Rock ‘n’ Roll Circus, Queens Of The Stone Age Review by Rob Johnson
Rock ‘n’ Roll Circus has gone from strength to strength since its inception in 2023. That year’s line-up saw Noel Gallagher and Self Esteem headline over two days, while 2025’s edition boasts several international stars playing across five days, including two massive headline shows from rock ‘n’ roll royalty Queens of the Stone Age.
Circa Waves kick things off on the Electric Carousel stage, and it is a testament to their versatility that they are able to switch up their indie pop stylings to match the heavy rock acts appearing across the rest of the festival. ‘Fire That Burns’ and ‘Wake Up’ are especially beefed up, and by the time they close out the set with live favourite, ‘T-Shirt Weather’, it is clear that they have won the crowd over.
The Murder Capital appear next on the cavernous Big Top stage, but there is never any danger of the Dublin band being overawed by the occasion. Frontman James McGovern glares at the crowd from behind rockstar shades as the band tears through tracks like ‘Death of a Giant’ and ‘Don’t Cling to Life’. Penultimate track ‘Ethel’ sounds gigantic, ringing around the Big Top, and the rowdy South Yorkshire audience responds accordingly.
Judging by the number of Viagra Boys t-shirts spotted in the crowd, it appears that there are nearly as many people there for the Swedish oddballs as for the headliners. This is a band that was made for the stage. Lead singer Sebastian Murphy soon finds himself topless, beer belly triumphantly bared, writhing across the stage whilst babbling incoherently into the mic. It’s an incredible spectacle. Everyone goes nuts for tracks like ‘Return to Monke’ and ‘Pyramid of Health’ before an incredible rendition of ‘Sports’ brings the house down. Fair play to headliners Queens of the Stone Age for agreeing to follow this band of punk rock lunatics. That takes balls.
South London noise merchants Shame close out the Electric Carousel stage with a typically assured performance. It’s a tough slot just before the headliners at only 30 minutes, but the band take their opportunity with both hands, culminating in a massive performance of fan favourite ‘One Rizla’.
And so, to the main event. Queens of the Stone Age. In Sheffield. On the last night of the European tour. What a coup for the city. The band rip through an incendiary rendition of debut album classic ‘Regular John’, before casually dropping ‘No One Knows’. Cue pandemonium. It’s rare to see such a partisan crowd at a festival – this feels more like a homecoming than an American band emerging from the desert to play to a bunch of Yorkshire drunkards. Josh Homme, as tall and weathered as a tree that has ripped up its roots and decided to pick up a guitar, is a physically imposing and intimidating presence on stage until he opens his mouth. Then, as ever, he comes across as genuine, passionate and warm. He seems genuinely touched by the adoration from the crowd and he stops regularly to chat about everything from the Arctic Monkeys to forgetting that they had played the Leadmill in 2000 to the sheer quality of the other bands on the bill. It’s an endearing and winning performance from a frontman who has continuously proven himself as one of the best in the business.
The hits keep coming with a punishing performance of ‘Little Sister’ bleeding into a blissed out rendition of ‘The Vampyre of Time and Memory’ followed by an extended freakout that sometimes sounds like ‘Better Living Through Chemistry’ and sometimes sounds like an industrial plant being torn down by a huge pneumatic drill. This is a band that knows how to make a noise. My ears are ringing for hours afterwards.
‘Feel Good Hit of the Summer’ receives probably the biggest reaction of the night – the ultimate party song inspiring the ultimate party – before ‘I Sat by the Ocean’ gives everyone a chance to come up for air. ‘Make It Wit Chu’ morphs into a cover of ‘Miss You’ by The Rolling Stones, and then ‘A Song for the Dead’ goes so hard that someone in the crowd actually has a seizure. The band immediately stop playing until it has been established that everything is ok (Homme entertains the crowd with some of his ‘jokes’ in the meantime – encouraging everyone to boo at the punchlines), and then it is time for first album favourite, ‘Mexicola’. It’s nice to see the band paying homage to their roots whilst still playing plenty of new stuff.
There is time to return to ‘A Song for the Dead’, the band obviously feel they have unfinished business having been forced to stop halfway through, and then it’s all over. Homme looks out imperiously across the crowd, and it’s hard to shake the feeling that Rock ‘n Roll Circus may have just witnessed its high point. How the hell will anyone top this? I’ll be back next year to find out.
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