Josh Homme has revealed that he was diagnosed with cancer last year.
In a new interview with Revolver, the Queens of the Stone Age frontman spoke about the diagnosis he received in 2022, from which he says he will make a full recovery.
He also called his diagnosis “the cherry on top of an interesting time period”, following a series of legal battles with his ex-wife, Brody Dalle.
As per Revolver, Homme didn’t reveal any specifics regarding his diagnosis, but confirmed surgery to remove the cancer was successful. He is currently still recovering, and feels occasional pain.
“I never say it can't get any worse. I never say that, and I wouldn't advise it. But I do say it can get better," Homme reflected. "Cancer is just the cherry on top of an interesting time period, you know?
“I'm extremely thankful that I'll get through this, and I'll look back at this as something that's fucked up – but will have made me better,” he added. “I'm cool with that. There's a lot of stuff I want to do. And there's a lot of people I want to do that with.”
Later on in the conversation, Homme reflected on the mechanisms that helped him deal with the various issues he’s faced over the years, saying he found solace in his music.
“I've got nothing against therapy. I just don't go because I play [music] instead,” he offered. “Over the last couple years, I've done a lot of therapy, but at the end of the day, I understand how to proceed, moving forward with the religion that I use – music.”
Though Homme described the past few years as the ”darkest” period of his life, he put a positive spin on his experiences, saying they’ll help inform the next chapter of his life.
“This has been the darkest four years of my life,” he said. “But that’s okay, too. Even though all that has occurred and smashed my old life to pieces, those pieces I’ve been able to build into a ship that’s about to launch.”
In part, that “ship that’s about to launch” will take the form of Queens of the Stone Age’s eighth studio album, In Times New Roman – the band’s first effort in five years, which arrives this week (June 16).
“I think this is the first time I didn't want to make a record,” Homme admitted to Revolver, “but I was dealing with a lot of stuff in my personal life. We recorded a lot of stuff. I think I was doing it because when I'm in trouble, this is what I do. This is where I go to get right.”
