Them Crooked Vultures - ACC Toronto, May 15, 2010

Them Crooked Vultures.... Them friggin' AWESOME!

For those of you who have been living under a (music free) rock, Them Crooked Vultures is the side project collaboration between a few dudes you may have heard of perhaps (I so need a sarcasm font!).....John Paul Jones, Dave Grohl and Josh Homme.  As indicated by the boys themselves, the sound of the band can be described as follows:  "It sounds like the guy from Queens of the Stone Age singing and playing guitar with the bass player from Led Zeppelin and the drummer from Nirvana" (ah, I love it!)  So, you know immediately, with this level of talent involved, that you are going to get some quality sound. 

Going to this show was a no brainer.  Who knows if they'll ever tour together again, and man, to have the privilege of seeing these musicians live.....just Wow!  I don't know a whole lot about Queens of the Stone Age and Josh Homme (can now very confidently say that his voice sounds like sex through a mic so will be looking them up), but Dave Grohl is one of my favorite musicians ever, and I feel justified in saying I think he is one of the most musically talented men alive on the planet  (challenge me on this one...I dare ya!).  John Paul Jones....do I really need to say more?  Really?  (Gonna!)....For any true music fan, being able to witness John Paul Jones in action can be equated to touching the Holy Grail.  So, very excited, we headed down to the Air Canada Centre in Toronto Saturday night, prepared (in fact, hoping) to have our faces melted off!

The opening act was the Arkells, a band from Hamilton.  There was a lot of hype for these guys....a big deal about the Vultures having hand picked them, their Juno win, etc.  While they weren't "bad", I was underwhelmed by them.  I do feel sorry for any opening band though as a general rule.  While over the years I've made a lot of cool discoveries through opening acts, it has to be a hard place to be in - usually, nobody is there to see them, and the crowd is hoping they hurry the hell up and get off the stage so the main event can get going.  May give them a second look later on - just didn't grab me initially, and I've heard good things, so will re-check them out at some point.

Them Crooked Vultures:  Holy Hell!

I see a lot of live music shows, and I like a lot of different genres of music.  I take enjoyment from pretty much everything I see for different reasons.  But this show....this show was on a whole other level.  Here's the thing, with this show....it was straight out, no frills, no drama, all substance, high end talent, blood and guts rock and roll.

From the moment they stepped on the stage, until they took a bow and said goodnight, it was about the music, and I was IN.  There wasn't a lot of banter, there wasn't an elaborate stage show, or props, or theatrics.  I felt like I'd been transported back to the seventies, where true rock and roll ruled. 

Josh Homme, as front man, gained a new fan in me.  He had presence, but without the constant swagger most front men are known for.  He didn't deliberately work the crowd (no need...), they just drank in his effortlessly flawlessly sexy vocals and reacted accordingly with adoration.  Add his guitar wielding into the mix, and you have some music magic happening.

Dave Grohl didn't disappoint on drums (not that I expected him to)....watching him was just amazing, and I'm not entirely sure how he didn't pass out midway through the show he was so into it.  He rocked my world!  Picture Animal from the muppets....and you have a visual of Dave Grohl on drums.  Frantically, mindblowingly, skillfully, awesome.

And really, what can I say about John Paul Jones.  We were in the presence of a true rock and roll legend, and the crowd knew it and appreciated it, and he delivered.  There were moments that I stood back (there was no sitting....this was a ROCK show), and just drank him in.  Genius!

Add in Alain Johannes, their equally talented tour guitarist, and the living dream machine, complete with heart, rock and roll soul, and the best genetics ever, blew us away.  Musical collaboration at it's best.  (Check out "Reptiles" below...my favorite tune of the night).  When you have this level of musical excellence, joined together on one stage, you must consider yourself fortunate to worship at their alter.  And the beautiful part, the part that made it such a joy to experience, is that I believe they enjoyed it as much as we did....for these men, these musicians in the truest sense of the word, playing music for a crowd ain't a job, it's their lifeblood. 

Face.  MELTED.  Off!