The Crooked Vultures – Coachella Stage

John Paul Jones, Dave Grohl and Josh Homme make up the neo-rock juggernaut Them Crooked Vultures. On the main stage as the lead-in for tonight’s headliner’s LCD Soundsystem and Jay-Z, the trio (plus Queens of the Stone Age collaborator Alain Johannes on extra guitar) were a distinct of how real rock-and-roll will always be relevant. With Grohl (famously of Nirvana and the Foo Fighters) pummeling the drums with fire of John Bonham, Homme soloing and riffing with the effortless precision he’s famous for in QOTSA and John Paul Jones living up to his sterling reputation as one of the greatest rock bassists ever, Them Crooked Vultures are the real deal. The band took time to a precision jam on “Scumbag Blues” and rocked hard on “Mind Debaser, No Chaser.” Jones even took an opportunity to a perform a short and sweet piano solo. They might not be the music the indie world wants, but they sure are what the indie world needs.