Album Review: Joshua Homme - 'Desert Sessions Vols. 11 & 12'
After a 16 year hiatus, one of rocks most enigmatic characters is back with his infamous Desert Sessions mixtape. What started as a casual retreat to Joshua Tree with a few musical friends, has become an infamous symposium.
With previous acts like PJ Harvey, Nick Oliveri, Jesse Hughes, Mark Lanegan and Josh Freese contributing to the sessions - and Josh Homme's probably infinite rolodex of mates to call upon - you know you're going to be in for a treat when the time rolls around again for the next release.
Volumes 11 & 12 are respectively called Arrivederci Despair and Tightwads & Nitwits & Critics & Heels, and features the likes of Billy Gibbons (ZZ Top), Stella Mozgawa (Warpaint), Jake Shears (Scissor Sisters), Mike Kerr (Royal Blood), Carla Azar (Autolux), Les Claypool (Primus), Matt Berry (What We Do In The Shadows) Matt Sweeney (Chavez), Libby Grace and the mysteriously eccentric Töôrnst Hülpft.
Throughout the eight songs is an interlinked quirk; an amorphous sound that comes from not having to stick within your expected creative niche. By stripping things back and collaborating with 11 other people who you may or may not know, brings an element of freedom that is often hard to find when you've been doing something for such a long time, under strict restraints. From the sparse electro beats of 'Move Together' which erupt into a trippy assault on the senses, to the classic Homme-style big fat dirty riffage of 'Noses in Roses Forever', there's something for everyone on this mixtape.
Where a lot of the songs on Vols. 9 & 10 often felt like they held resemblance to each other, there are only two similarities on this new batch of songs. 'Far East for the Trees' takes on a swampy folk vibe as if you were watching your ayahuasca trip unravel before your eyes. Obscure Moog synths come in and grate everything up before molten and oozy keys melt it all back together again. 'If You Run' has a similar swampy vibe, but more in the sense of you being sat around a campfire after a long day. It is ambient and piercing, all at the same time. 'Crucifire' and 'Easier Said Than Done' take on that classic rock format, and 'Chic Tweetz' is a phenomenally eccentric addition to the line-up.
It is apparent that weird and wonderful things happen during a week in the middle of the desert. With tales of tequila and wine flowing most evenings, it's no surprise that this is Josh Homme's most adventurous effort to date!
Words by Tyler Damara Kelly