SPILL LIVE REVIEW: QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE w/ PARIS JACKSON @ MASSEY HALL, TORONTO

QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE w/ PARIS JACKSON

@ MASSEY HALL, TORONTO

OCTOBER 5, 2025

When Josh Homme tells you to dress your best, you damn well better deliver. As Queens Of The Stone Age took the revered stage at Toronto’s Massey Hall, they were met by a sea of lace, velvet, silk, rhinestones, suede, gowns, and suits; after all, it’s not every day that the band embarks on an acoustic tour in support of their recent live album and film, Alive In The Catacombs – an album which saw the band deliver an incredible performance in The Paris Catacombs just days after Homme received a seemingly fatal diagnosis. Giving the energy of a macabre masquerade, The Catacombs Tour was not only a rapturous celebration of their recent album and film, but an extension of the artistic process behind the album, as the band stripped down a collection of deep cuts, rarities, and never performed songs for a truly unforgettable night.

Paris Jackson opened the show with a brief solo set. With just her voice and an acoustic guitar, she greeted the room with a level of warmth, despite the often-melancholic tone behind her lyrics. Jackson has an incredible voice that captures a level of authenticity to her narratives and, musically, her songs, when stripped back to the acoustic context, fit within the modern indie-pop style well. There was a vulnerability to her set and an unmistakably genuine prose, allowing her to build a meaningful connection with each verse. Her set featured highlights including “Zombies In Love”, “My Buckling Knees”, and “Drain”.

ALIVE IN THE CATACOMBS (THEATRICAL SCREENING @ THE ROYAL CINEMA, TORONTO) FILM REVIEW

Queens Of The Stone Age took the stage with a performance that could be divided into three sets. The first saw a solo Homme take the stage, performing the intro of “Running Joke,” at first a cappella, but then joined by Dean Fertita on the keyboard. As the song transitioned into “Paper Machete”, the rest of the band, and a string trio, would walk onto the stage when it was their turn to contribute to the growing arrangement. Cloaked in a blue spotlight, Homme pranced around the stage, swinging a warm-toned lamp which added to the haunted ambience of the scene as they performed the rest of the material from Alive In The Catacombs. While the same as the album, to see this live was truly spectacular, serving as a riveting start to their set as the audience hung on every phrase – hell, every word – as Homme’s voice echoed through the hallowed hall over a sparse soundscape and a captivated room.

From here, the blue lights faded to a violent red, and the curtain was drawn, revealing the full length of a stage, along with a brass quartet that would join the strings. In contrast to the opening act, this portion was distinct for a set of arrangements that relied heavy on the orchestral elements. Opening with a medley comprised of passages from “Someone’s In The Wolf”, “A Song For The Deaf”, and “Straight Jacket Fitting”, the inclusion of the horn section made an immediate difference as the orchestra took centre stage behind Homme and members of the band came and went when needed. “Mosquito Song” and “Keep Your Eyes Peeled” both benefited from the larger-than-life sound emitting from the symphony, but this act came to a culminating point with the surprising inclusion of Them Crooked Vultures’ “Spinning In Daffodils”, prominently featuring backing vocals from Michael Shuman. The second act revealed a sense of tension as the orchestra played with dissonance to embellish a symphonic hellscape with Homme at the helm as he danced across the stage – and even down the aisle of the theatre – while often brandishing a cleaver. Despite being obviously well rehearsed and performed without flaws, there was a tangible level of danger and recklessness that made for a thrilling performance.

ALIVE IN THE CATACOMBS ALBUM REVIEW

For the final act, the entire band took the stage together, this time leading the orchestra. While plugged in, this was a more toned-down performance style compared to what Queens Of The Stone Age are known for, with Jon Theodore performing on an electric drumkit and the amps and distortion turned down. This gentler approach allowed for the orchestra to embellish motifs and enhance the band’s performance of songs like “You Got A Killer Scene There, Man”, “Auto Pilot” – featuring lead vocals from Shuman – and “Hideaway”. Most notable were the performances of “The Vampyre Of Time And Memory”, “…Like Clockwork” – which demonstrated the full power of the orchestra and an array of guitars from Homme and Troy Van Leeuwen – and, most excitingly, the performance of a new song, “Easy Street.” As the band and orchestra left the stage following “…Like Clockwork”, Homme remained, and bringing the night to a moment of symmetry, performed “Long Slow Goodbye” a cappella, with Shuman joining on backing vocals towards the latter half of the song. Truly, this was a stunning moment the closed out the set with a final chill inducing moment.

The Catacombs Tour is Queens Of The Stone Age unlike you’ve heard them before and is likely to never be repeated again. Genuinely, I am not sure there is another band that could replicate a tour of this nature to the degree in which they have. Through a rousing performance, the band conjured elements of beauty, melancholy, and a sense of longing amid a haunting soundscape that was led by a surprising setlist of medleys, new material, deep cuts, and songs thought to be lost to time in the live context. The arrangements were simply brilliant, demonstrating the power of the band, not only as performers, but as songwriters, denoting a certain timelessness as they rewrote their songbook for a symphonic setting. As Homme sang his heart out and stalked the stage with all his charisma, he remains the quintessential frontman sporting a once in a generation voice and an eternally cool attitude distinctly that of the deserts of Southern-California. Most importantly, however, the band achieved something few artists ever have done by creating a tour that extends the artistic vision from the original album. Not only did they bring Alive In The Catacombs to the stage, but they breathed a new sense of life into the furthest reaches of their catalogue, demonstrating that the artistry and creative cycle that spurred this new era has continued beyond the initial record and film. In such, Queens Of The Stone Age have effectively demonstrated their continued relevance among the greatest alternative rock bands as they rewrite the possibilities while evoking both a sense of danger and refinement on The Catacombs Tour.

Queens Of The Stone Age Links

Paris Jackson Links

Background Photo Credit: Andreas Neumann