Lullabies to Paralyze
Encyclopedia
Lullabies to Paralyze is the fourth studio album
by hard rock
band Queens of the Stone Age
, released on March 21, 2005. The album debuted at #5 on the Billboard 200
, and sold 97,000 copies in America during its first week of release, eventually topping over 342,000 copies as of March, 2007 according to Nielsen Soundscan
. It is the highest charting Queens of the Stone Age album to date. The album has been certified gold in the UK, where it has sold over 100,000 units. It is also the band's first album to be released after Nick Oliveri
was fired from the band. Josh Homme and Mark Lanegan
are the only members from the previous album, Songs For The Deaf
, to play on this album.
by naming it after a line in "Mosquito Song", the final track on Songs for the Deaf. The "deluxe limited edition" of the album includes a bonus track and a bonus DVD
containing "a look behind the scenes and special bonus footage". Videos were produced for singles Little Sister
, In My Head and Burn the Witch
, as well as "Everybody Knows That You Are Insane" and "Someone's in the Wolf". The "Everybody Knows That You Are Insane" video was broadcasted frequently for a number of months on MTV during 2005, while the video for "Someone's in the Wolf" was featured on the bonus DVD of Lullabies to Paralyze.
The album was delayed during 2004 because of some changes to the line-up: bassist, vocalist, and co-songwriter Nick Oliveri
was fired and on-off vocalist Mark Lanegan
went on tour with his own band.
Lanegan can nevertheless still be heard singing on several songs of the album as well as contributing lyrics. Because of this turmoil, there had been rumours that Lanegan had left the band, which Josh Homme eventually clarified in several interviews was never the case. Nevertheless he encouraged these rumours to draw the attention off the band by giving the press "something to focus on while I was just making the record".
, the average score being 78 out of 100 on Metacritic
based on 31 professional reviews.
Kevin Forest Moreau awarded it 3rd best album of the year 2005, Billboard magazine ranked it 7th best album, Magnet magazine
ranked it 9th, and Filter magazine
considered it 10th best album of the year 2005.
JustPressPlay ranked it #31 on its list of the Top 100 Albums of the 2000s and named "Tangled Up in Plaid" the 19th best song of the decade.
Lullabies To Paralyze was certified gold in the UK on April 15, 2005 with sales exceeding 100,000 copies.
, Troy Van Leeuwen
and Joey Castillo
, except where noted. All lyrics written by Homme, except additional lyrics on "Medication", "Tangled Up in Plaid" and "Long Slow Goodbye" by Mark Lanegan
.
The "Hidden Finale" later appears as the main riff in the song "Running Joke", a b-side that appears on Era Vulgaris
.
and contains a different cover to the CD version. The sides are named Once, You, Were & Lost, after a line from "Someone's in the Wolf", with each containing a mixture of the CD's album and bonus tracks.
Side one - Once
Side two - You
Side three - Were
Side four - Lost
Most online retailers list the songs on the bonus CD as the March 19, 2005 show in Atlanta, but at least "The Lost Art of Keeping a Secret" and "Regular John" are actually from the show in Washington, DC on March 27, 2005.
The final item on the song listing (located behind the CD in the normal version, or inside the booklet in the deluxe edition), below "Long Slow Goodbye" reads:
During that time, the band assumed that the tapes of that song were either lost or stolen. A live version of this song can be found on the DVD release Over the Years and Through the Woods
. Homme: "The tapes got lost. Actually, they were just at another studio, but we falsely accused everyone in the world of theft."
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
by hard rock
Hard rock
Hard rock is a loosely defined genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage rock, blues rock and psychedelic rock...
band Queens of the Stone Age
Queens of the Stone Age
Queens of the Stone Age is an American rock band from Palm Desert, California, United States, formed in 1997. The band's line-up has always included founding member Josh Homme , with the current line-up including longtime members Troy Van Leeuwen and Joey Castillo , alongside Michael Shuman and...
