In Times New Roman… – Queens of the Stone Age ★★½

Year	Album	Artist	Stars	Score	Genre
2023	In Times New Roman…	Queens of the Stone Age	★★½	57	Rock	Alternative Rock

On In Times New Roman…, Queens of the Stone Age revert back to the basics of their 2000s-era albums, with somewhat mixed results. The more straightforward approach to alternative rock lends itself to a consistent sound and some solid single-quality tracks, but also makes the band more predictable. The songs lack the depth and detail found on their most recent efforts, Villains (2017) and …Like Clockwork (2013). 

“Obscenery” and “Paper Machete” are a solid one-two punch at the top of the record, with blunt drum work, bluesy riffs and screeching guitar parts that would fit in with others from Songs for the Deaf or Lullabies to Paralyze. “What the Peephole Say” has some great, raw energy despite the “trying to be funny” kind of title. The album’s closing track, “Straight Jacket Fitting” has some of the darker, twisted sounding elements that make their more recent efforts work. “Emotion Sickness” and “Carnavoyeur” work as fine singles that sound like quintessential Queen of the Stone Age tracks. 

In fact, the whole record is made up of songs where, five seconds into the track you say, “yup, that’s definitely a Queens of the Stone Age song right there.” But overall it doesn’t feel nearly as dramatic or dynamic as the band has in the past, and Josh Homme’s performance feels flatter than usual, resulting in a blurred, melded together experience start to finish without many true standout moments. 

Every song is solid enough, and I wouldn’t say there’s a bad track on the record, so I can’t give this lower than three stars or complain too much. But I was a little disappointed, and even at a 47 minute runtime, In Times New Roman… —like the standard, yet bland font it’s named after — left me craving a bit more in the end.