In Times New Roman...

While the thick, churning grind may feel familiar, it never seems staid, not when QOTSA rely on clouds of vocal harmonies to push them onto a psychedelic astral plane, a shift that can amount to the subtle colorings of "Time & Place" or be as startling as the chorus of "Emotion Sickness."

In Times New Roman… is classic Queens of the Stone Age in all its grit and posture, but with a newly found lyrical resonance, making it a worthy late addition to their consistently upstanding catalog.

Throughout, you feel Homme's pain, but ultimately marvel at his ability to channel it into music so brutally uplifting. [Aug 2023, p.79]

It’s not as front-to-back enjoyable as Rated R or Lullabies To Paralyze, and it’s not as thematically consistent as the Mark Ronson produced Villains. So it is their worst album. But it’s still the worst album by the greatest rock ‘n’ roll band in the world. Take it for what it is.

The classic stoner rock we know from QOTSA is alive and well, but on this record they've pushed themselves into the more experimental corners of their psyche. [Summer 2023, p.74]

May well be the strongest QOTSA album since 2005’s Lullabyes to Paralyze.

As a QOTSA album, In Times New Roman… is dark and disorientating; for Joshua Homme, it feels like a wholly necessary outpouring of creative catharsis.

QOTSA now know what is expected of them after a decade of commercial appeal: rock ‘n’ roll that’s not too heavy, lyrics that aren’t too vicious. Then they decide to stick their middle fingers up and make what they want regardless.

They’ve pitched their comeback between an emotional exorcism for Homme, but with enough fan-service for the die-hards; this is up there with their darkest, knottiest material to date, and will be appreciated all the more for it.

If you’re looking for something with a bit more bite and ambition, you might be a little disappointed with what’s on offer. In spite of that, this is easily one of the strongest rock albums to come from 2023 so far, and if you’re a fan of the band or you enjoy the genre in general, this is sure to quench the majority of people’s thirst.

This isn’t the best place to start with Queens of the Stone Age (R and Songs for the Deaf remain their high points), but longtime fans should be happy to have them back again.

The album opens with the tone-shifting, unsettling, pessimistic “Obscenery” which sees modern love as unsentimental and everything doomed around grunge-laden guitars, random classical violin breaks and crashing drums; interesting ideas which never fully lock-in. Better is the driving, straight-ahead rock of “Paper Machete” complete with an excellent distorted solo, the angular “Emotion Sickness” that deploys a catchy FM radio-friendly hook, and “Negative Space” which juxtaposes sexy grooving bass during the verses and big clanging noise breaks for the choruses.

With ‘In Times New Roman…’ Homme and co. have crafted a darkly seductive return, an intoxicating psychedelic record that drips with equal parts malice and renewal. It’s good to have them back.

Queens of the Stone Age dial back their intensity and step up their groove to develop a new sound for the end of the world on In Times New Roman…. For better or worse, it's clear that the band are not the same alt-rock anthem-makers they were in the Y2K era.

The best songs on In Times New Roman… are hiding in the back half, resulting in an unusually lopsided experience.

Here, QOTSA play it pretty safe. That might have been a necessary step to help Homme feel sheltered enough to show off his still-fresh wounds, but, on the whole it keeps the evolution of the band from reaching that next crucial step forward.

There’s some filler. But melody-lite tracks such as “Sicily” and “Negative Space” bob by on their bass line grooves.