Caught in the Carousel

Eagles of Death Metal

Heart On
Downtown

Eagles of Death Metal

The country might be going down the toilet, along with your house and all those hard-earned dollars, but rest assured, The Eagles Of Death Metal are still making music that demands to be enjoyed. They remind us that all is not lost on their third album, Heart On. Boots Electric and Baby Duck (Jesse Hughes and Josh Homme) are back with the follow up to their 2006 release, Death by Sexy, and quickly step right back into their filthy-fun, sex-laden, gyrating groove, leaving scores of women in their wake, per usual, and creating the urge to take a run down a slip n' slide coated in hot caramel, sans clothes, with some of said ladies waiting at the end of the ride for assistance.

Heart On doesn't have that same frenetic, impetuous sound that Death by Sexy thrived on. Their third album has slowed down some, though some of the songs—"Secret Plans" in particular—recall that speed and intensity. For the most part, the boys are calling on more of a blues and funk rhythm, but that doesn't mean they've sacrificed their power to make you sweat, stomp your feet, or help you slip under the covers with that special someone (special for that night, at least). The album ranges from the haunting, eerie bass and guitar of "Solo Flight" to the primal, jungle beat and twanging guitar of the closing number, "I'm Your Torpedo." Most of the time the two stick to a fairly stripped down sound, letting the lyrics do both the walking and the talking. Am I supposed to take these two seriously? is a question many ask of The Eagles Of Death Metal (Boots Electric? Baby Duck?, Death by Sexy?), especially when taking a look at some of the photos of the band and reading their lyrics. Let me go ahead and answer that question: YES. These men are dedicated to good old-fashioned, filthy, lubed-up tunes. Hughes is dead serious when he sings, "Falling in love is a losing game," on the album's title track, going on to make the statement, "What good's a heart if it ain't on your sleeve." The lyrics here are simple, sure, and border on the ridiculous at times ("Bumping a rump, we do a dance called prissy prancin'") but that's what makes them so goddamned good. Whatever you may think of the The Eagles of Death Metal there's no denying their intent to move you and make you have a good time. On both counts they succeed.

The opener is a song called "Anything 'Cept the Truth," where Boots Electric sings, "I'll tell you anything baby 'cept the truth," setting the tone for the rest of Heart On. Boots and Baby Duck get their hands on a number of things here: infidelity, losing your identity, the pursuit of fame and glory, the fallout from that pursuit, finding yourself abandoned and alone by your so-called friends, and of course creating music that makes you smile (it's almost impossible not to when you hear Boots initially reflect and then shout, "It used to be a massacre/I never got a second glance/Now I'm kinda lethal on the dance floor/Tight pants"). It isn't all fun for Boots Electric and Baby Duck though, as Boots' mooning on the song, "Now I'm a Fool," shows us: "I'm tellin' my friends about you/Not to say you're 'the one'/But I put down my guns/Then you went Hollywood on me/Now I'm a fool." The album features cameos ranging from Brody Dalle of the Distillers to Kat Von D, the well-known tattoo artist, both of who sing back up as part of "The Eagle'ettes," on the final song of the album. We see a different side of The Eagles of Death Metal in Heart On; more vulnerable, sure, but just as ready and willing to break hearts. They've come to take your mind off the turmoil, the gloom and doom you can't help but be inundated by on a daily basis and take you out of yourself for a good forty so minutes of decadent, carefree entertainment. And for that, I thank them. As far as I'm concerned, the slightly softer side of The Eagles of Death Metal is working out just fine.

—Patrick Holian