Queens of the Stone Age are BACK. Like Christmas morning or discovering there’s an extra chicken nugget in your box of nugs, it is the best time of year for QOTSA fans. Finally, brothers and sisters, we can feast. ‘Emotion Sickness’ is their first single in six years and comes with the announcement of new album In Times New Roman… set for release next month. Oh boy.
‘Single servings of pain/a dose of emotion sickness/I just can’t shake/then my fever broke’ sets the tone of acknowledging what’s happened in Homme’s life and how there’s no choice but to move forward. Sleazy guitars stumble their way into rhythm, finding their feet in the disgusting …Like Clockwork universe we had an insight into ten years ago.
The verses are gutsy and come with a punch. Homme’s knack for wordplay shines throughout, with added inflections and sarcasm littered throughout. While they’re intense and direct in their attack, the chorus offers a different vibe. Sticking with the classic QOTSA traits, it’s wonderfully melodic and lifts the mood with melodies and harmonies opening it up massively. ‘baby don’t care for me/had to let her go, oh’ swings with a ‘The Way You Used To Do’ swagger and sounds powerful.
‘Emotion Sickness’ is a loaded gun that skirts the edges of Josh Homme’s recent public battles while shooting bullets along the way. Without outright highlighting certain individuals and events, it comes lyrically prepared to drop the right emotion at various points.
It took a couple listens for these loose pieces to line up, but that’s what makes QOTSA so fantastic. When everything clicks, it clicks. The first taste of what’s to be the third in a trilogy of records is a good one and has me already craving for more. June 16th couldn’t come soon enough!