David Grohl has shed further light on the reasons behind Josh Freese's exit from Foo Fighters.
Freese, who joined the band in 2022, replacing the late drummer Taylor Hawkins, toured with Foo Fighters in 2024. However, last May, the band announced that they were letting him go, a decision which left Freese "disappointed" and "shocked".
Earlier this year, Foos' Nate Mendel had said: “We made a decision that it was best for all parties. To get into the personal details [with Freese] of why that didn’t necessarily sync up, just didn’t seem like it was going to benefit anybody".
“Some things are OK to be like: this is what’s best for us, and we’re going in a different direction,” he added, also sharing that the band were still grateful for Freese for stepping in following the death of Hawkins, and “doing exactly what needs to be done musically to make it work”.
Now, Foo Fighters' lead singer Dave Grohl has shared more detail behind the decision to remove Freese from the band.
In a new interview with The Irish Times, Grohl said that the line up depends on the "connection" that the members have with each other.
“A drummer’s playing is based on feel,” Grohl siad. “That’s all drumming is: feel. It’s hard to define when you’re playing with someone and it feels ‘right,’ or when you’re playing with someone who feels ‘really good,’ and then you’re playing with someone and it feels ‘fucking amazing.’”
He continued: “It’s personality, it’s your connection, your rhythm that you have together… It’s just a combination, or a recipe – when you’re cooking something and it says, ‘Salt and pepper to taste’ at the end of the recipe; that’s defined by you".
Finishing off, Grohl added: “We know what feels best for our band".
Ilan Rubin ultimately replaced Josh Freese as drummer, having previously served as drummer for Nine Inch Nails, which is ironically the band that Josh Freese has now joined to work with Trent Reznor and co.
This comes as Foo Fighters are to release their latest album, 'Your Favourite Toy' via Roswell Records/Columbia Records on April 24. More on this from Nova here.
Check out the tracklist in full below.
‘Caught In The Echo’
‘Of All People’
‘Window’
‘Your Favorite Toy’
‘If You Only Knew’
‘Spit Shine’
‘Unconditional’
‘Child Actor’
‘Amen, Caveman’
‘Asking For A Friend’
