The first single from the album, "New Fang", was released on October 26, 2009.[3] On November 3, 2009, they released their second single, via free download on iTunes, entitled "Mind Eraser, No Chaser". "Dead End Friends" was released as a promotional single on the same day as the album's release.
The album was first released on November 13, 2009, in Ireland, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and Australia. It was then released by DGC/Interscope[4] in the United States on November 17, 2009;[3] it was released in the United Kingdom by Columbia a day earlier.[4] Prior to release, the album could be viewed on the band's YouTube channel.
The album received a Metascore of 75 from review aggregator Metacritic, based on 23 critics, indicating generally favorable reviews.[6]Rhapsody deemed it the 19th best album of 2009.[17]Chicago Tribune reviewer Greg Kot was particularly complimentary of the album, giving it a rating of 3.5/4, he said "Nasty riffs and sticky melodies are everywhere". He also praised multi-instrumentalistJohn Paul Jones, saying his "mastery of texture, whether on funky Clavinet for 'Scumbag Blues,' classical piano on 'Spinning in Daffodils' or slide guitar for 'Reptiles,' is the band's secret weapon".[9]
The A.V. Club's Steven Hyden said the group's album "doesn’t equal the considerable awesomeness of its ancestors (the aforementioned Led Zeppelin, Nirvana and Queens of the Stone Age); it sounds like a second-tier Queens Of The Stone Age record", and that it "could have fit comfortably under Homme’s usual banner". He did however, commend it for being "a hell of a lot of fun" and awarded it a B+, adding "The biggest pleasure of Them Crooked Vultures is hearing three supremely gifted players fall together quickly and easily on songs built on simple riffs that sound like they were made up on a lark five minutes earlier."[8]
David Quantick of BBC gave the album a highly favorable review saying "Their debut album is very good indeed. Released, rather oddly, at virtually the same time as Foo Fighters' new greatest hits collection, this album sounds by and large like QOTSA, as Homme sings and plays guitar, but with – unsurprisingly really – Zeppelin-esque touches. From 'Scumbag Blues', which could have fitted loudly on the second Zep’ album, to the superb single 'No One Loves Me & Neither Do I', which is a distant cousin to 'Trampled Under Foot', this is a proper rock album that's very aware of its roots."[18]
Track listingedit
All tracks are written by and produced by Them Crooked Vultures.
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
Referencesedit
Leanne (October 23, 2009). "Them Crooked Vultures Announce UK Release Of Debut Album". Glasswerk National. Archived from the original on October 27, 2009. Retrieved October 24, 2009.
^"Raditude - Weezer". Billboard.com. November 21, 2009. Retrieved March 2, 2011.
^"John Mayer tops album chart; Norah Jones and Justin Bieber, not too shabby". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved November 26, 2009.
^ ab"Crooked Vultures set release date". The Gazette. October 24, 2009. Retrieved October 24, 2009. [dead link]
^ abGavin Riley (October 23, 2009). "Them Crooked Vultures LP Due November". Strangleglue.com. Archived from the original on July 26, 2011. Retrieved October 24, 2009.
^"Them Crooked Vultures by Them Crooked Vultures reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved January 10, 2020.
^ ab"Reviews for Them Crooked Vultures by Them Crooked Vultures". Metacritic. Retrieved November 22, 2009.
^ abHyden, Steven (November 17, 2009). "Them Crooked Vultures: Them Crooked Vultures". The A.V. Club. Retrieved November 26, 2009.
^ abKot, Greg (November 12, 2009). "Album review: 'Them Crooked Vultures'". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on March 9, 2012. Retrieved November 25, 2009.
^Collis, Clark (November 13, 2009). "Them Crooked Vultures". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved November 26, 2009.
^Petridis, Alexis (November 12, 2009). "Them Crooked Vultures: Them Crooked Vultures". The Guardian. London. Retrieved January 10, 2020.
^Gill, Andy (November 20, 2009). "Album: Them Crooked Vultures, Them Crooked Vultures (RCA)". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on October 12, 2014. Retrieved November 25, 2009.
^Colly, Joe (November 19, 2009). "Them Crooked Vultures: Them Crooked Vultures". Pitchfork. Retrieved November 26, 2009.
^Sheffield, Rob (November 10, 2009). "Them Crooked Vultures: Them Crooked Vultures". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on November 12, 2009. Retrieved November 25, 2009.
^Clay, Joe (November 14, 2009). "Them Crooked Vultures: Them Crooked Vultures". The Times. London. Retrieved January 10, 2020.
^The 25 Best Albums of 2009 Archived 2010-07-31 at the Wayback Machine Referenced July 31, 2010
^A funny, powerful and edgy debut from new supergroup on the block. David Quantick. BBC