Drum creativity is song creativity. Again, I mention this bedrock principle on a track where Dave Grohl drum-- Wait, the drummer here was Joey Castillo... What gives?

Aha! The song was originally demoed during the sessions for the band's previous album, Songs For the Deaf, one of the great, great drumming albums - chaired by Mr. Grohl. I'd be willing to bet about $3.52 that quite a few drum ideas in the final product were cribbed from that demo. It reeks of Grohl's style, which is confident and extrovert enough to interpret a creative guitar pattern rather than get out of its way. Anyway, the principle holds here, in spades.

The singing melodies of Josh Homme do something even Chris Cornell was probably jealous of - allowing a melodic style in a heavy song, free from screaming or other sorts of aggression, but not veering into saccharine vibrato or whiny wheezes either. He sings with such attitude, such toughness, and yet, those are real note phrases - and so creative.

Combining heaviness, melodic singing, and true musical cool is a tall task. And Homme does it with seeming little effort. That's your first clue that it actually takes great effort. He works while you sleep.