In certain circles, Josh Homme was already plenty famous before Queens of the Stone Age. He was a founding member and guitarist for desert metal outfit Kyuss – a staple of the Palm Desert scene during the late '80s and early '90s and a band's band that became legendary for combining sludgy guitar rock with spacey jams and elements of thrash.

But when Kyuss split up in 1995, Homme created Queens of the Stone Age (originally named Gamma Ray) as a collective with a revolving lineup that included members of Soundgarden and Monster Magnet. Sporting a more melodic take on the downtuned metal of Kyuss, QOTSA (which at one point consisted entirely of former Kyuss members) released their first album in 1998 and a well-received follow-up two years later. But it wasn't until 2002's Songs for the Deaf that the group became a household name. During the decade since, Homme (the only constant) has honed the band's sound into one that's immediately recognizable.

In this installment of Albums Ranked in Order of Awesomeness, we assess each of QOTSA's studio albums – not an easy task for a band without a bad album. Go with the flow and check it out below.

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