Maps of Music

Queens of the Stone Age (1998)

Where the lyrics of Queens of the Stone Age take you, and where it was really made.

Josh Homme sang nearly every part on the debut and credited himself as 'Carlo' for the bass.

Key places

Where 'I Was a Teenage Hand Model' was recorded (1998)

Recording site Rancho De La Luna — The track was recorded separately from the April 1998 sessions at Rancho De La Luna in Joshua Tree, California. The studio's own personnel took part as performers, with studio owner Fred Drake singing and playing drums. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Where the album was mastered (1998)

Recording site DigiPrep — The album's recordings were mixed by Joe Barresi, and mastering was done by Dan Hersch at DigiPrep in Hollywood. The studio is the mastering location for the album. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Debut studio album by the American rock band Queens of the Stone Age
• Released 22 September 1998 through Loosegroove Records in the US, Roadrunner Records internationally, and Man's Ruin Records on vinyl
• Mostly written and recorded in April 1998 by Josh Homme and Alfredo Hernández
• Hernández played drums; Homme sang lead vocals and played most other instruments
• Homme produced the album alongside Joe Barresi
• Nick Oliveri, also a former Kyuss member, joined the band by the time of release

Background

• Kyuss broke up in 1995
• Homme recorded new material in Seattle with Chris Goss, Van Conner and Victor Indrizzo under the name Gamma Ray, released as the Gamma Ray EP in 1996
• Homme toured as a guitarist with Screaming Trees and started The Desert Sessions
• A cease and desist order over the name Gamma Ray, already used by a German band, led Homme to rename the project Queens of the Stone Age
• The 1997 Kyuss / Queens of the Stone Age split EP was the first release under the new name

Recording

• The first ten tracks were recorded in April 1998 at Monkey Studios in Homme's hometown of Palm Desert, California
• 'I Was a Teenage Hand Model' was recorded separately at Rancho De La Luna in Joshua Tree, California
• The recordings were mixed by Barresi and mastered by Dan Hersch at DigiPrep in Hollywood

Cover

• The cover image comes from the 1972 book The Pin-Up: A Modest History by Mark Gabor, featuring Trinidadian-British model Sylvia Bayo

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · fr.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Queens of the Stone Age is an American rock band formed in Palm Desert, California, in 1996 by vocalist and guitarist Josh Homme.
• The band was founded shortly after the dissolution of Homme's previous band Kyuss.
• Its self-titled debut album was released in 1998.

Members

• Josh Homme is the only constant member through multiple line-up changes.
• The line-up since 2013 consists of Homme, Troy Van Leeuwen, Michael Shuman, Dean Fertita, and Jon Theodore.
• Former members include Nick Oliveri, Mark Lanegan, Joey Castillo, and Natasha Shneider.

Career

• Rated R (2000) was the band's major label debut with Interscope Records and was critically and commercially successful.
• Songs for the Deaf (2002) featured Dave Grohl on drums and was certified gold in 2003.
• ...Like Clockwork (2013) became the band's first album to top the Billboard 200 chart.
• The band has been nominated for 9 Grammy Awards.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Stoner rock genre placement, with comparisons to krautrock acts Neu! and Can, and to Kyuss and other metal bands
• NME: Kitty Empire gave it 8 out of 10, comparing it to Kyuss
• Entertainment Weekly: Tom Sinclair gave it a B−, saying it was a bit too cerebral to fall under the stoner rock label
• Rolling Stone: James Hunter gave it four stars out of five
• Spin: Joe Gross gave it 7 out of 10
• The Village Voice: Robert Christgau rated it a dud in his Consumer's Guide column

Reappraisal

• 2011 reissue: Metacritic average of 78% based on 10 critics
• Rolling Stone: Chuck Eddy gave the reissue four stars out of five
• Consequence of Sound: Karina Halle gave the reissue a B
• Drowned in Sound: Noel Gardner gave it 8 out of 10
• Pitchfork: Stuart Berman gave it 8 out of 10
• PopMatters: Stuart Branson gave it 7 out of 10
• The A.V. Club: Austin L. Ray gave it a B−

Records

• Certified silver in the United Kingdom in February 2006, for sales exceeding 60,000 copies
• Listed in the 2010 reference book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, the only Queens of the Stone Age album included

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · fr.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Nick Oliveri appears in the closing moments as a recorded answering machine message in which he agrees to join the band; he had joined just before release and stayed until 2004.
• The cover image comes from the 1972 book The Pin-Up: A Modest History by Mark Gabor.
• Homme credited himself under the pseudonym 'Carlo' for his bass guitar, keyboard, and piano work.
• Hutch, live sound engineer for both Kyuss and Queens of the Stone Age, is credited as a group member with the roles 'FOH', 'guru', 'HardWalls', and 'back of door'.
• The Gamma Ray name had to be dropped after a cease and desist order because a German band already used it.
• The album is the only Queens of the Stone Age release listed in 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die (2010).

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com

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