Foo Fighters

Biography/History

[Dashboard] [Referred Artists] [Search Options]

Foo Fighters (1994-present): a Grunge band from Seattle, Washington, USA.

n May 1994, after the death of Nirvana's Kurt Cobain, ex-Nirvana members and sympathizers Dave Grohl (vocals/guitar), Cobain stand-in Pat Smear (ex-Nirvana/ex-Germs; vocals), Nate Mandel (bass) and William Goldsmith (drums) formed their own act Foo Fighters. The band name was adopted from the name of the mysterious lights seen by WWII fighter pilots. Continuing along with the U.F.O. theme, they founded their own 'Roswell' label (actually funded by 'Capitol' and therefore most likely a tax write-off for it and controlled by it) and debuted in the summer of 1995 with a UK 5 charting singleThis Is A Call. Although the lyrics may have been cryptic, the single offered a pop push that was hard to ignore while refusing to forget their grunge roots. The subsequent Foo Fighters (self-titled) album the same year followed up on the style to gain them a 3 UK/23 US followed by a successful set of tour/festival dates.

The follow-up album, The Color And The Shape (eventually released in 1997), got off to a rough start when the initial recording sessions in Seattle were cancelled. It would eventually be released with ex-Alanis Morisette drummer Taylor Hawkins taking over from Goldsmith on drums. The album proved to be a huge advancement on their style in the songwriting area and a far improvement on their debut, even gaining another 3 UK/10 US.

See All... ⏬

After Grohl's brief stint with Hollywood (and their subsequent soundtrack Touch (1998) emerging as a musical result), they would sign with major 'MCA' to release There Is Nothing Left To Loose in 1999 with Taylor Hawkins and Franz Stahl on guitar and drum spots respectively: assuming the old roles held by ex-Nirvana touring guitarist Pat Smear and drummer Goldsmith; Stahl was fired before the recording of the group's third album. The Generator EP arrived in 2000, featuring Chris Shiflett (ex-No Use For A Name) on guitar for tours. In Your Honor would be their highly publicized 2005 release, an album split between acoustic songs and heavier material.

Foo Fighters released their sixth album, Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace (2007). Wasting Light followed in 2011 and featured the returning guitarist Pat Smear.

The eighth studio album, Sonic Highways, was released as an accompanying soundtrack to the Grohl-directed 2014 miniseries of the same name. On September 15, 2017, their ninth studio album, Concrete and Gold, which became their second to reach 1 in the US. Medicine at Midnight (2021) would follow and be the last to feature Hawkins who died at age 50 on on March 26, 2022.

See Less... ⏫