Queens of the Stone Age release their new album, In Times New Roman, this week, and bandleader Josh Homme talked about the record and lots more in a new interview with Revolver. “I think this is the first time I didn’t want to make a record, but I was dealing with a lot of stuff in my personal life,” Homme said. “We recorded a lot of stuff. I think I was doing it because when I’m in trouble, this is what I do. This is where I go to get right.”
Among the stuff in his personal life: he and Brody Dalle went through a messy, acrimonious divorce in 2019, and he was diagnosed with cancer in 2022. He didn’t go into detail with Revolver about the cancer diagnosis other than to say that he had surgery last year, which was successful. “I never say it can’t get any worse. I never say that, and I wouldn’t advise it. But I do say it can get better,” Homme told Revolver. “Cancer is just the cherry on top of an interesting time period, you know? I’m extremely thankful that I’ll get through this, and I’ll look back at this as something that’s fucked up — but will have made me better. I’m cool with that. There’s a lot of stuff I want to do. And there’s a lot of people I want to do that with.”
Homme says all his recent troubles have made him stronger. “I definitely had a serious case of emotion sickness,” Homme says. “There were times I almost didn’t make it. It’s OK for me to ruminate on that. It’s not OK to stay there, feel too sorry for myself. This has been the darkest four years of my life. But that’s OK, too. In the heartaches, my mistakes, these deaths and my own physical things I’m dealing with — even though all that has occurred and smashed my old life to pieces, those pieces I’ve been able to build into a ship that’s about to launch. I will float into my new life from all those pieces.”
Josh also talks about working with Iggy Pop on 2016’s Post Pop Depression, and upcoming tour plans, including bringing his kids (who he now has sole custody of) on the road with him in Europe. “Travel shows you there is magic in the world,” Homme says. “I love discovering those things. And I don’t want to do it alone.”
Read the whole interview with Revolver here.
In Times New Roman is out June 16 via Matador, and there are multiple color vinyl variants available for pre-order now.
Speaking of tours, QOTSA begin their North American trek supporting In Times New Roman in August, and play NYC’s Forest Hills Stadium on 8/12 with Phantogram and The Armed. Other dates are with Viagra Boys and Jehnny Beth. Check out their full tour schedule below.
Queens of the Stone Age: The End is Nero Tour 2023:
August 3 – Sterling Heights, MI – Michigan Lottery Amphitheatre at Freedom Hill*
August 4 – Toronto, ON – Budweiser Stage*
August 5 – Pittsburgh, PA – Stage AE Outdoors*
August 7 – Bridgeport, CT – Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater*
August 8 – Philadelphia, PA – TD Pavilion at the Mann*
August 9 – Washington, DC – The Anthem*
August 11 – Portland, ME – Cross Insurance Arena*
August 12 – Queens, NY – Forest Hills Stadium*
August 15 – Raleigh, NC – Red Hat Amphitheater*
August 16 – Asheville, NC – Rabbit Rabbit*
August 18 – Atlanta, GA – Fox Theatre *
August 19 – Nashville, TN – Ascend Amphitheater*
September 16 – Chicago, IL – Riot Fest
September 17 – Minneapolis, MN – The Armory**
September 19 – Omaha, NE – Steelhouse**
September 20 – Kansas City, MO – Starlight Theatre**
September 22 – Indianapolis, IN – TCU Amphitheater at White River State Park**
September 23 – St. Louis, MO – Saint Louis Music Park**
September 24 – Louisville, KY – Louder Than Life
September 26 – Rogers, AR – Walmart AMP**
September 27 – Oklahoma City, OK – The Criterion**
September 29 – Denver, CO – Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre**
September 30 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Great Saltair**
October 2 – Portland, OR – Veterans Memorial Coliseum**
October 3 – Vancouver, BC – Pacific Coliseum**
October 4 – Seattle, WA – Climate Pledge Arena**
October 6 – San Francisco, CA – Bill Graham Civic Auditorium**
October 8 – Sacramento, CA – Aftershock
CORRECTION: An early version of this post said that Homme was diagnosed with lung cancer, which is not the case. Our post has been updated.