It's hard to believe it's been six years since Josh Homme and QOTSA's last album, Era Vulgaris. And what a way to return, with the same dark themes, driving beats, unexpected quirky chord changes, busy and snaking guitars, and don't-give-a-fudge vocals - but with Dave Grohl, Alex Turner, Jake Shears and Sir Elton John in tow. It's almost like a sun-crazed desert hallucination just thinking about it. This time Homme goes all Bowie on us - the Thin White Duke as vampire.
Vocals on The Vampyre of Time and Memory are perhaps the most obviously Bowie-ish, but you'd swear the legend actually appears amid the Muse-like rock opera grandiosity of Fairweather Friends (which does feature Sir Elton). The highlight in an album full of them: I Sat by the Ocean, which, to add another band to the mix, is full-on Stone Temple Pilots at their best. A thoroughly enjoyable listen.
Queens of the Stone Age ... Like Clockwork
(Matador)
Rating: 4.5 / 5
