QOTSA must be well-aware of the slavering anticipation fans are showing for their lucky seventh record as, along with more straightforward revelations like the album having just been finished and mixed, the band have also been dropping a few more obscure appetisers, starting with some blurry studio shots earlier this year.
Now, things are getting a little more explicit, with a straight-up recent screen-grab taken from the video editing team’s computer being posted online – although possibly without the band’s knowledge or consent. The snap from a QOTSA-related editing session has appeared on the Black Magic Design website, and it didn’t take long for some eagle-eyed fans to find it.
While that might not sound particularly exciting, users on Reddit have since pored over the shot and picked out a few key points of interest that indicate at least some sort of departure from the sound of the last record.
As Ultimate Guitar reports, the screengrab, taken earlier this year, reveals the presence of some surprising instruments for QOTSA, including violins and horns, as indicated by the file names ‘HORNS_DAY’ and ‘VIOLIN_DAY’ in among all of the various thumbnails – all tying in rather neatly with guitarist Troy van Leeuwen’s comments that fans should “expect to be surprised” by the new record.
The sleuths also noted the presence of something called ‘SonicHighwaysCutaways’, which is possibly related to Josh Homme’s recent palling around with Dave Grohl. The meetings prompted speculation that Grohl would be playing on the new QOTSA record, but it was recently revealed that the album would be free of any guest musos, meaning that any collab is probably heading in the opposite direction.
The good news for Australian fans is that all of this could mean we’ll be listening to the record before QOTSA make it over for Splendour in the Grass – we can only wait and hope. Until then, scope out the pic below (or zoom and enhance, CSI-style, over at the Black Magic site) and see if you can pick out any other morsels of info yourself.
