In 2025 Queens Of The Stone Age Are Still One Of The Best Rock Acts Around

DUBLIN, IRELAND – AUGUST 20: Josh Homme of Queens Of The Stone Age performs onstage during a concert at Royal Hospital Kilmainham on August 20, 2025 in Dublin, Ireland. (Photo by Debbie Hickey/Getty Images)

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There are few rock bands in this day and age that have the same vibrant swagger and synergistic chemistry that Queens of the Stone Age continue to showcase. It’s almost startling to see a band like Queens, who’ve been around the block for nearly 30 years, and are somehow capable of delivering one of the best, possibly the best pure rock show that audiences can attend right now. This is exactly the kind of spectacle Queens of the Stone Age put on at their show in Dublin, Ireland.

What’s more fascinating and impressive, is the fact that Queens of the Stone Age’s 2-hour set was a raw and off-the-cuff show. There wasn’t any over the top lighting, pyro or elaborate stage production, and more importantly there wasn’t a litany of backing tracks to muddy up the organic rock energy that was emanating from the stage. It was simply a masterclass in what an incredible rock concert should look and sound like.

There’s a withdrawal-like effect after watching a Queens set. Partly, it’s because you’ve just witnessed an absolutely mesmerizing show, but it’s also because Queens exude an authenticity that feels seemingly absent from the vast majority of rock bands these days. It’s almost as if we’ve become completely dissonant and detached from what a truly great rock band is supposed to sound like.

The chemistry shared between members Josh Homme, Michael Shuman, Troy Van Leeuwen, Jon Theodore, and Dean Fertita is certainly rich and hard to come by, but Queens have stuck by their tried and true rock playbook for decades. As a result, the band has just climbed into a league of their own, and from a performance standpoint they continue to age like fine wine.

What Was Queens Of The Stone Age’s Setlist?

Throughout their summer European tour Queens of the Stone Age have mixed up their setlist for nearly every show they’ve played. At the Dublin, Ireland show, there was a healthy mix of deep cut tracks in the set like “Regular John,” “Misfit Love,” and “I Never Came,” and of course massive hits like “No One Knows,” “Make It Wit Chu,” and “Little Sister.” The band’s hits always go over well, especially when they’re played surprisingly early like they did with “No One Knows,” breaking it out after the first song of the night. However, the coolest aspect of the set was how comfortably the band would jam through tracks and make up sections on the fly – opener “Regular John” had a hypnotic bridge section that was completely unique from the original recording, and it was a treat to die-hard fans of that early record.

There were a number of moments where the band would turn a solo or a bridge section into elaborate jams that felt completely spontaneous, but also calculated in just how well they pulled off these moments. At one point towards the end of the night, frontman Josh Homme asked the audience what song they wanted to hear, which eventually kicked off a near 15-minute rendition of “Straight Jacket Fitting” off the band’s latest LP In Times New Roman…

Another huge takeaway from seeing Queens of the Stone Age on this tour was witnessing just how brilliant their last album actually is. A sizable portion of the set had songs from In Times New Roman…, and seeing these songs in a live setting put into perspective how masterfully crafted many of these tracks are. “Time & Place,” “Straight Jacket Fitting,” and “Made to Parade” are some of the best songs the band has ever played live, and that’s being said after feeling lukewarm about the last record upon its release.

Things just click and hit different when Queens are in front of an audience performing live, and the same can be said about their opus …Like Clockwork. It’s long stood as an incredible album, but just hearing tracks “I Sat by the Ocean,” “The Vampyre of Time and Memory,” and “I Appear Missing” opens a completely new appreciation for these songs.

Bottom Line

Whether you consider yourself a fan of Queens of the Stone Age or rock music in general, there isn’t another band that’s delivering the same immaculate and authentic rock spectacle as Queens of the Stone Age. They’re truly a once in a lifetime band that all rock and live music connoisseurs should urgently schedule into their lifetime ‘must-see’ list.