Concert Review: Eagles of Death Metal at The Door in Dallas (December 12)

by Teresa Gubbins

Eagles of Death Metal is best known as the raucous, tongue-in-cheek side project of musician Josh Homme, the fierce frontman for Queens of the Stone Age; but as their show on Friday night at The Door for a crowd of about 350 made clear, they're also known as the side project Josh Homme doesn't bother to tour with.

"He never tours with them," said the guy at the merchandise counter; and yet a rumor circulated the room that Homme was in the house. (A house that was selling liquor, by the way, which is unusual for the Door, where the policy is usually no-alcohol.) Further raising the impression that Homme would show was the presence of an extra unoccupied microphone stand on stage.

He would've added some welcome charisma, even if his role in the Eagles is behind the drums. The band, which is at the far end of a U.S. tour to promote a new release with a prototypically har-har title, Heart On, gave a performance that felt like it was overcompensating for a lack of something. Singer-frontman Jesse Hughes went to great lengths to Put On A Show: mugging, strutting around mock-triumphantly in his sleeveless Motorhead T-shirt with silver chains around his neck, primping, adjusting his aviator sunglasses.

It stopped being funny pretty quickly, although one memorable moment occurred when guitarist Dave Catching flipped his guitar over and held up the back so that Hughes could peer into its shiny surface, using it as a mirror to comb his hair, then turning and staring into the audience melodramatically. It brought to mind the routine by '80s funk-dance act The Time, wherein frontman Morris Day would primp in front of a mirror held up by sidekick Jerome.

Catching had a neat collection of guitars that he traded out regularly including two of those Flying V things, and his resemblance to Drew Carey made him moderately watchable. Bassist Brian O'Connor and drummer Joey Castillo hunkered down and played competently but without as much fanfare.

All of this attention on their stage business underscores the fact that the music was secondary. The set was like a spoof of a greasy Southern rock band. It was ironic. It also sounded poorly mixed; Hughes' pretty cream-colored hollow-body guitar seemed to drop out every time he solo'ed. His vocals sounded thin and wispy.

If a band can be judged by its choice of covers, then here's the grounds: The Eagles did "Stuck in the Middle With You" by Stealers Wheel, which got a bump a few years ago when it was featured in Reservoir Dogs, another meta-retro experience. There's something off-putting about watching a band give a performance that's sarcastic at heart. Joke's on you.

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