by TheEqualizer on 10 Aug 2009 20:58
From Rolling Stone:
QUOTE
During Lollapalooza weekend in Chicago, most of the hottest shows in Chicago haven't been in Grant Park, but rather in the Chi-town clubs.
Like Saturday night, when we made our maiden voyage to Schuba's Tavern, where Black Keys singer-guitarist Dan Auerbach slayed a lucky crowd with tunes from his solo debut, Keep It Hid.
But last night's show at the Metro was truly special: the debut of the supergroup Them Crooked Vultures -- featuring Dave Grohl, Josh Homme and John Paul Jones.
We were tipped off last week when Grohl texted us to make sure we'd be in town on Sunday night. Without spoiling the surprise, he told us to come to the Metro on Sunday at midnight. Then we saw the ad that appeared on the Metro site, featuring the logos of the Foo Fighters, Zeppelin and Queens of the Stone Age. Holy shit, we thought.
But nobody had any idea what to expect at the gig. The trio, joined by QOTSA guitarist Alain Johannes, walked onstage to the tune of Chuck Berry's "No Particular Place To Go." Then they slayed the crowd for 75-minutes -- no encores -- with songs nobody's ever heard. Homme sang, Grohl played drums, and JPJ stuck mostly to the bass -- a couple times he jumped on keyboards, keytar, or picked up a crazy, futuristic slide guitar.
Here's the set list:
Elephant
New Fang
Scumbag Blues
Dead End Friends
Bandolier
Mind Eraser (No Chaser)
Gunman
Daffodils
Caligulove
Warsaw
Nobody Loves Me
Never has a supergroup sounded more like the sum of its parts. Grohl never spoke to the crowd, but his galloping drums recalled both Nirvana and the Foos. Homme's vocals (and songwriting, we would guess) were dark and heavy, with those crazy melodic and rhythmic shifts. And JPJ, who was sripping with sweat by the end of it, thumped along like he was onstage again with Zep.
After the show everyone partied backstage. We had a shot of Crown Royal with Grohl, who was totally exhausted after the gig (and the five hour rehearsal the day before.) We learned that Them Crooked Vultures have been kicking around for six months. The idea began with Grohl and JPJ (who have been buddies for a while now) and then they recruited Homme. There will be an album AND a U.S. tour. Believe it!
The show is insane! And the boys were so stoked. To quantify how excited they were, let us share with you a texting exchange that went down yesterday afternoon..
S.S.: Hey Dave, I just got my first boner about the show tonight!
Grohl: I've had one of those everlasting boners that they warn you about on the Viagra commercials for the past 6 months.
S.S.: You should notify your physician
Grohl: No worries. It'll go down once I blow my load all over the Metro.
Last night, everyone at the Metro blew their proverbial load.
END QUOTE
There is no bigger gong.