Queens of the Stone Age digs into dark days on ‘In Times New Roman…’

Think of your favorite movie, painting, or even your favorite place to travel. You could experience it a million times and you’d always discover another thing you’ve never noticed before — another element of it that delights or fascinates you.

That’s the kind of art Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme is interested in making, and you could argue that’s what’s allowed him to keep making wholly unique music for decades. Queens of the Stone Age just released their eighth studio album, In Times New Roman…, and in this session, Homme joins World Cafe to talk about striving for originality, about humor and wordplay in music, and about the unexpected musical influences he encountered in his youth that still resonate with him now.

Editor’s note: This interview was recorded before Homme revealed recently that he was diagnosed with cancer and completed treatment last year.