, released on March 21, 2005. The album debuted at #5 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
, and sold 97,000 copies in America during its first week of release, eventually topping over 342,000 copies as of March, 2007 according to Nielsen Soundscan
Nielsen SoundScan
Nielsen SoundScan is an information and sales tracking system created by Mike Fine and Mike Shalett. Soundscan is the official method of tracking sales of music and music video products throughout the United States and Canada...
. It is the highest charting Queens of the Stone Age album to date. The album has been certified gold in the UK, where it has sold over 100,000 units. It is also the band's first album to be released after Nick Oliveri
Nick Oliveri
Nick Steven Oliveri is an American musician from Palm Desert, California. He plays bass guitar, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, and is a vocalist...
was fired from the band. Josh Homme and Mark Lanegan
Mark Lanegan
Mark Lanegan is an American rock musician and songwriter. Lanegan began his music career in the 1980s, forming the grunge group Screaming Trees with Gary Lee Conner, Van Conner and Mark Pickerel. During his time in the band Lanegan would start a low-key solo career...
are the only members from the previous album, Songs For The Deaf
Songs for the Deaf
-Production and release:In September 2002, Josh Homme explained the band's goals with the release of the album:In the same month, Nick Oliveri explained the band's aims in an interview with retail company HMV:...
, to play on this album.
Background
The album title Lullabies to Paralyze was intended to bridge Lullabies with its predecessor Songs for the DeafSongs for the Deaf
-Production and release:In September 2002, Josh Homme explained the band's goals with the release of the album:In the same month, Nick Oliveri explained the band's aims in an interview with retail company HMV:...
by naming it after a line in "Mosquito Song", the final track on Songs for the Deaf. The "deluxe limited edition" of the album includes a bonus track and a bonus DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
containing "a look behind the scenes and special bonus footage". Videos were produced for singles Little Sister
Little Sister (song)
"Little Sister" was the first single released by the rock group Queens of the Stone Age from their fourth album Lullabies to Paralyze. The song was recorded live in the studio in one take....
, In My Head and Burn the Witch
Burn the Witch
"Burn the Witch" is the third single released from Queens of the Stone Age's fourth album, Lullabies to Paralyze. Many of its lyrics run parallel with the dark, folkloristic theme for this album...
, as well as "Everybody Knows That You Are Insane" and "Someone's in the Wolf". The "Everybody Knows That You Are Insane" video was broadcasted frequently for a number of months on MTV during 2005, while the video for "Someone's in the Wolf" was featured on the bonus DVD of Lullabies to Paralyze.
The album was delayed during 2004 because of some changes to the line-up: bassist, vocalist, and co-songwriter Nick Oliveri
Nick Oliveri
Nick Steven Oliveri is an American musician from Palm Desert, California. He plays bass guitar, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, and is a vocalist...
was fired and on-off vocalist Mark Lanegan
Mark Lanegan
Mark Lanegan is an American rock musician and songwriter. Lanegan began his music career in the 1980s, forming the grunge group Screaming Trees with Gary Lee Conner, Van Conner and Mark Pickerel. During his time in the band Lanegan would start a low-key solo career...
went on tour with his own band.
Lanegan can nevertheless still be heard singing on several songs of the album as well as contributing lyrics. Because of this turmoil, there had been rumours that Lanegan had left the band, which Josh Homme eventually clarified in several interviews was never the case. Nevertheless he encouraged these rumours to draw the attention off the band by giving the press "something to focus on while I was just making the record".
Critical reception
The album received generally positive reviews, however slightly lower than its predecessorSongs for the Deaf
-Production and release:In September 2002, Josh Homme explained the band's goals with the release of the album:In the same month, Nick Oliveri explained the band's aims in an interview with retail company HMV:...
, the average score being 78 out of 100 on Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
based on 31 professional reviews.
