The newly-formed supergroup Them Crooked Vultures has been a long-rumored project, dating back to 2005 as a collaboration between former Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones, Queens of the Stone Age vocalist and guitarist Josh Homme and Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl on drums. After many years of dormancy, the project finally materialized this past summer, when the group announced its debut album and performed live for the first time in August.

Having only toured since the band’s inception, Them Crooked Vultures has primarily been attracting fans of the reputation preceding each member and their respective past acts. Whereas Grohl and Homme have left their print on mainstream alternative rock during the past two decades, this marks the first time Jones has become a member of a permanent group since Led Zeppelin disbanded in 1980. Given that the virtuoso bassist has produced relatively few works since that time, his new group’s self-titled debut album marks his long-awaited return to mainstream rock, an event that has left his followers in eager anticipation of this release.

What emerges from the supergroup’s eponymous debut is an intriguing combination of its individual parts. Homme’s influence appears heavily upon initial listens, as it seems that this album may just be a better, more talented rendition of a Queens of the Stone Age record. But listen closely and the intricacies and layers unfold with the strong, rhythmic presences of Jones and Grohl.

As the album opens with “No One Loves Me & Neither Do I,” Grohl kicks off the album with a drum groove in the likes of former Led Zeppelin legend John Bonham, a fitting comparison given that he was once rumored as the replacement drummer for a reformed version of Led Zeppelin.

If the album opener slightly hinted at a Zeppelin influence, “New Fang” summons the iconic band’s spirit to the forefront, as the trio tightly locks into a track that stands as the highlight of the entire album.

Although the individual pieces shine in their own right, Them Crooked Vultures as a whole surpasses that alone to create an intriguing new style. This stands out via the sprawling “Elephants” — an epic prog-rock journey that shifts through several different dynamics, creating a dark and brooding track.

While Them Crooked Vultures impressively pounds listeners with its stoner rock throughout the album’s first half, the album begins to lose focus as it approaches the end. Clocking in with a 66-minute overall play time, the band fails to find enough creativity to actively engage listeners, especially through multiple solid but not spectacular seven-minute-plus tracks.

Despite the album’s shortcomings, Them Crooked Vultures lives up to the reputation of its members, accomplishing a task which all too many similar supergroups fail to do.

— Contact Max Blau.