features live performances from Dead by Sunrise, A.F.I. and Paramore. You can check out the whole show tonight (October 30) at 9 p.m. on MTV or at 11 p.m. on mtvU.
It's hard to believe, but Foo Fighters have actually been around since 1995 (which means that frontman Dave Grohl has been with his own band nearly four times longer than he was with Nirvana), so it's only logical that they'll be putting 14 years worth of hits on a compilation that hits the streets on November 3. Greatest Hits brings together such smashes as "Everlong,""All My Life,""Learn to Fly" and "My Hero." But they've also added two new tunes to the mix. One is a song called "World Forward" and another called "Wheels" (which they originally premiered on the lawn of the White House during an Independence Day party hosted by Barack Obama). The video for "Wheels" just premiered this morning, and it's a low-key performance clip that puts the group in a large, romantically lit warehouse. It's not nearly as visually stunning as some of the Foo Fighters' other work, but it does have one notable prop that makes it particularly interesting: Those old-timey microphones.
It makes sense, because with a decade-and-a-half in, Foo Fighters are one of the more venerable brands in rock music. They've toured the world, sold-out stadiums, played numerous events and award shows, sold millions of records, made memorable videos and experimented over and over again while still remaining true to their core. "Wheels" is a reserved tune about the road, but at this point, there's no better group to explain the ways of the rock world than the dudes who have just about seen it all.
Them Crooked Vultures, the strangely-named supergroup that brings together members of Led Zeppelin, Foo Fighters and Queens of the Stone Age, made their live debut two short weeks ago at a Lollapalooza after-party in Chicago. They surfaced for their second show ever last night in Amsterdam and also released a teaser video that shows the trio — drummer Dave Grohl, bassist John Paul Jones and guitarist Josh Homme — messing around in a recording studio while a clip of their song "Nobody Loves Me and Neither Do I" plays over it. Though they have an album done, the band has been mysterious about when those songs might see the light of day, and they've been similarly secretive about their live shows. Rumors are swirling (via the band's official message boards) that they'll be making a few festival stops in Europe over the next couple of days. But most details remain hazy — even their official Web site is little more than a board, a store with one sold-out T-shirt and a creepy illustration of the band's part-man/ part-vulture mascot.
But what does this group mean for each member's respective primary projects? Grohl has drifted away from Foo Fighters before (most notably to curate his metal all-stars album recorded under the name Probot) and for all intents and purposes Homme is the only real permanent member of Queens of the Stone Age. The news of the existence of Them Crooked Vultures will probably most bother hardcore fans of Led Zeppelin. Since the legendary band reunited for a one-off concert in December of 2007, enthusiasts have been clamoring for a full-scale reunion tour, and though several rumors about more shows have surfaced over the last 18 months, it looks less and less likely Jones, Jimmy Page and Robert Plant will do any more shows any time soon.
Foo Fighters had a pretty sweet view of the Washington, D.C. fireworks on Independence Day, as they were on stage on the lawn of the White House while they were happening. The band played a private show for the Obama family and White House staff to celebrate the Fourth of July. "It's an honor to be playing here for you people. I'm glad that we're here and I'm glad that we're spending this Fourth of July together," Grohl said as he opened the show, which featured the unveiling of a new song called "Wheels." Grohl described the song as about "the feeling when the wheels touch the ground and you're like 'I'm glad that's over with.'" In the chorus, Grohl sings, "When you feel like it's all over, there's another round for you."
It's a very appropriate sentiment for Foo Fighters, who are currently in a state of flux. The group has been on an official hiatus since the end of their tour last year, and bassist Nate Mendel is hitting the road with his old band Sunny Day Real Estate. Grohl himself has a new project too: He's teaming up with former collaborators Josh Homme (Queens of the Stone Age) and John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin). The still-unnamed band's existence isn't new (Grohl has been discussing the project since 2005), but they are currently recording an album in Los Angeles.
What would you name the band? We're bummed that Probot has already been taken, but we're sure those guys will come up with something.
