Josh Homme’s Emergency Surgery Forces QOTSA to Cancel Tour

Queens of the Stone Age have announced that they are canceling the remainder of their July tour dates.

A post on the band’s social media accounts states that frontman Josh Homme “must return to the United States immediately for emergency surgery.” The nature of his injury or ailment is not specified, with the band noting “every effort was made to push through and play for you, but it is no longer an option to continue.”

The news affects a mix of eight planned European headlining shows and festival appearances, beginning July 10 in Vitrolles, France and concluding July 27 in Athens.

According to their website, Queens of the Stone Age’s next currently scheduled tour date is August 24 in Gothenburg, Sweden. The band last performed on Saturday night in Milan, Italy, after canceling their appearance at the AMA Music Festival the previous night due to unspecified illness.

On July 2, Homme revealed that QOTSA would become the first band to perform inside the Catacombs of Paris, and that the performance would take place in “a week’s time or so.” A specific date was not listed, and there has been no report that the show took place.

Queens of the Stone Age are currently touring in support of 2023’s In Times New Roman…, which was their first album since 2017’s Villains. Prior to the release of the album, Homme revealed he had been diagnosed with cancer in 2022, and had a successful operation to have it removed.