Josh Homme received an offer he couldn’t refuse in 2015. When a name he had almost worshiped before texted him to ask if he wanted to write music with him, his answer was an immediate yes. Especially when he saw the notes that came to him after he hung up, the musician realized that he had landed a dream collab.
The name on the phone was Iggy Pop, and the documents Pop sent after he hung up the phone included some lyrics and notes from his time working with David Bowie. Homme immediately began working by using these writings. About three months later, he had prepared enough material for his superhero. When Pop saw these, their collaboration was about to be finalized; they would enter the studio together.
Instead of sending each other finished and polished songs, they chose to enter the studio with unfinished ideas, work on the materials together, and improvise. After long jam sessions, brainstorming, and beautiful music tunes in the studio, they finally had a decent nine-track album: ‘Post Pop Depression.’
In an interview with the Guardian in 2016, Josh Homme, who went into great detail about these albums and working with Iggy Pop, said that Iggy was ‘the last of the one-and-only.’ He truly worshiped him and his music and believed everyone should do the same. As for getting the opportunity to work with him, it was apparent that he had accomplished one of his dreams.
“Lemmy is gone. Bowie is gone. He’s the last of the one-and-onlys,” he said, remembering the giants that passed away. “It took balls to be him: a little guy with a big d*ck scaring people in Detroit. Everyone should take a knee for Iggy.”
He continued, “He deserves it. He never got [the respect or the acclaim], mostly by his own hand, but he made the sh*t that’s spawned more bands than any other person, ever. Bring on the statues, you motherf*ckers!”
The album dropped on March 18, 2016. Pop and Homme were already halfway through a US tour in support of the album, which kicked off on March 9 in Los Angeles, and was scheduled to be followed in May with a European tour. Josh Homme hadn’t just joined his superhero in the studio; he also had the chance to hit the road with him.
As for the album, it achieved critical acclaim in many music circles. The record featuring classic Iggy Pop tunes from beginning to end successfully embodied their combined musical genius. Many thought it had a satisfying Iggy Pop sound, but it was also one of the better albums of this distinctive rock and roll figure.
