Today we are looking at the newest single by Queens Of The Stone Age in anticipation of their new album Villains, due for release this Friday. This track called The Evil Has Landed is a bit different from the previously released The Way You Used To Do, feeling much more like a blend of classic QOTSA and Them Crooked Vultures. Unlike the majority of Villains (according to those who have heard the leaked version) this track doesn’t feature many funk elements, instead being mildly bluesy with a straightforward rock sound overall. The one similarity this song does have to The Way You Used To Do is that at least parts of it have the same signature Mark Ronson production.
The only real issue I have with this track is that the first 2:30 or so is extremely thin sounding with the drums and bass being barely audible and the guitar being compressed to hell. On further listens I realized that it works as a bit of a buildup as the subsequent sections get progressively nastier and thicker. Even though the sterile production on the first section of the song is a bit much for me, I still find this track to be a great effort from QOTSA. I think this is a nice middle ground between their usual sound and the more polished and funky sound of Villains overall.
I’m curious to hear how Mark Ronson’s clean cut and compression heavy production style works on the full album as QOTSA are generally a pretty dynamic and lo-fi band. The combination could certainly work as previous artists like Jack White and Muse have taken very raw and nasty sounding music and converted to clear and sharp production similar to Ronson’s. From the clips I’ve heard of other tracks, Feet Don’t Fail in particular this album appears to have a really nasty funk vibe to it, similarly to The Way You Used To Do. While funky QOTSA might not sound appealing to everyone, I really dig what I’ve heard so far.
Overall I think this track is good, it’s a bit of a struggle for me to get past the first section because the drums and bass being so low in the mix and all of the empty space bugs me. Once I get past that section though this song absolutely rocks. I get the effect they’re going for, and they do accomplish it by starting small and then ramping up, but I just don’t like the beginning that much. So yeah, I’d quantify that as like a 6 or 7 out of 10 if I did ratings.
Today we are looking at the soundtrack album for the DC film Suicide Squad. Much like one of my other favorite film soundtracks, The Great Gatsby, there is a bit of confusion over which version is the official version. I will be looking at the 10 track version that seems to be all original songs or covers done specifically for Suicide Squad. The 14 track version features the Classic Rock tracks Slippin Into Darkness and Fortunate Son as well as Eminem’s Without Me and a really good cover of You Don’t Own Me by Grace and G-Eazy.
The album opens up with probably the most in your face track here, Purple Lamborghini by Rick Ross and Skrillex. Ross does a pretty good job of detailing various aspects of the Suicide Squad, referencing various characters and locations from the DC Universe. His rhymes are solid enough and match with Skrillex’s amazing beat. The only real weaknesses are that Ross slips into some of his generic boasts a few times and seems uncertain on if he’s taking the role of Joker or if he’s rapping about the squad in general. Skrillex’s beat makes this song amazing however, from the horn and synth lines on the verses to the huge drop that makes up the hook, this is just further proof of Sonny Moore’s brilliance.
The next track is a collaboration between rap heavyweights Lil’ Wayne and Wiz Khalifa and Imagine Dragons with Logic, Ty Dolla $ign and X Ambassadors. Sucker For Pain surprisingly doesn’t feel overcrowded at any point, largely because each verse adds a piece of the rapper’s personality without straying too far from the main theme. This song relates to the film more so in tone than in content, with each artist adopting some form of pain obsessed crazed criminal. While there is a decent bit of bragging it’s all set to a somber tone, with some of the rappers alluding to having a chance to do some good, paralleling the villains turned heroes of the Suicide Squad. All the rappers are fantastic and Dan Reynolds does the hook perfectly while the rest of Imagine Dragons handle the backing music brilliantly.
We then have the biggest hit to come off of this album, twenty one pilots’ Heathens. As I’ve well established by now I am a huge TOP fan, but I actually heard this song pretty early into my discovery of them. This was the second thing I heard from twenty one pilots after the Blurryface album and I love it’s more traditional rock feel. While the verses still feature Tyler rapping, the track feels mostly like a down tempo Alt Rock track. The octave effects put on Tyler’s voice help sustain a really eerie feeling as. Along with production tricks, they also throw you off a bit by playing with syncopation on the chorus, hitting lines either early or late. It’s a very simple song with some really sophisticated elements to it and it just get’s stuck in your head for days.
