Negative Space

Album: In Times New Roman... (2023)
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Songfacts®:

  • Queens of Stone Age recorded "Negative Space" for In Times New Roman.... The album follows a difficult period in frontman Josh Homme's life when his marriage to Distillers frontwoman Brody Dalle broke down.
  • Here, Josh Homme teeters on the brink of losing his love, a heartache he can't fend off. It's like being adrift in space, slowly spiraling into the void, helpless.

    "I was thinking about the nature of oblivion," Homme told NME. "If you were cut loose from your spaceship, and you're in a space suit, there's nothing to stop you. You'd see Earth as you're gently turning, until you're like: 'F--k, I can't see it anymore.'"

    As Homme continued his explanation to NME, he extended his arms, gesturing at the vastness of space. "I've dealt with a lot of situations in the last seven years where it doesn't matter whether you like it or not, it's happening," he said. "In a way, that's oblivion. The first breath you take after you're like: 'There's nothing I can do now.' I think writing about that has value. To me, it has value."
  • Queens of the Stone Age took the reins on production, while Mark Rankin weaved the mix and Gavin Lurssen worked his mastering magic. The sonic creation came to life in two locales: Josh Homme's Pink Duck Studios in Burbank, California, and Rick Rubin's Shangri-La studio in Malibu, California.
  • American filmmaker Liam Lynch directed the video. It's the sixth visual he's shot for Queens of the Stone Age, following "Burn The Witch," "I'm Designer," "Head Like a Haunted House," "Emotion Sickness," and "Carnavoyeur."

    "Acceptance is lonely, messy, and tough, especially when it's all that is left," stated Lynch. "This video takes place between the end and a beginning. It's the desperate and lost, message-in-a-bottle emotions that are tossed out and let float away. No action required."

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