Kevin Forest Moreau awarded it 3rd best album of the year 2005, Billboard magazine ranked it 7th best album, Magnet magazine
Magnet (magazine)
Magnet is a music magazine which generally focuses on alternative, independent, or out-of-the-mainstream bands.-History:The magazine is published four times a year, and is independently owned and edited by Eric T. Miller. Music magazines with a similar focus in the 1990s era included Option,...
ranked it 9th, and Filter magazine
Filter (magazine)
FILTER, the publication that promises us that "Good music will prevail," is a seasonal American music and off-beat entertainment magazine. It features commentary and photos of up-and-coming musicians and filmmakers ranging from actors to writer-directors...
considered it 10th best album of the year 2005.
JustPressPlay ranked it #31 on its list of the Top 100 Albums of the 2000s and named "Tangled Up in Plaid" the 19th best song of the decade.
Lullabies To Paralyze was certified gold in the UK on April 15, 2005 with sales exceeding 100,000 copies.
Track listing
All tracks written by Joshua HommeJoshua Homme
Joshua Michael Homme is an American rock musician, and record producer. He was the guitarist and a founding member of the stoner metal band Kyuss, as well as the founding and only continuous member of the hard rock band Queens of the Stone Age , in which he sings, plays guitar, and serves as the...
, Troy Van Leeuwen
Troy Van Leeuwen
Troy Dean Van Leeuwen is an American musician and producer. Van Leeuwen began playing music at young age and started playing guitar at age 13. Soon Van Leeuwen was playing in various local bands such as Jester, 60 Cycle and later Failure...
and Joey Castillo
Joey Castillo
Joseph Willam "Joey" Castillo is an American drummer currently playing with Queens of the Stone Age and Eagles of Death Metal...
, except where noted. All lyrics written by Homme, except additional lyrics on "Medication", "Tangled Up in Plaid" and "Long Slow Goodbye" by Mark Lanegan
Mark Lanegan
Mark Lanegan is an American rock musician and songwriter. Lanegan began his music career in the 1980s, forming the grunge group Screaming Trees with Gary Lee Conner, Van Conner and Mark Pickerel. During his time in the band Lanegan would start a low-key solo career...
.
The "Hidden Finale" later appears as the main riff in the song "Running Joke", a b-side that appears on Era Vulgaris
Era Vulgaris (album)
Era Vulgaris is the fifth full length studio album by American hard rock band Queens of the Stone Age. The album was completed in early April 2007 and released on June 8, 2007 in some countries, June 11, 2007 in the United Kingdom and June 12, 2007 in the United States...
.
Bonus tracks
- "Like a Drug" (Homme) – 3:15
- Included on the deluxe edition, Limited Tour Edition and the UK, Mexican and Japanese versions. The song was a new recording, originally on The Desert SessionsThe Desert SessionsThe Desert Sessions are a musical collective series, founded by Josh Homme in 1997. Artists such as Brant Bjork, PJ Harvey, Jeordie White The Desert Sessions are a musical collective series, founded by Josh Homme in 1997. Artists such as Brant Bjork, PJ Harvey, Jeordie White The Desert Sessions are...
Volume 6.
- Included on the deluxe edition, Limited Tour Edition and the UK, Mexican and Japanese versions. The song was a new recording, originally on The Desert Sessions
- "Precious and Grace" (Beard, Gibbons, Hill) – 3:23
- Included on the Limited Tour Edition, UK and Japanese versions.
- "Infinity" (Lullabies to Paralyze version) (Homme) – 3:59
- Included on the Japanese version; an older version of "Infinity" is available on the Heavy Metal 2000Heavy Metal 2000Heavy Metal 2000 is the 2000 follow-up to the 1981 animated cult film Heavy Metal, based on the fantasy magazine of the same name. The story itself is based on the graphic novel, The Melting Pot, written by Kevin Eastman, Simon Bisley and Eric Talbot...
soundtrack.
- Included on the Japanese version; an older version of "Infinity" is available on the Heavy Metal 2000
LP version
The LP version of the album was released by AntAcidAudioAntAcidAudio
AntAcidAudio is an independent record label run by Greg Werckman .-Discography:...
and contains a different cover to the CD version. The sides are named Once, You, Were & Lost, after a line from "Someone's in the Wolf", with each containing a mixture of the CD's album and bonus tracks.
