Them Crooked Vultures - Time To Get Hyped

Supergroups are often experiments that always tend to be a bit underwhelming. The lofty expectations set by a band filled with pre-established rock stars never seem to be met. The best analogy I could use to describe such an outing would be like strapping a rocket ship to an elephant - it may go far, but not really far enough. That's why many fans get stuck wondering why something so "awesome" leaves such a bad taste in their mouth.

Sure there have been a few supergroups worth mentioning for reasons other than lameness. Cream, Crosby Stills Nash & Young, Blind Faith and Temple of the Dog are all good examples of how to be a band full of talent and not have that talent go to waste.

However the list for lame supergroups is considerably longer. Journey, Asia, Damn Yankees, The Highwaymen, The Traveling Wilburys, The Transplants, Audioslave (save for their first album), Alter Bridge, Velvet Revolver and Chickenfoot are just some of the bands that come to mind when you think of overblown, unimportant rock that really doesn't justify itself for anything other than a good laugh with your friends.

But the term supergroup has been redefined. I suppose you could call it a super supergroup. Ladies and gentlemen - prepare to be shaken from your very musical core by Them Crooked Vultures. TCV consists of Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age, Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters and Nirvana, as well as John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin.

Never before has such an incredi-band's individual talents come together and gelled into one cohesive unit so well. I suppose much of the credit is due to the close friendship that Homme and Grohl share. Dave played drums for QOTSA on 2002's critically acclaimed Songs For The Deaf as well as the subsequent tour. That chemistry was already there. Adding a musical giant such as John Paul Jones (who has appeared live with the Foo Fighters and played on the band's 2005 double album In Your Honor) only serves to sweeten the deal.

The Homme, Grohl, Jones experiment has long been in the works. As far back as 2005 Grohl was quoted as saying, "Myself, Josh Homme and John Paul Jones. That's the next album. That would not suck."

However things didn't really get the necessary jump start until about a year ago when Grohl initiated a meeting between Homme and Jones at his 40th birthday part last year. Over the past 8 months the trio has been hard at work cooking up grooves and funktastic jams. Although no official music has been leaked at all, live videos of the group have made their way onto You Tube on top of the selected clips released by the bands themselves (look for those videos at the end of this blog).

No release date has been set the band's self titled debut. However it will be released on QOTSA's label Interscope.

Them Crooked Vultures have already kicked off a small nation wide tour in Austin, TX and will eventually play shows in the UK, Australia and Germany. I will be going with my good friend Luke on Tuesday to see the band in Columbus, Ohio. Expect a full report (review?) later next week.

In the mean time, enjoy the available clips of the band below and get pumped for whatever is coming from Them Crooked Vultures.