“I didn’t come here to play with your balls”, Josh Homme told the crowd as he took a knife to a giant beach ball floating around the stadium. There’s never a dull moment when Queens of the Stone Age are on stage and last night at Budweiser Stage was no exception. Every fan who grabbed a ticket to the show was lucky enough to catch one hell of a performance at what was QOSTA’s largest North American show ever.
Photo Credit: Ryan Mueller
Opening the Evening
Royal Blood opened the evening for Queen’s of the Stone Age with a tight, ten song set. Coming on stage to “Down in Mexico” by the Coasters, Royal Blood turned things up ten notches by jumping into “I Only Lie When I Love You” followed by “Where Are You Now”.
Photo Credit: Ryan Mueller
Ever the entertainers, this two-piece band was louder than ever, slamming from one song and into the next. With tidbits of wisdom from drummer Ben Thatcher (ex.”Some say tomato, some say toe-mah-toe, I say Toronto”), the band kept the crowd happy and excited. My only disappointment was that most of the set and even the way they hyped up the crowd was exactly the same as the last three times I’ve seen them. I’d love to see them switch it up! That aside however, it was a fantastic set.
On to the Main ActAfter the exit of Royal Blood, Queens of the Stone Age came onto the stage to find a stadium of massively excited fans. They quickly jumped into “Feet Don’t Fail Me Now” off their latest album, Villains, and the crowd immediately began jumping, shouting and singing along. The energy was unreal.
Photo Credit: Ryan Mueller
From there, the band played “Turnin’ on a Screw” (which I personally loved) and “My God is the Sun”. Drummer Jon Theodore was on fire, ripping out amazing drum solos and bringing the beats home all night. Michael Shuman shuffled through bass lines with ease but more impressively sang incredibly high vocal sections (some of which I hadn’t even realized were a human voice up until this point).
On the left of the stage, Troy Van Leeuwen played with style as he danced awkwardly and added an element of funk to the band’s sound. To his right and back somewhat, Dean Fertita (as you all know, I’m a fan), switched between guitar and keyboard all night, acting ever so cool.
Photo Credit: Ryan Mueller
Then of course at the centre of it all was Homme who flirted with the audience all night while singing melodiously dark and sexy tunes. Mixing between harder tracks and tour debuts like “The Lost Art of Keeping a Secret” and slower jams like “Make it With Chu” (my fav pick of the evening), Josh kept the set on track and full of soul. His voice was definitely at its best and he was ready to rock.
Photo Credit: Ryan Mueller
Another high point of the night was the performance of “If I had a Tail”. This gritty song was a great addition to the set and the crowd was definitely feeling it. Shaking their hips along with Homme, the stadium sang out with feeling.
Closing up the set, QOSTA played the funky “The Way You Used To Do”, “Little Sister” and “Go With the Flow” back to back. Being that most fans could sing along, it was a superb way to end and ensure an encore.
Photo Credit: Ryan Mueller
Closing Time
Thunderous applause and chants of “Queens! Queens! Queens!” brought the band back on stage quickly. Ending the evening, QOSTA tantalized the crowd with “You Think I Ain’t Worth a Dollar but I Feel Like a Millionaire” and “Song for the Dead”. As soon as the house lights came on, a collective feeling of “holy shit that was awesome” washed over the audience as thousands of smiling faces piled out of Budweiser Stage and into the night.
Peace, love & history.
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