It’s about a month after its release, but rock band Queens of the Stone Age is still enjoying the limelight. “Songs for the Deaf” is arguably one of the best albums released this year. It’s old fashioned, straight-forward and classic rock ‘n’ roll. Lead singer/guitarist Josh Homme’s songwriting techniques are intelligent and flawless.

The album is arranged in a way to make it sound like you are listening to the radio in your car. The CD opens with the sound of a car door opening and the annoying beeping sound we hear reminding us to put our seat belts on. As the opening track begins, it sounds as if it’s coming straight from a car stereo, but with the change of a chord, it transforms into the loud and aggressive rock that makes up the rest of the album.

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In between songs, we hear disc jockeys describing their stations or just talking about the band. One announcer speaks only in Spanish and the only words I could understand were “Queens of the Stone Age” and “First it Giveth,” the title of the upcoming track.

The music is hard-hitting, but there’s not a lot of screaming going on. With the exception of two songs, which sound as if we were hearing them through a car stereo, Homme’s vocals are soothing and melodic.

The first single off the album, “No One Knows,” sums up the album pretty well. There’s no rapping, there are no punk-rock elements, there are no cheesy lyrics, just pure and simple rock music. “Close your eyes and see the sky is falling” and “I know that God is in the radio, checkin’ the stations” are examples of Homme’s lyrical style. Long-bearded bass virtuoso Nick Oliveri provides the vocals on a couple of tracks.

The guitar and bass riffs go together like peanut butter and jelly in songs like “Gonna Leave You” and “Hangin’ Tree.” At the same time, songs like “Do it Again” focus more on the drumming of Dave Grohl, who is featured on the album. “Mosquito Song,” a hidden track on the album, is the most unusual of the bunch. It doesn’t really sound like anything else on the album, and that’s probably why they wanted to hide it.

If you are a fan of rock bands like Local H, then Queens of the Stone Age is a must-have. And if you are already a fan of “Queens,” then what are you waiting for? This is the group’s best album, and one can only hope that more bands follow in their footsteps.