Finally I'm able to listen to this album, and I have to say it's really good so far! (5 listens already). I had low hopes after the lullabies to paralyze release, but this one has no fillers in it like the last albums had, although, as panbient said, this is not a perfect album, bu at least all of the songs are interesting.

Very good album

Few albums are perfect but that doesn't mean that they can't rock

i'll be seeing them on tuesday. it's their last north american show before heading to europe so i'm hoping josh and his crew pull out some rarities. really hoping to hear 'infinity ego' or 'born to hula'. 'run pig run' should be massive.

Oh shall have to try it again then I guess, because the few times I listened to it, it was a total let down. "Make it witch chu" is annoying, I find and there didn't seem to be much to spark my interest.

Enjoyed Era Vulgaris as my User Title suggests

Check out the Desert Sessions.

well show was 2 nights ago, here's what i remember.

waiting in line for the doors to open SUCKED, holy fucking balls the wind was crazy strong and extra cold right on the waterfront.

the venue was a converted port warehouse, possibly an old train station. long and narrow, no raised sections. which made for a fair amount of echo and poor viewing for those behind the gate for the pit, unless you were over 6 feet tall (like me). i hung out around the sound / lights area figuring it would be the best sounding spot in the place, i also got to see j-roc from the trailer park boys walk right in front of me (i hear bubbles was next to him but i didn't recognize him)

onto the music, the opening act was mugison from iceland. they were, well, they were a great opening act. they definitely have a QOTSA influence without sounding like a copycat but didn't really stand out for me. their first tune was probably my favourite, mainly because the keyboard player was accentuating the main riff with a trumpet. unfortunately that was the only time he played the trumpet, thankfully my drummer was next to me and all too happy to add in his own vocal trumpet sounds for the last few tunes (which i really think should have had more brass and less keys). they also tried a little too hard a little too soon, trying to get the crowd to clap along on the 2nd tune didn't work, same with getting all the women in the crowd (who weren't trashed yet) to moan 'jesus' like they were getting it on. also, what's the point of playing an acoustic guitar if you're going to add a bunch of distortion onto it?

as for the queens. they fucking rocked. didn't play any of the tunes i was hoping for though, very little early material actually. josh was quite talkative and the band was really animated. when i saw them in montreal a few years ago they pretty much just stood there and played, this time everyone was moving around. troy even made a snappy comeback to josh while he was introducing 'make it wit chu' hehe. homme's guitar seemed to cut out or something during the solo to 'little sister', couldn't tell if it was a technical issue or if he was too trashed and screwed up (he did mention how much he liked drinking in canada a few times).

as for the set, from what i remember it went something like this

go with the flow
do it again
feel good hit of the summer / i want a new drug*
lost art of keeping a secret
3s & 7s
misfit love
monsters in the parasol
little sister
burn the witch
i never came
in the fade
i wanna make it wit chu
battery acid
sick sick sick
turning on the screw
you can't quit me baby
no one knows

-encore-
millionaire
songs for the dead


* yes, that's a huey lewis cover.

i have to say i was REALLY surprised to hear them play 'in the fade' though. i wasn't expecting that one at all and it's one of my favourites. the limited tour edition double disc version of 'era vulgaris' was also for sale at the show for $15. the bonus tracks aren't really that great on first listen, nothing really outstanding to my ears. the bonus live disc from last summer in amsterdam is worth the $15 though, hell just the jam out on 'regular john' is worth the $15.

Nice

Do they play extended "jams"? I haven't seen them in concert as the main act yet.

i found they stretched out more when i saw them in montreal in 2005. the only ones they stretched this time around were 'no one knows' and 'songs for the dead' but if you've heard the live in london disc that came out a few years ago you already know the general flow of those 'jams'. they did twist riffs around a little for some instrumental bits or different solos but they never really went 'out there' hehe

i'm thinking it mostly depends on whether or not the band smoked or drank before the show. tuesday was definitely a drinking show

As recent as a week or two ago I would've sympathized with you on that, but all of a sudden this week the heat just rolled right in around here...according to my car's temperature thing, it was 98º while I was driving home. I'm sure it gets way hotter than that in some places where people around here live, and it gets hotter than that here, too, but not usually til the middle of the summer, and especially not when I was wearing a sweatshirt and jeans to school just a week earlier. I guess this means it's gonna get pretty nasty by the time July hits. Global warming, yikes.