Side one - Once
- "Lullaby" – 1:23
- "Medication" – 1:54
- "Everybody Knows That You're Insane" – 4:14
- "Tangled Up in Plaid" – 4:13
- "Burn the Witch" – 3:35
Side two - You
- "In My Head" – 4:01
- "Little Sister" – 2:54
- "I Never Came" – 4:48
- "Someone's in the Wolf" – 7:16
Side three - Were
- "Infinity" (new version, see above) – 3:59
- "The Blood Is Love" – 6:38
- "Like a Drug" – 3:18
- "Skin on Skin" – 3:43
Side four - Lost
- "Broken Box" – 3:00
- "Precious and Grace" – 3:24
- ""You Got a Killer Scene There, Man..."" – 4:58
- "Long Slow Goodbye" (contains the hidden track) – 6:54
Outtakes
- "The Fun Machine Took a Shit & DiedThe Fun Machine Took a Shit & Died"The Fun Machine Took a Shit & Died" is a song by the rock band Queens of the Stone Age.It was originally intended to be on the band's fourth studio album, Lullabies to Paralyze. The tapes were assumed stolen but were, in fact, lost....
" - "'Til Tomorrow"
- "I Wanna Make It wit Chu"
- Later featured on Era VulgarisEra Vulgaris (album)Era Vulgaris is the fifth full length studio album by American hard rock band Queens of the Stone Age. The album was completed in early April 2007 and released on June 8, 2007 in some countries, June 11, 2007 in the United Kingdom and June 12, 2007 in the United States...
; its title was shortened to "Make It Wit Chu"
- Later featured on Era Vulgaris
Bonus DVD
- "The Way Finds You" – 27:20
- "Someone's in the Wolf" (Castillo, Homme, Van Leeuwen) – 7:24
- "Josh's Session" (starring Josh Homme and Sarah SilvermanSarah SilvermanSarah Kate Silverman is a Jewish American comedian, writer, actress, singer and musician. Her satirical comedy addresses social taboos and controversial topics such as racism, sexism, and religion....
) – 10:24
Limited Tour Edition Bonus UK CD
Live from Earthlink in Atlanta, GA March 19, 2005.- "The Lost Art of Keeping a Secret" – 3:54
- "Little Sister" – 2:56
- "In My Head" – 3:56
- "No One Knows" – 6:48
- "Song for the Dead" – 6:24
- "Regular John" – 9:48
Most online retailers list the songs on the bonus CD as the March 19, 2005 show in Atlanta, but at least "The Lost Art of Keeping a Secret" and "Regular John" are actually from the show in Washington, DC on March 27, 2005.
The final item on the song listing (located behind the CD in the normal version, or inside the booklet in the deluxe edition), below "Long Slow Goodbye" reads:
- "The Fun Machine took a shit and died – Was lost or misplaced. (There is a reward for the return of said tapes)"
During that time, the band assumed that the tapes of that song were either lost or stolen. A live version of this song can be found on the DVD release Over the Years and Through the Woods
Over the Years and Through the Woods
Over the Years and Through the Woods is the title of a live album and video by Queens of the Stone Age.The release features material on audio CD as well as video DVD — both recorded at London's Brixton Academy on Monday August 22, 2005 and KOKO on Tuesday August 23, 2005...
. Homme: "The tapes got lost. Actually, they were just at another studio, but we falsely accused everyone in the world of theft."
Personnel
As common for Queens of the Stone Age recordings, Lullabies does not feature one single line-up but rather a core group of Homme, Castillo and Van Leeuwen that would also form the tour line-up, as well as other contributors, mostly close friends to the band.Band lineup
- Josh Homme – Lead vocals, guitar, bass, piano, drums, percussion, handclaps
- Troy Van LeeuwenTroy Van LeeuwenTroy Dean Van Leeuwen is an American musician and producer. Van Leeuwen began playing music at young age and started playing guitar at age 13. Soon Van Leeuwen was playing in various local bands such as Jester, 60 Cycle and later Failure...
