If you enjoy the most commercially successful song by Queens of the Stone Age, you should thank polka for its influence.

At least, that’s what Josh Homme shared during a recent podcast appearance, where he discussed his upbringing and how it shapes his music today.

Josh Homme’s Polka Music Background

Homme was a guest on the Queer the Music podcast when host Jake Shears inquired about his guitar learning journey. The 53-year-old musician mentioned that the area around Palm Desert, Calif., where he grew up, had limited options for learning guitar.

“In the desert, there weren’t many guitar teachers, apparently, or they didn’t really seek anyone else,” Homme explained.

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This situation led music schools to bring in teachers from backgrounds that didn’t align with those wanting to learn rock guitar. Consequently, Homme received instruction from polka musician Tom Polonsky.

“He was a polka guitar teacher, and polka was my original style of music.”

How Polka Influenced ‘No One Knows’

Even as he matured, polka continued to influence Homme’s music, including Queens of the Stone Age’s 2002 album, Songs for the Deaf.

Homme expressed gratitude for having learned from a polka guitarist, as those lessons helped shape the sound of the immensely popular single, “No One Knows.”

“If you listen to ‘No One Knows,’ it goes boomp-boom, boomp-boom and that sort of polka ‘and ah’ going ‘one and two ah,’ this up, which is also what reggae does.”

All this influence stemmed from just two years of polka guitar lessons. Homme noted that the polka sound is something he finds himself returning to even when he isn’t trying to.

“It’s really sort of like eating too much garlic. It has really stunk up my … it’s permeated everything I do.”

WATCH: Josh Homme on the ‘Queer the Music’ Podcast

When Josh Homme Realized Music Could Be ‘Scary’

Both Queens of the Stone Age’s music and their stage presentation have maintained elements of horror over the years.

For instance, during The Catacombs Tour, which took place in late 2025 and early 2026, Homme performed while swaying with a meat cleaver in hand. The band’s latest tour alongside the Foo Fighters featured images of melting faces projected behind them onstage.

Homme attributes this aspect of his music to his parents’ musical choices during his childhood.

“The Doors were the first time I realized music could be terrifying and scary.”

Homme specifically mentioned “The Crystal Ship” from The Doors’ 1967 self-titled debut album, which he said his parents often played on cassette during family road trips.

“In realizing music can be terrifying, it’s illuminating corners of a vast space by candlelight. You’re on this ghostly mystery, showing me how vast a space music can occupy.”

Want to influence your kids like Josh Homme’s parents? Keep reading for a list of essential rock and metal albums to pass down to your children.