The Daily Swarm

The Guardian:

Them Crooked Vultures perfectly fit the classical supergroup model. There’s the jokey name and song titles: Interlude With ‘Ludes, Caligulove, Mind Eraser, No Chaser. There’s the occasional sense, as on the camp pomp-rock lumber of Warsaw, that you’re being exposed to a rehearsal room in-gag, with the feeling that the point of the band’s existence might have more to do with what the participants get out of it than the audience…but for the most part Them Crooked Vultures sound exactly like you would expect them to sound, right down to the knowing nods to the members’ previous bands: Scumbag Blues carries a hint of the keyboard-fuelled funk Led Zeppelin essayed on Trampled Underfoot….but for all the echoes of the past, it never once threatens to move the earth in the way Led Zeppelin or Nirvana did. It’s hard not to wonder if it would attract the same kind of attention were it the work of an unknown new band. Of course it wouldn’t.

Metal Sucks:

Them Crooked Vultures suck in spite of themselves, churning out some seriously generic and geriatric classic rock at New York’s Roseland Ballroom last week. I respected them for refusing to play any recognizable tracks from any of their projects, but I would’ve respected them a whole lot more if the songs weren’t so damn boring. The Crooked Vultures are like a cover band that staunchly plays B-sides from B-list hard rock bands. Clearly Grohl, Homme, and Jones were having a terrific time on stage, and the audience members–many of whom were under the influence of illicit substances–nodded their heads and applauded politely. But as each song blended blandly into the next, it became painfully clear to me (and less so to Miss Elise of Reign In Blonde who also attended) that Them Crooked Vultures self-indulgently wank way more than they selflessly rock….So if you dig great musicians making middling music, you’ll definitely want to pre-order Them Crooked Vultures’ debut on CD and vinyl. The release date for this thirteen-track snoozefest is November 17.