– guitar, bass, lap steel, piano, keyboards, handclaps, backing vocals - Joey CastilloJoey CastilloJoseph Willam "Joey" Castillo is an American drummer currently playing with Queens of the Stone Age and Eagles of Death Metal...
– drums, piano, percussion, handclaps
Guest appearances
- Alain JohannesAlain JohannesAlain Johannes Moschulski is a guitarist and, along with his late partner Natasha Shneider and drummer Jack Irons, a founding member of the band Eleven...
– guitar on tracks 5-7 and 11, bass on tracks 3, 4 and 9, flute & marxophone on track 9 - Mark LaneganMark LaneganMark Lanegan is an American rock musician and songwriter. Lanegan began his music career in the 1980s, forming the grunge group Screaming Trees with Gary Lee Conner, Van Conner and Mark Pickerel. During his time in the band Lanegan would start a low-key solo career...
– lead vocals on "This Lullaby" and "Precious and Grace" and vocals on "Burn the Witch" and "You Got a Killer Scene There Man...". - Chris GossChris Goss (U.S.)Christopher Ryan Goss, born August 17, 1958, is an American record producer and musician.-Selected discography:Throughout his career Goss has worked with a wide range of musicians in various genres.* 1988 - Masters of Reality by Masters of Reality...
(Masters of RealityMasters of RealityMasters of Reality is a hard rock group formed in 1981 by guitarist and singer Chris Goss and Tim Harrington in Syracuse, New York. The band is sometimes associated with the "Palm Desert Scene", which includes bands like Kyuss, Queens of the Stone Age and many other stoner rock or "desert rock"...
) – vocals on "You Got a Killer Scene There Man..." - Billy GibbonsBilly GibbonsWilliam Frederick "Billy" Gibbons is an American musician, actor and car customizer, best known as the guitarist of the Texas blues-rock band ZZ Top. He is also the lead singer and composer for many of the band's songs. Gibbons is known for playing his Gretsch Billy Bo guitar and his famous 1959...
(ZZ TopZZ TopZZ Top is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "That Little Ol' Band from Texas". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based boogie rock, has come to incorporate elements of arena, southern, and boogie rock. The band, from Houston Texas, formed in 1969...
) – guitar and vocals on "Burn the Witch" and "Precious and Grace". - Dave Catching – opening guitar on "The Blood Is Love".
- Jack BlackJack Black (actor)Thomas Jacob "Jack" Black is an American comedian, actor and musician. He makes up one half of the comedy and satirical rock duo Tenacious D. The group has two albums as well as a television series and a film. His acting career is extensive, starring primarily as bumbling, cocky, but internally...
(actor/musician) – handclaps and stomps on "Burn the Witch", and is also seen contributing the same for "Broken Box" during the bonus DVD. - Jesse HughesJesse Hughes (musician)Jesse "The Devil" Hughes is an American musician from Greenville, South Carolina. Hughes is known for his role as frontman of the California-based rock band, Eagles of Death Metal. He cites Little Richard as his biggest musical influence and inspiration.-Early life:At age 7, Hughes' mother, Jo...
(Eagles of Death MetalEagles of Death MetalEagles of Death Metal is an American rock band from Palm Desert, California, formed in 1998 by Jesse Hughes and Josh Homme. Despite their band name, Eagles of Death Metal are not a death metal band. Hughes stated that a friend was introducing Josh Homme to the death metal genre...
) – flute part on "Someone's in the Wolf". - Shirley MansonShirley MansonShirley Anne Manson is a Scottish recording artist and actress, best known internationally as the lead singer of the alternative rock band Garbage. For much of her international career Manson commuted between her home city of Edinburgh to the United States to record with Garbage but now lives and...
(GarbageGarbage (band)Garbage are an alternative rock band formed in Madison, Wisconsin in 1994. The group consists of Scottish singer Shirley Manson and American musicians Duke Erikson , Steve Marker and Butch Vig . All four members are involved in songwriting and production...
