Which Queens of Stone Age album should I buy?

From Wiki:

In 2010, frontman Josh Homme was hospitalized for thirteen days, and subsequently bedridden for four months, following complications during a routine knee surgical procedure.[4] Homme noted, "I woke up and there was a doctor going, ‘Shit, we lost you.' I couldn’t get up for four months. When I did, I hadn’t got a clue what was going on." During this time, Homme sank into a deep depression, noting "I would never say, 'I'm probably not gonna make it out of here.' But back then, I would definitely think it."[4] The remaining members of Queens of the Stone Age - guitarist Troy Van Leeuwen, drummer Joey Castillo, bassist Michael Shuman and guitarist and keyboardist Dean Fertita - encouraged Homme to return to the band to begin work on a sixth studio album.[5] Homme noted, "I had to ask them 'If you want to make a record with me right now, in the state I’m in, come into the fog. It’s the only chance you got.' It brought us much closer, because you never really know someone till everything goes wrong."[6]

they played the whole album live last night:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01b7kmv

This is growing into a titan of a record.

this is a terrific album. however, i think the track order hurts it. it takes too long to really get going. it's okay leading off with Keep Your Eyes Peeled, and I Sat By The Ocean is a great way to follow it, but you can't piss away the momentum by then going straight into another more meandering track like Vampyre. having diagnosed the disorder i have fixed it. it's only an adjustment, not an overhaul, but i think it's a big improvement and, of course, you are welcome.

Keep Your Eyes Peeled
I Sat By The Ocean
My God Is The Sun
Kalopsia
If I Had A Tail
Fairweather Friends
Smooth Sailing
The Vampyre Of Time And Memory
I Appear Missing
...Like Clockwork

Amazing performance from "Like Clockwork"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EqFnDWdUBi8

s & d :: desert sessions is a thread I keep reviving and receiving very little interest, so I'm reaching out to its members' home threads.

No help for that, but I have noticed that Songs For The Death is probably a key influence on the new Sturgill.

I made it through the first few minutes of the Sturgill record before I needed a break. Are you saying I should dive deeper?

No, put on Songs For The Deaf.

That works for me!

Didn't know that Homme & Dalle had split up in '19, and things have gotten progressively uglier since...

https://www.nme.com/news/music/josh-hommes-daughter-granted-extension-to-restraining-order-3057678

WARNING: TRIGGERING DETAILS OF (ALLEGED) CHILD ABUSE

Not to make light of anything here but it's not hard to believe a guy with a famous drinking problem who has been arrested for beating up one of the Dwarves and kicked a camera person in the face during a show might not be the best guy.

I mean, we 100% don't know the full story. There were about 100 pages of legal docs released a few weeks ago from Homme's side. I don't think anything has been made public like that from Dalle's attorneys. Part of what Homme alleges is that he's been in treatment and on Antabuse since the face kick incident, whereas Dalle has not. There is a ton more, which I won't detail here. Some of it is banal and some of it is definitely sketchy. There are probably depressing details about Homme in Dalle's attorneys' filings that haven't been brought to light yet. I'm not trying to advocate for anybody's "side".

I'm a fan of both musicians. They've both written songs for their children in the past that I've listened to a lot . I even have Josh's 7" from 2018 that features Brody and the kids performing Twas the Night Before Christmas (it's not really a great listen, imo, but it sucks to even see it in my record collection with all the familial rancor).

Whole thing sucks.

Oh yeah, it really does, especially for the kids. I wasn't inferring that it's all on him, btw, I know they've both been through a lot. Homme has just always come across as not a nice guy, so it's hard not to keep that in context.

Yeah, he's definitely got anger issues.