Foo Fighters have been on hiatus since their last tour wrapped, but they'll play one show this weekend out of civic duty. Rolling Stone reports that the band will play a short set this Saturday, July 4, on the South Lawn of the White House. Foos frontman Dave Grohl, who grew up in the Washington D.C. area and got his start playing in local hardcore band Scream, is no stranger to the political realm: He and his band played voting drives for the Obama campaign and expressed his ire over John McCain's use of "My Hero" during tour stops.
There are plenty of Foo Fighters songs that can act as inspiration tunes for President Obama ("My Hero" and "Best of You" among them), but there are a handful of tunes in the Foos catalog that they should probably avoid.
John McCain had better be planning on using instrumental music from the 19th century for his next Senate seat run. After a lawsuit he filed against singer/songwriter Jackson Browne in the U.S. District Court in California this week, he'll probably alienate any musicians who haven't already asked him to stop using their songs during his failed presidential bid.
You may recall that back in August, Browne filed suit against McCain's campaign for using his song, "Running on Empty," in a campaign ad, citing copyright infringement and false endorsement. The laid-back California rocker was among a group of musicians — which also included Heart, the Foo Fighters and Van Halen — who asked McCain to stop using their songs in the Republican senator's appearances during his White House bid.
We're not so arrogant as to think that the McCain and Palin spend their downtime reading the Newsroom blog. We know they're busy and all. So, maybe they didn't read our story earlier this week about how '80s rockers Survivor weren't too happy about the campaign using their "Rocky III" song, "Eye of the Tiger," at rallies.
And maybe they missed the stories about the Foo Fighters, Van Halen, Heart and Jackson Browne complaining about the same thing. We're not saying an intervention is in order, but while five is troubling, six is definitely a sign of a problem.
The latest? Jersey icons Bon Jovi. Jon Bon Jovi told TMZ that the band was "surprised to hear that our song 'Who Says You Can't Go Home,' was used by the McCain campaign at rallies yesterday and today.
"We wrote this song as a thank you to those who have supported us over the past twenty-five years," JBJ continued. "The song has since become a banner for our home state of New Jersey and the defacto theme song for our partnerships around the country to build homes and rebuild communities. Although we were not asked, we do not approve of their use of 'Home.'
McCain certainly should have seen this one coming, what with the singer throwing a $30,800-a-plate dinner at his house for Obama last month.
What do you think of McCain's musical miscues? Does the campaign need to be more careful, or do these musicians need to lighten up?
· You rarely get a chance to own some of U2's castoffs, but the band is selling a Jean-Michel Basquiat painting they collectively own, which has hung in their Dublin studio for nearly 20 years. Oh, and it'll cost you somewhere between $8 million and $12 million.
· While most people are trying to figure out what they're doing this weekend, My Morning Jacket already have their New Year's Eve plans locked up. The Louisville rippers will play a show at Madison Square Garden in New York billed as "An Evening With My Morning Jacket."
· As R. Kelly
awaits the jury's verdict in his child-pornography trial, one of his associates, Henry "Uncle Henry Love" Vaughn, has sued Kels for allegedly stealing his "steppin' " dance moves.
· Apparently, we have Tila Tequila to thank for California
legalizing gay marriage.
· You'd think that after conquering "American Idol" with his rock-tastic covers, winner David Cook would be focusing on showing off some original material. But on Thursday night, he busted out a cover of the Foo Fighters' "My Hero" on the "Tonight Show With Jay Leno." Turns out he learned how to play guitar by listening to The Colour and the Shape.
· Today's Amy Winehouse update thankfully doesn't contain any of the following words: arrest, bribe, skin condition, drugs, video or disheveled. The diva was reportedly paid $2 million to perform Thursday night at the gala opening of an art gallery run by the girlfriend of a Russian billionaire.
We're not so arrogant as to think that the McCain and Palin spend their downtime reading the Newsroom blog. We know they're busy and all. So, maybe they didn't read our story earlier this week about how '80s rockers 