Queens of the Stone Age (commonly abbreviated as QOTSA) is an American rock band formed in 1996 in Seattle, Washington. The band was founded by vocalist and guitarist Josh Homme, who has been the only constant member throughout multiple lineup changes. Since 2013, the lineup has consisted of Homme alongside Troy Van Leeuwen (guitar, lap steel, keyboard, percussion, backing vocals), Michael Shuman (bass guitar, keyboard, backing vocals), Dean Fertita (keyboards, guitar, percussion, backing vocals), and Jon Theodore (drums, percussion). The band also has a large pool of contributors and collaboratoors. Queens of the Stone Age are known for their blues, Krautrock and electronica-influenced style of riff-oriented and rhythmic hard rock music, coupled with Homme’s distinct falsetto vocals and unorthodox guitar scales.
Formed after the dissolution of Homme’s previous band Kyuss, the band originated from the spread of the Pal Desert music scene. Their self-titled debut album was recorded with former Kyuss members Alfredo Hernandez on drums and Homme on all other instruments. Bass guitarist Nick Oliveri joined the band for its accompanying tour and became the band’s co-lead vocalist alongside Homme.
The band’s second studio album, Rated R, which featured Mark Lanegan as a guest vocalist, was their major label debut, being released on Interscope Records. It was commercially and critically successful, and featured their breakout single “The Lost Art of Keeping a Secret”. The band’s third studio album, Songs for the Deaf, was released in 2002 to universal acclaim and further commercial success, and featured Dave Grohl on drums, alongside contributions from Alain Johannes and Natasha Shneider.
Following Oliveri and Lanegan’s departures in 2004 and 2005, respectively, Homme became the band’s sole lead vocalist, with multi-instrumentalist Troy Van Leeuwen and drummer Joey Castillo becoming key collaborators on 2005’s Lullabies to Paralyze and 2007’s electronic-influenced Era Vulgaris. After several years of inactivity, the band signed to indie label Matador Records in 2013 and released a several albums over a span of ten years: …Like Clockwork (2013), Villains (2017), and In Times New Roman (2023). This trilogy brought further critical acclaim and a new height of commercial success for the band, with …Like Clockwork becoming their first number-one album in the U.S.
It was in early May 2023, that the rumours began to surface of the album when a product listing appeared on the band’s website titled In Times New Roman, including an album cover and tracklist. The listing was initially removed. In May the album’s first single “Emotion Sickness” was released, along with an official announcement of the album. At the end of May, the album’s second single “Carnavoyeur” was released. In June, the third and final single “Paper Machete” was released, immediately followed by the release of the album. The band have been nominated for Grammy Awards seven times: four times for Best Hard Rock Performance, twice for Best Rock Album, and once for Best Rock Performance.
