Death By Sexy

The Artist

Eagles of Death Metal are a California duo built around frontman Jesse Hughes and drummer/multi-instrumentalist Josh Homme, the latter better known as the driving force of Queens of the Stone Age. Despite the name, the band plays no death metal at all; their sound is a swaggering, tongue-in-cheek mash of glam boogie, garage rock, and greasy blues shuffle. Hughes handles the on-stage persona with a moustachioed showman's charisma, while Homme largely operates behind the kit and the boards, shaping the records. The project began as a lark between old friends in the desert rock scene around Palm Desert. Death By Sexy is their second full-length, arriving after their 2004 debut cemented the band's cheeky identity.

The Album

Released in 2006, Death By Sexy was recorded with Josh Homme producing and playing drums, tracked in the same California orbit that produced the Queens of the Stone Age catalog. The production leans into a raw, retro aesthetic: crunchy guitar tones, handclaps, falsetto backing vocals, and a rhythm section that struts more than it stomps. It's a record built for lean, hooky songs rather than epics, with most tracks clocking in short and punchy. The album expanded the band's cult profile and helped land them opening slots on major tours. Thematically it's a love letter to lust, late nights, cheap thrills, and the mythology of rock and roll cool.

Listen For

The guitar tone. Hughes's guitars sit in that fuzzy, treble-forward sweet spot between T. Rex glam and garage-rock scuzz. Notice how "I Want You So Hard (Boys Bad News)" sets the sonic template right from the jump.

Josh Homme behind the kit. His drumming is tighter and more minimal than you might expect, driving tracks like "I Like To Move In The Night" with a hip-swinging pocket rather than showy fills.

Song length and dynamics. Most tracks stay under three minutes and hit hard on the chorus. Pay attention to how "Don't Speak (I Came To Make A Bang!)" wastes no time getting to the hook.

Falsetto and vocal layering. Hughes flips into a breathy falsetto and stacks group backing vocals across the record. "Cherry Cola" is a good showcase for how those harmonies sweeten the sleaze.

Lyrical persona. The whole album plays a character: horny, cocky, cartoonishly devoted to rock and roll excess. "I Gotta Feelin (Just Nineteen)", "Solid Gold", and "Poor Doggie" all lean hard into that pulpy, wink-at-the-camera swagger.