Nothing else on this album matches the power and excellence of the first three tracks; nonetheless it’s still pretty solid throughout. Kehlani’s Gangsta is a damn fine gangster’s girlfriend track that I think is supposed to be Harley Quinn’s theme song of sorts. The beat is pretty solid but Kehlani’s vocals are what makes the track work so well. Two-thirds of the next track, Standing In The Rain works pretty well; Dan Auerbach's delivery on the hook works beautifully at conveying a sense of desperation and sadness at being betrayed. The other thing that works is Mark Ronson’s beat and production, which even makes Action Bronson’s crappy rap verses sound decent. But that is what ultimately sinks this song, Action Bronson’s raps do not match the tone of anything else in the song at all, honestly Kevin Gates verses on the next track would have worked better for this song.
Speaking of Kevin Gates, this is the first time I’ve ever bothered to listen to him and I see why so many of my friends like this guy. First off his lower voice and power behind his lines gives off this raw masculine vibe that’s missing in modern hip hop. Gate’s flow and lyrics are masterful on this track, perfectly blending his actual life into the song in a way that makes it fit with the Suicide Squad. This is the only track that gets close to the epic level of the first three tracks.
Skylar Grey’s Wreak Havoc seems to be portraying Enchantress, if I’m going to continue trying to link songs to characters. The lyrics convey this really arrogant attitude that would really only fit Enchantress since she’s basically a goddess. There are also lines about people hating that they need her and the overall idea that all she’s here for is to wreak havoc. After this we have Grimes’ song Medieval Warfare that is just kind of there. I honestly forgot this song existed and pretty much have forgotten it again already. While I Started A Joke is technically the closing track, it’s pretty boring and not really worth talking about, to me the closer to this album is Panic! At The Disco’s cover of the Queen classic Bohemian Rhapsody.
For some background, Panic! Have been covering this track live for some time now, with the members of the touring band going as far to replicate Brian May’s guitar sounds and other aspects as closely as possible. On top of the attention to details, Brendon Urie is one of three or four singers who could actually hope to do a Freddie Mercury song justice. Even though his voice isn’t quite Mercury, Urie hits every single note of the song and gives the best performance I’ve seen anyone who wasn’t a Muppet give covering this song. While I’m certainly not going to say it holds a candle to the original, this is the best cover I think we'll ever get.
Overall this album is a little bit of a mixed bag at times, but just like the Suicide Squad movie I think the positives outweigh the negatives for me. I would definitely recommend six, maybe even seven of the songs on this album, and obviously I’d recommend the four extra ones on other versions of the soundtrack. I have to give it credit though, because basically every track on this album has a similar enough tone and style to make this feel like an album and not a collection of random songs used in a movie.
An Album a Day is posted 5 days a week, Monday-Friday
The first single off of Queens Of The Stone Age’s forthcoming album Villians (Which is most certainly not being produced by Mark Ronson) is everything you’d expect from this crew. The Way You Used To Do is filled to the brim with fuzzy as all hell guitar riffing mixed with the demented crooning of Josh Homme. These elements are matched with a powerful bassline and set to a catchy swing beat you can easily dance to. This filthy mix of trashiness and soul all set to a beat you can dance to feels right at home in the Queens’ catalogue.
Ronson’s production touches can be felt in the handclaps used to keep time as well as on the absolutely pristine compression used to focus Homme’s fuzzy guitar into a garrote wire. The song isn’t so different from previous tracks the Queens’ have done, reminding me a lot of a swung version of My God Is The Sun from their last album, ...Like Clockwork. If this any indication of a prevailing style on the rest of the album then I’m very interested in hearing the rest of Villians.
The only real negatives I can find in this track is that the drums are a bit buried in the mix, but they do blend in with the handclaps pretty seamlessly, one of the many signs of good production by Ronson. The production value is pretty high on this track, adding polish without losing the very messy and trashy sound that Queens’ are known for. I was particularly impressed with the way that the various guitar tracks both blend together and can be heard apart from each other very well, with the bass line being clearly felt and heard as well. With the amount of fuzz and instrumentation from this band it would very easy to lose the individual instruments.
This song likely isn’t going to bring in any new fans, and it isn’t supposed to. This is a song for the fans and in all likelihood the album will also be. Homme and co. have never really seemed to be bothered too much with the idea of mainstream success or doing anything besides making bluesy stoner rock for themselves and whoever would listen. By all accounts, Villians will do exactly that, just maybe with some handclaps and horn sections courtesy of Mark Ronson.
