DESERT SESSIONS Release video for ‘Easier Said Than Done’ Announce ‘The Bizarre Bazaar’, a Bi-Weekly Series of Desert Sessions Inspired Artwork Auctions for Charity with Limited Edition Quilt by Ben Venom
“One of the project’s most impressive line up of players” —The New York Times
“The latest volume in the (and first in 16 years) sees Homme bringing together another impressive hodgepodge of artists”—Entertainment Weekly
“Breaking the 16-year drought between sittings, Desert Sessions Vol 11 & 12 once again captures a fission that can only occur when musical heroes collide.” – STACK
“There’s enough rock star swagger here to live vicariously through, and the sense that the Joshua Tree party will ride again for years to come. So crack open that fancy bottle and let your hair down.” – NME
Josh Homme’s collaborative motley crew Desert Sessions return with the music video to ‘Easier Said Than Done’, from Vols. 11 & 12 (aka respectively Arrivederci Despair and Tightwads & Nitwits & Critics & Heels). Directed by photographer-director Chapman Baehler, this nightmare vision contains fascist-humiliating watersports, pig-men ejaculating glitter, a little defenestration, some light immolation… and Joshua Homme on roller skates.
The unique delight of Desert Sessions lies in unexpected collaborations between musicians who might otherwise never work together, and alongside the new video, Desert Sessions have teamed up with artists in other media including palm-painting, sculpture, jewelry, film-making, and, in this instance, quilting, to create one-of-a-kind pieces of art inspired by, and indelibly connected to — the music, for a series of charity auctions benefiting The Sweet Stuff Foundation. For the inaugural auction in this ‘Bizarre Bazaar,’ hosted on a dedicated eBay page, acclaimed textile artist Ben Venom has created a 3′ X 3′ quilt expressing the sounds of Desert Sessions in fabric and thread:
“I describe my art as a collision between fine art, craft, and the fringes of society,” says Venom. “Working with textiles, I contrast the often menacing and aggressive counterculture components of gangs, punk/metal music, and the occult with the comforts of domesticity. For the Crawling Death quilt, the fragility of the materials and their assaulting imagery are brought together in the form of a functional piece of art. This piece was made in collaboration with the Desert Sessions and it has been an honor to participate in the project.”
The auctions will continue with new Desert Sessions artwork and video content dropping every 2 weeks.
For further edification, just watch the video over and over until the next one. (And keep hitting that “Place Bid” button. Remember, there’s no reserve!)
Ending a 16-year hiatus since its last installment, Desert Sessions returned in October 2019 with the most ambitious entries to date in its expansive and elusive catalog. Vols. 11 & 12 were recorded (mostly) in December 2018 at Rancho De La Luna studios in Joshua Tree, CA, with Queens of the Stone Age founder and Desert Sessions ringleader/producer Joshua Homme enlisting a cast of players including Billy Gibbons (ZZ Top), Stella Mozgawa (Warpaint), Jake Shears (Scissor Sisters), Mike Kerr (Royal Blood), Carla Azar (Autolux, Jack White), Les Claypool (Primus), Matt Sweeney (Chavez, Superwolf, Endless Boogie), Matt Berry (What We Do in the Shadows, Toast of London), Libby Grace and of course Töôrnst Hülpft.
Desert Sessions – ‘Easier Said Than Done’ (Official Video)
The tracklist for Desert Sessions Vols. 11 & 12
(a/k/a Arrivederci Despair andTightwads & Nitwits & Critics & Heels)
Move Together (lead vocal: Billy F. Gibbons) Noses in Roses Forever (lead vocal: Joshua Homme) Far East for the Trees If You Run (lead vocal: Libby Grace) Crucifire (lead vocal: Mike Kerr) Chic Tweetz (vocals: Töôrnst Hülpft, Matt Berry) Something You Can’t See (lead vocal: Jake Shears) Easier Said Than Done (lead vocal: Joshua Homme)
Desert Sessions Vols. 11 & 12 out now on Matador Records / Remote Control Records.