Bassist Nick Oliveri was an active member of Queens of the Stone Age from 1998 to 2004 and played on such classic records as 2000's Rated R and 2002' Songs for the Deaf. Fast forward nearly a decade and Oliveri was back with the group in a much smaller capacity, doing some vocals on the group's 2013 masterpiece …Like Clockwork. The collaboration seemed to have signaled the tension between frontman and guitarist Josh Homme has gone from a boil to at least a low simmer.
Now in a conversation with NME, Oliveri revealed he'll be rejoining the group for a six-song encore for their Halloween show at The Forum in Los Angeles! Oliveri elaborated on his involvement with the band for the show…
"Josh asked me to come up and do six songs with Queens, like an encore set. A reunion, but not a reunion. I’m going to get up and play some bass and sing some songs at the end of the show. It should be an interesting night."
As well as addressed the burning question of if he would rejoin the band on a more permanent basis.
"That’s pretty much up to Josh. It’s his band, and when he pulls the trigger on something, it’s up to him. I put myself out there a few different times in the past 10 years at Queens shows. I’d go and see them play and say, ‘Hey man, I’m here! Do you want me to sing a song?’ I stopped asking him after a while, and then he asked me! It’s pretty much just when he wants to do something, these days. It’s not up to me, is what I’m saying."
Granted, this isn't the first time Oliveri has joined the group on stage. His first appearance live with the group since his firing in 2004 was on April 15. Could this be a sign a bigger, better things to come? More importantly, what does current bassist Michael Shuman think of this?
