Dave Grohl performing at the first Taylor Hawkins tribute concert on Sept. 3, 2022
Following a year of staggering losses, personal introspection and bittersweet remembrances, Foo Fighters have announced a new drummer to replace Taylor Hawkins who died last year. Josh Freese was formally introduced on May 21, 2023, at a livestream event that also served to promote their upcoming tour and album, But Here We Are, out June 2, 2023, on Roswell Records/RCA Records. It’s their first LP since Hawkins died at age 50. The band’s North American tour begins May 24 with shows scheduled into early October. Several tracks have already been shared from the album.
Freese is a veteran session and touring drummer, having worked with such boldfaced names as Guns N’ Roses, the Offspring, Devo, Weezer, and more.
Josh Freese, at the Foo Fighters’ livestream event on May 21, 2023
Thanks for joining us. It will be streaming on @Veeps for 72 hours on demand if you missed it: https://t.co/hzz5G9mOKy
We’ll see you all soon. pic.twitter.com/c7NATC6lzD
— Foo Fighters (@foofighters) May 21, 2023
More from the very brief April 19 album announcement: A brutally honest and emotionally raw response to everything Foo Fighters endured over the last year, But Here We Are is a testament to the healing powers of music, friendship and family. Courageous, damaged and unflinchingly authentic, But Here We Are opens with “Rescued,” the first of 10 songs that run the emotional gamut from rage and sorrow to serenity and acceptance, and myriad points in between.
Produced by Greg Kurstin and Foo Fighters, But Here We Are is in nearly equal measure the 11th Foo Fighters album and the first chapter of the band’s new life. Sonically channelling the naiveté of Foo Fighters’ 1995 debut, informed by decades of maturity and depth, But Here We Are is the sound of brothers finding refuge in the music that brought them together in the first place 28 years ago, a process that was as therapeutic as it was about a continuation of life.
Tickets to see Foo Fighters are available here and here.
Related: Hawkins was honored with a pair of concerts last September
But Here We Are Track List
Rescued
Under You
Hearing Voices
But Here We Are
The Glass
Nothing At All
Show Me How
Beyond Me
The Teacher
Rest
7 Comments so far
Jump into a conversationDave was part of TCV band and needs to produce another album, the fans are hungry for it,
Never got this band. Mediocre in my book. How they got in the R+R Hall before a ton of better bands / more important artists is very sad. Bad Co., Tull, Guess Who, etc.. still waiting. Grohl is good at promoting himself. Medicore singer, mediocre guitarist, mediocre drummer at best. Way more deserving bands / artists than him. Oh well.
I COMPLETELY AGREE. I have never understood the popularity of this band. Powerful people have anointed this band as the torchbearer of rock and Grohl is everywhere. The master of self promotion.
Have you ever seen them live? Their recordings don’t do them justice. Dave is a master showman. Even though they may be playing in a stadium of basketball arena, he creates the atmosphere as if it were a 100 seat club.
I’ve been a longtime fan, but not gonna lie, I found the slight change in direction on Medicine at Midnight lackluster, save for a couple of tracks. I played it 2 or 3 times trying to convince myself to like it, but it didn’t happen. Now it sits in my CD archives with the rest of those seldom, if ever, played discs. What I’m hearing on this new record is a rushed finished product trying to capture their “classic” sound. Unfortunately, it falls short in my opinion. They still kick ass live, but I think their best studio recordings are in the rear view mirror.
This song sounds like something from their Sonic Highways album.
Josh Freese is a beast behind the drum kit! The guy’s playing is ridiculously rock solid, and he’ll play with pretty much anyone. The Foos are fortunate to have him.