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introKönig Pilsener-Arena, Oberhausen, Germany
9th November 2017
Queens of the Stone Age – “Villains World Tour 2017” – Support: Broncho

The Californian band QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, or QOTSA - as they are being referred to by their fans – made their way to Oberhausen during their current world tour, promoting their 7th studio album ‘Villains’, which was released this summer. It has been a while since their last live appearance, and so it was not completely surprising that several thousand enthusiasts made their way to the König Pilsener Arena to see their idols.


Broncho

But first, rather early at 7:30pm, the warmup act BRONCHO entered the stage to present their version of wave-influenced punk and alternative rock. BRONCHO has been formed in Norman, Oklahoma in 2010, and has released three albums so far. The two songs, ‘Try Me Out Sometime’ and ‘Class Historian’ were featured in a TV show and commercial respectively, and the band has received a wildly enthusiastic endorsement of Josh Homme from QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE. http://www.bronchoband.com / https://www.facebook.com/bronchoband/

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Music & Performance
I am not entirely sure if it was down to the pretty loud and undifferentiated sound production, or the complete lack of interaction with the audience on behalf of the band, that the 30-minute set came across rather uninspired and even unnerving. So it was like you could almost feel the relief of those inside the arena, who did not escape to the bars outside, after the set was over. To be fair, the studio productions of the band sound much more differentiated and pleasant. Fans of alternative acts such as TY SEGALL or VIET CONG should check them out.

Setlist
01. Class Historian
02. Stay Loose
03. NC-17
04. Get in my car
05. Tenny
06. Losers
07. Lips
08. Record
09. Try Me out sometime

Rating
Music: 6
Performance: 5
Sound: 4
Light: 5
Total: 5 / 10

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Queens of the Stone Age

QOTSA have formed around the front man Josh Homme, when another pioneering band for the genre Alternative Rock, KYUSS dissolved itself in 1995. They quickly gained traction, while collaborating with several with music titans such as Dave Grohl (ex-NIRVANA / FOO FIGHTERS), Stone Gossard (PEARL JAM) and Trent Reznor (NINE INCH NAILS). http://www.qotsa.com / https://www.facebook.com/QOTSA

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Music & Performance
After the obligatory 30-minute break, the lights went out, the band members entered the stage to the 80ies queer club hymn ‘Walk the Night’ from the SKATT BROTHERS, and started to perform the opening song ‘If I had a Tail’ from their 2013 masterpiece ‘…like clockwork’. Much to the shock and awe of the audience, the sound engineers did obviously not really bother to balance the instruments, but instead took the volume a few notches higher, so the songs were difficult to identify initially. Nevertheless, the band kept playing straight on for three more songs, before lead singer (and only original remaining band member) Josh Homme announced their hit single ‘The Way you used to do’ from their most recent album ‘Villains’. It seemed as if after this song, the band had rediscovered their hitherto lost groove, because afterwards the musicians looked much more relaxed, and also singer Josh Homme giggly declared that it to be Saturday night (it was a Thursday), and suggested everyone should take their pants off and dance, very much like a college kid who had one too many edibles.

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Also the audience in front of the stage started having fun by forming small circle pits to the song ‘No one knows’ from their 2002 masterpiece ‘Songs for the Deaf’, which culminated into a three minute drum solo by drummer Jon Theodore, the most recent band member. The evening reached its boiling point as Josh declared it was his dream to have intercourse with everyone inside the arena, and the band kicked off the instant hook up catalyst song, which belongs on every mixtape for your potential Tinder matches: ‘Make it wit Chu’. During this song, Josh initiated singing battles between different sections of the audience, between the present males and females, and had fun rubbing one of those tall light panels on stage in a suggestive way, so everyone had a really good time. The set closed with the 18th song ‘Go with the Flow’, not after the lead singer urged the audience for the tenth time to enjoy each moment as much as possible, a request which becomes much more relatable when you know about the life-threatening illness, which befell the singer in 2010.

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Enthusiastic clapping and screaming by the fans forced the band back on stage for the encore, during which they performed three more songs, and the curtains finally fell after more than two hours of playing time. So every one of the thirtysomethings and upwards went home with their ears ringing, and the unique happy feeling of having witnessed a good night out.

Setlist
01. If I Had a Tail
02. Monsters in the Parasol
03. My God Is the Sun
04. Feet Don't Fail Me
05. The Way You Used to Do
06. You Think I Ain't Worth a Dollar, but I Feel Like a Millionaire
07. No One Knows
08. Avon
09. The Evil Has Landed
10. I Sat by the Ocean
11. Smooth Sailing
12. Domesticated Animals
13. Make It Wit Chu
14. I Appear Missing
15. Villains of Circumstance
16. Little Sister
17. Sick, Sick, Sick
18. Go With the Flow
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19. Head Like a Haunted House
20. Un-Reborn Again
21. A Song for the Dead

Rating
Music: 8
Performance: 8
Sound: 7
Light: 9
Total: 8 / 10

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All pictures by Daniela Vorndran (http://www.vorndranphotography.com / http://www.facebook.com/blackcatnet)


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