The resurrection of retro rock legends

The Roseland Theater will be enveloped in a halo of smoke Monday, Nov. 21, as the visionary rockers of Kyuss play to an audience that, in all likelihood, became fans of the band only after it disbanded.

Modern guitar rock owes much to Kyuss. The band’s driving, riff-based attack has permeated all musical genres that followed its inception, such as grunge, late ’90s throwback garage rock and, most notably, today’s stoner metal bands. Most people who listen to Kyuss also listen to a subset of other bands—most of which either spawned from Kyuss or came into being as a result of their records.

Immensely popular contemporary bands like Queens of the Stone Age, Eagles of Death Metal and Them Crooked Vultures emerged directly from Kyuss’ original lineup, as well as lesser-known but still cult-popular acts like Mondo Generator and Earthlings? That said, Kyuss has hooked its THC-soaked talons into many corners of rock music, and for good reason.

The band officially took the name “Kyuss” in 1990 and released their first album, Wretch, the following year. Kyuss owes a lot to Black Sabbath. However, “stoner rock”—the term that they would help coin—hadn’t been officially named. Known for its trademark thick, riffy, fuzz-drenched sound and throwback ’70s vocals, stoner rock found its beginning with Kyuss and other bands like Sleep and Fu Manchu.

Like most legendary bands, Kyuss disbanded far before its prime and left a legion of followers in search of other bands like it. Now the band is back together (except for Josh Homme, who is in many other bands) and touring. This reanimation is called Kyuss Lives!—which is both the name of the tour and the band’s new moniker—and Portland gets it tonight.

Although bassist Nick Oliveri—of both Kyuss and the band Mondo Generator—is billed as a member of Kyuss Lives!, it is unclear whether he will join the band at this show, as he was arrested following a standoff with a S.W.A.T. team. He was charged with felony domestic assault after barricading himself and his girlfriend inside their house with a loaded firearm inside. Oliveri is out on bail, but whether he plays with the Kyuss tour remains to be seen.

The tour can be seen as a union of past and present, as The Sword will be joining Kyuss Lives! on stage. The Sword appeared as the new face of stoner metal when it released it’s first album, 2006’s Age of Winters. Aided by the volatility of the Internet, there was incredible hype surrounding the album before it was released. Freya, the single off Age of Winters, was featured on the video game Guitar Hero II as a track for you budding guitarists to play along with.

Formed in Texas in 2003, The Sword’s first album was mostly written by J.D. Cronise, who handles guitar and vocal duties. Although Age of Winters didn’t chart, this usually has no bearing on popular contemporary alternative bands. Fans of the genre might call Age of Winters a key player in the resurgence of mainstream popularity of vinyl records.

Rounding out the Kyuss Lives! bill is Californian stoner metal band Black Cobra. More closely associated with the derivative genres of doom and sludge metal, Black Cobra features more caustic vocals that encroach on the stomping grounds of contemporary heavy metal. Although they formed only one year before The Sword, their output has been much greater than that of their Texan stagemates: Black Cobra has released, to date, six total albums (including EPs and splits) to The Sword’s four.

It’s not often one gets to see a historically important band in their heyday, as reverence usually sets in post-breakup. But Monday night, you have a chance to see the next best thing—three of the original four members (perhaps two; shame on you, Oliveri) will play all the classics you probably came to know after Kyuss’s demise.

Yes, it’s on a Monday. Don’t be deterred.