Troy Van Leeuwen

Troy Van Leeuwen (born January 5, 1970) is an American rock musician and producer. He is best known as the guitarist for the rock band, Queens of the Stone Age (QOTSA), for which he has served since 2002. He is also known for his work with the seminal rock band Failure, and with alternative rock supergroup A Perfect Circle, as well as recordings with QOTSA members\' side projects such as the Desert Sessions, Mondo Generator, Eagles of Death Metal and the Gutter Twins. Van Leeuwen created his first side-project, Enemy, in 2005, Sweethead, in 2008, Gone Is Gone, in 2016, and toured with Iggy Pop supporting his album Post Pop Depression made with QOTSA bandmates Josh Homme and Dean Fertita.\n', ' Van Leeuwen has a Dutch surname (he has ancestors from the Netherlands and has described himself as a third-generation American). He became interested in music at an early age and his dad would play early rock and roll records such as Chuck Berry. His first big influence in learning how to play rock came through listening to Led Zeppelin records. Playing drums initially, Van Leeuwen sought to imitate Zeppelin drummer, John Bonham, but later switched to guitar and discovered that he had an aptitude for it. He cites Jimmy Page as a big influence:\n', ' In the late 1980s, Van Leeuwen played in Jester, a successful southern California band fronted by vocalist Eric Book. Jester released an EP, which is the earliest and most rare recording of a 16-year-old Van Leeuwen. He then played in a small band called Little Boots, with which he recorded a number of demos and played a few shows before the band\'s breakup. His next band was 60 Cycle, which released their debut "Pretender" in 1995, and their self-titled album the following year. It was during his time in 60 Cycle that Van Leeuwen met Kellii Scott, and the two started working on a project (later to be known as Enemy). Van Leeuwen went on to play in Failure. The band released three records and didn\'t enjoy any commercial success, but was praised by critics as a talented and almost revolutionary group. It was during a tour with Failure when Van Leeuwen met former Kyuss guitarist Josh Homme, who was presently playing rhythm guitar with The Screaming Trees. After the breakup of Failure, Van Leeuwen became a session musician and recording engineer, working with groups such as Orgy, Crazy Town, Coal Chamber and KoRn.\n', '