) – vocals on "You Got a Killer Scene There, Man..." - Brody DalleBrody DalleBrody Dalle is an Australian-born American singer, songwriter and guitarist. She rose to fame as lead singer/guitarist for the punk rock band The Distillers and currently fronts Spinnerette....
(The DistillersThe DistillersThe Distillers were an American punk rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1998. They released their first two albums on Hellcat Records/Epitaph Records before moving to Sire, part of the Warner Music Group. The Distillers were originally formed by Australian-born Brody Armstrong , a woman with a...
and SpinneretteSpinneretteSpinnerette is an alternative rock, indie rock solo project of Australian musician Brody Dalle. For this project she has collaborated with Tony Bevilacqua , Jack Irons and Alain Johannes...
), – vocals on "You Got a Killer Scene There Man..." - Joe BarresiJoe BarresiJoe Barresi is an American record engineer and producer who has worked with bands such as Kyuss, The Melvins, Tool, Queens of the Stone Age, Coheed and Cambria, Tomahawk, L7, The Jesus Lizard, Parkway Drive and Bad Religion.-Biography:...
– triangle on "Tangled Up in Plaid" - The Main Street Horns – tubas and baritone trombone on "I Never Came", "Someone's in the Wolf" and "Skin on Skin"
- Josh FreeseJosh FreeseJosh Freese is an American session drummer and songwriter. He is a permanent member of A Perfect Circle, The Vandals, and Devo, having formerly played drums for Nine Inch Nails from late 2005 until late 2008, and for Guns N' Roses from mid-1998 to 2001. Freese has appeared on close to 300 records....
(Nine Inch NailsNine Inch NailsNine Inch Nails is an American industrial rock project, founded in 1988 by Trent Reznor in Cleveland, Ohio. As its main producer, singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist, Reznor is the only official member of Nine Inch Nails and remains solely responsible for its direction...
, A Perfect CircleA Perfect CircleA Perfect Circle is an American rock supergroup formed in 1999 by guitarist Billy Howerdel and Tool vocalist Maynard James Keenan. The original incarnation of the band also included Paz Lenchantin on bass, Troy Van Leeuwen on guitar, and Tim Alexander on drums...
, The VandalsThe VandalsThe Vandals are an American rock band established in 1980 in Huntington Beach, California. They have released ten full-length studio albums and two live albums and have toured the world extensively, including performances on the Vans Warped Tour...
, and The OffspringThe OffspringThe Offspring is an American punk rock band from Huntington Beach, California, formed in 1984. Known as Manic Subsidal until 1986, the band consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Dexter Holland, lead guitarist Kevin "Noodles" Wasserman, bassist Greg K. and drummer Pete Parada...
) co-wrote "In My Head".
Album
| Year | Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Billboard Top 200 | 5 |
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | "Little Sister Little Sister (song) "Little Sister" was the first single released by the rock group Queens of the Stone Age from their fourth album Lullabies to Paralyze. The song was recorded live in the studio in one take.... " |
US Hot 100 | 88 |
| 2005 | "Little Sister" | US Modern Rock Modern Rock Tracks Alternative Songs is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in Billboard magazine since September 10, 1988. It lists the 40 most-played songs on modern rock radio stations, most of which are alternative rock songs... |
2 |
| 2005 | "Little Sister" | US Mainstream Rock Mainstream Rock Tracks Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks is a ranking in Billboard magazine of the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations, a category that includes stations that play primarily rock music. Modern rock tracks are counted in the Alternative Songs chart.This chart began with the March 21, 1981, issue... |
13 |
| 2005 | "Little Sister" | UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
13 |
| 2005 | "In My Head" | US Modern Rock | 32 |
| 2005 | "In My Head" | UK Singles Chart | 44 |
| 2005 | "Burn the Witch Burn the Witch "Burn the Witch" is the third single released from Queens of the Stone Age's fourth album, Lullabies to Paralyze. Many of its lyrics run parallel with the dark, folkloristic theme for this album... " |
US Modern Rock | 40 |