Queens Of The Stone Age open free access to a film shot in the Paris catacombs
American rock band Queens Of The Stone Age have made one of their most unusual projects available to everyone: the documentary concert film Alive in the Catacombs can now be watched for free in open access. The film captures a live performance recorded in the Paris Catacombs, a location that has never before been used for a full-scale music shoot of this kind.
The film was shot in July 2024 and was initially screened in cinemas worldwide before being released on paid digital platforms. Queens Of The Stone Age have now decided to remove the paywall, allowing a wider audience to experience the project without restrictions. The video has been published on the band’s official online platforms.
The Paris Catacombs are the largest ossuary in the world, created at the end of the 18th century. The underground network of tunnels contains the remains of more than six million people and stretches for dozens of kilometres beneath the city. It was within this space that the band recorded an intimate concert, fully adapted to the complex acoustic and visual conditions of the underground environment. The musicians moved away from conventional concert sound, focusing instead on atmosphere, natural resonance and a minimalist approach to performance.
Alive in the Catacombs shows not only the performance by Queens Of The Stone Age, but also rare footage of the underground galleries and the preparation process behind the project. The camera captures how the music becomes integrated into the space itself, turning the concert into a cohesive artistic performance in which the location plays as significant a role as the songs.
Alongside the main film, an additional documentary titled Alive in Paris And Before is also available. It explores how the idea of the underground concert came about, the challenges faced by the team, and why the catacombs became a key element of the concept. This companion film expands on the main release and offers deeper insight into the project’s creative vision.
The release of Alive in the Catacombs marks an important moment in the band’s current phase. Following the release of their latest studio album In Times New Roman…, Queens Of The Stone Age have continued to experiment with live formats, alternating large festival stages with unconventional and intimate venues. The underground concert in Paris became, in essence, an artistic statement that goes beyond the boundaries of a traditional rock show.
By opening free access to the film, Queens Of The Stone Age invite audiences to see the band from a new perspective — one in which visual context, space and concept are just as important as the music itself. The project is already being described as one of the most atmospheric and unconventional concert releases of recent years, firmly establishing itself among the most talked-about music events.
