“Every time we go there it’s the best show,” Queens of the Stone said of their imminent Australian tour.
Rock fans across the country were sent into a tizzy today (October 24) following news of Queen of the Stone Age’s massive Australian tour slated for early next year.
Dubbed ‘The End is Nero’ tour, the eight-date run of shows will trace the iconic band from Perth to the Gold Coast, with pit-stops set for Melbourne, Sydney, Hobart and Torquay.
The tour is in support of Queen of the Stone Age’s eighth studio album, In Times New Roman…, which arrived in June of this year and marked a welcome return to form for one of the world’s most enigmatic hard rock outfits.
‘The End is Nero’ will mark the five-piece’s first visit to Australia since 2018, with a years-in-the-making setlist sure to electrify audiences across the country.
Queens of the Stone Age will kick off their jaunt with a show at Perth’s Red Hill Auditorium on February 10, followed by a performance at The Drive in Adelaide on February 13.
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From there, the band will head to Hobart’s Mona Lawns on February 16, before back-to-back shows in Torquay (Feb 18) and Melbourne (Feb 19).
Stone Age will round-out the ‘Nero’ jaunt with performances in Sydney (Feb 21) and the Gold Coast (Feb 24), and a two-night stint at Brisbane’s Fortitude Music Hall from February 25.
General onsale tickets to the tour will be available on Monday, October 30. For more ticketing in tour information, head here.
In celebration of ‘The End is Nero’, we caught up with Queens of the Stone Age keyboardist Dean Fertita for a chat about potentially enduring a dreaded ‘shoey’, his lust for saunas, and Australia as “a very invigorating place for us to go.”
Catch our full interview with the Queens of the Stone Age bandmate below, and scroll down to listen to the band’s new album In Times New Roman…
HAPPY: Australia has become known for encouraging touring acts to complete a ‘shoey’ on stage. Is this a ritual you or the band would be interested in?
DEAN: I don’t know that that is, tell me [laughs]. Oh my god, I don’t think that would go over very well. As I said before, I’m dealing with a flu today, so the idea of that is extra daunting to me [laughs].
HAPPY: What are your must-haves in your tour rider?
DEAN: You know, the rider, not so much. I think one of the biggest things lately is making sure we have Bluetooth speakers so we can listen to some stuff before we play, and after.
It’s almost like, at this point, our rider is as much for our friends and guests as it is for us. So everything that we have there is just a way to make sure everyone is feeling comfortable and loose and good when they come to our show.
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HAPPY: Does the band have any pre-show rituals?
DEAN: What we’ve been doing lately is actually just playing a little bit. So we set up a room and listen to some instruments. You know, it’s been wonderful because we can decide to play something that we haven’t done before and rehearse it right before we go on, and it gives us some options to change up our set every night.
HAPPY: Living on the road while touring can be a tough gig. Are there any tools or practices you use to remain clear-headed during long stints on the road?
DEAN: I’ve gotten very, very into finding saunas. So if our hotels have saunas, I will definitely do that. Anything to kind of ‘burn off’ the damage that I am doing most of the time is always good for me [laughs].
HAPPY: Aside from the shows, are there any items you want to tick off on your Aussie visit?
DEAN: You know, I have to say, just getting to that part of the world is so motivating for us. I feel like every time we go there it’s the best show.
We ended The Villains tour in Australia, the last show was in Perth in 2018. We just really look forward to going there. It’s a very invigorating place to go. [Drummer] Jon [Theodore] is a surfer, too, so if we can get out to any of the beaches or things like that, he’s very happy.
It’s impossible to know [which songs Australia loves most] now that it’s been so long since we’ve been there. I hope that the new record does pretty well there [laughs].
