Artist Profile: Josh Homme

By our guest blogger, Megan O'Malley

He is one of the hardest working artists in the music industry. Not only does Josh Homme front his band Queens of the Stone Age, but he also occasionally drums in the hard-rocking Eagles of Death Metal. Most recently, Homme has collaborated with Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters and John Paul Jones from Led Zeppelin to form the super group, Them Crooked Vultures. All his rocking aside, Homme also has worked behind the scenes as a producer.

In 1989, Homme helped to found the stoner metal group Kyuss. The group released four studio albums before disbanding in 1995. He then jumped into Queens of the Stone Age. Described as “robot rock” by Homme, Queens of the Stone Age has had a continuous rotation of members while Homme plays guitar and sings. "Era Vulgaris" was released in 2007 and nothing has been heard from Queens of the Stone Age since. The group hasn’t technically broken up and has said they will reconvene for a new album later this year.

Them Crooked Vultures began early last year in Los Angeles. The group began recording in July and by November, they had released their self-titled debut. Just as in Queens of the Stone Age, Homme is the lead singer and plays lead guitar. Their sound is similar to Homme’s other groups, but Grohl and Jones’ influences are apparent. Throughout November and December, Them Crooked Vultures toured North America and the UK in support of their album. The tickets for their UK leg sold out in 12 minutes, which makes it one of the fastest-selling tours in history. Right now they are confirmed to play at the 2010 Download Festival.

As a producer, Homme worked with the Arctic Monkeys on their third album and with the Scottish group Biffy Clyro. His production studio is home to the infamous Joshua Tree Sessions. The Joshua Tree Sessions are a series of improv musical pieces from different artists including PJ Harvey, Eagles of Death Metal singer Jesse Hughes and Ween front man Dean Ween. According to Homme, “At Desert Sessions, you play for the sake of music. That’s why it’s good for musicians.” The works produced from these recordings are released in volumes known as "The Desert Sessions." Josh Homme is unparalleled in his skill and talent--for over 20 years, he has brought hard rocking style to the masses in multiple forms.