Josh Homme, frontman of Queens of the Stone Age, recently opened up about his determination to keep performing despite serious health struggles. In an interview with ALT 98.7 FM, he spoke about playing the band’s 2024 Catacombs show while managing ongoing complications from his 2022 cancer diagnosis.
Homme made it clear that physical pain wouldn’t stop him from seizing meaningful creative chances. He described his mindset when deciding whether to move forward or walk away from the project. “I feel great, and I was told that I would be out of commission for a while, and I’m not. And so I’m thankful,” Homme said. “The fact that I was dealing with some serious health things actually makes it better in the end. It’s better because things that are good are not simple.”
He went on to share more about how he views pain and his dedication to his craft. “The physical side of pain is momentary because I never think about that anymore. Even in the moment, it’s like, ‘So what? So it hurts. So what?’ I wanted it so bad. I’d been working on it so long. We were so close. Am I going to turn and quit because it hurts? What would I do then if I quit? What am I supposed to do—get up in the morning and make coffee? What do I do?”
Homme added that the difficult circumstances ultimately brought the band closer together and deepened his respect for the creative process.
“The main part of this isn’t whether I was ill or not feeling well. It’s that there’s this moment up for grabs, and it’s like I’ve been dreaming about this for years. I’m actually thankful that I was not well because I learned so much. We came together and got closer because of it. It had strange benefits,” he continued.
Queens of the Stone Age went on to deliver a landmark performance in the Catacombs of Paris on July 8, 2024, realizing a dream two decades in the making. The achievement, however, coincided with a serious and undisclosed health crisis for Homme that surfaced just days before the band was due to head home from their European tour. Reports detailed the intense deliberation behind the band’s decision at that pivotal moment.
They were forced to choose between canceling the Catacombs performance or moving ahead despite Homme’s condition. He later described being “in a very difficult physical spot” during the show. Even so, the band decided to proceed with the recording that would become Alive in the Catacombs. Homme’s decision to perform while unwell reflects his broader creative philosophy.
Coverage of the event noted that he felt his health struggles actually heightened the experience rather than undermining it, sharpening his focus on the moment and the setting itself and preventing the performance from feeling shallow. “It’s better that I was unwell, because I think if I was well, we would’ve maybe been more ‘California’ about it and thought ‘Man, it’s so cool to be here…’ And something about that kind of sucks,” he said.
The fallout from the performance turned out to be even more severe than expected. Within roughly 20 hours of finishing the Catacombs set, Homme needed emergency surgery and then spent about seven months confined to bed while recovering. The band ultimately canceled the rest of their 2024 tour dates due to his condition.
By December 2024, doctors assured Homme that he would recover, marking a major turning point. He described feeling an intense drive to get back to work, saying he felt “like a rodeo bull leaning on the gate.” Looking ahead, Homme has signaled his intention to create new Queens of the Stone Age music, work on another Eagles of Death Metal record, continue Desert Sessions projects, and possibly launch an entirely new band.
