Queens of the Stone Age at Download: Predicted setlist and merchandise ahead of headline show

• Queens of the Stone Age are set to close Friday night at Download Festival 2024
• Josh Homme and company are set to take to the main stage at 9:10pm
• But what could the band perform and what merchandise could be for sale at Download?

It’s been eleven years since Josh Homme and Queens of the Stone Age performed at Download Festival, but this year the band are set to headling the Apex stage on Friday.

What took so long? 

Considered one of the forefathers of the desert-rock movement, having seen Josh Homme cut his teeth with Kyuss before forming QOTSA in 1996 and releasing their self-titled record through Roadrunner Records. 

But with countless successes on the UK album chart, headlining Leeds and Reading Festivals and closing out the Other Stage at Glastonbury Festival 2023, we’d say that the band have earned the right to top the bill - sharing that slot that in previous years was held by Black Sabbath, System Of A Down and Linkin Park.

The band have currently been touring Europe ahead of their Download Festival performance, including a dogged show in Germany overnight which, according to some in attendance, was threatened to be shut down by police. Naturally, Josh Homme had a (musical) response to the threats.

No such dramas we hope though when they take to the Apex Stage on Friday, but what could Queens of the Stone Age perform during their headline performance and what could be on offer at the merchandise stand from the “No One Knows” hitmakers? 

What time are Queens of the Stone Age performing at Download Festival 2024?

Queens of the Stone Age are set to take to the Apex stage at 9:10pm, with their set expected to finish at 10:50pm.

What could Queens of the Stone Age perform at Download Festival 2024?

Looking at QOTSA’s most recent performance on their “The End Is Nero” tour, the band performed the following songs at the Alsterdorfer Sporthalle, Hamburg, Germany on June 11 2024.

Notable from this performance is that Homme changed the lyrics to “cops” during “A Song for the Dead” at every moment due to threats by police to shut the gig down, according to one user on Setlist.FM.

• Regular John
• No One Knows
• Paper Machete
• Smooth Sailing
• My God Is the Sun
• Emotion Sickness
• I Sat by the Ocean
• Time & Place

• Turnin' on the Screw
• Carnavoyeur
• The Sky Is Fallin'
• You Can't Quit Me Baby (first time since 2018)
• 3's & 7's
• Sicily
• Make It Wit Chu
• Little Sister

Encore:

• Go With the Flow
• A Song for the Dead

What merchandise could Queens of the Stone Age have at Download Festival 2024?

Queens of the Stone Age could have the following T-shirts for sale at Download Festival 2024 owing to the fact they have been for sale during their European tour dates and are the latest designs available through their online store. 

Of the picks we’ve looked at worth warranting your attention, two of the shirts have a back print with a list of their European tour dates, while the ornate purple font very much feels like a throwback to the golden age of psychedelic music and the other - well… it’s a skeleton riding on a motorbike with a large snake alongside it. No further explanation is required. 

Are you looking forward to seeing Queens of the Stone Age headlining Download Festival 2024, or have you caught the band on tour in Europe before their performance on Friday? NationalWorld would love to hear your experiences - feel free to share them by emailing [email protected] or leaving a comment underneath this post.