Foo Fighters have introduced their new drummer and teased an upcoming tour with a tongue-in-cheek AI video. Watch below.
The band returned to the stage last Saturday (September 13) for their first show in over a year, held at the 900-capacity Fremont Theater in San Luis Obispo, California. A second small gig then took place at The Observatory in Santa Ana on Monday (15).
These marked the first Foo Fighters performances with drummer Ilan Rubin – with the group essentially swapping Nine Inch Nails for their ex-touring drummer Josh Freese, who departed the Foos earlier this year.
Today (September 17) Dave Grohl and co. shared a joke video titled ‘A Message From Foo Fighters’, in which we hear from AI-generated versions of the band members about what’s to come.
“Hey, everyone. It’s been a while but I’m happy to announce that Foo Fighters are coming back to bring you that 100 per cent real, raw, human element of rock and roll,” says the fake Grohl.
He then holds up a setlist made up of random, scrawled letters before bassist Nate Mendel weighs in: “After 30 years of being a band, we’ve realised that the most important thing to us is that what you see and hear coming from our speakers is the genuine passion of the six living, breathing human beings on stage.”
Later, guitarist Pat Smear adds that the Foos want fans to feel that the group’s music is “true”. Viewers are then told that the band have been “preparing something special” and “rehearsing tirelessly” to give audiences their “best” shows “from the heart”.
“And wait ’till you meet our new drummer,” says Grohl, before we see a 10-armed Rubin smashing away at a huge kit. The following message is displayed at the end of the teaser: “Stay tuned… there’s more to come!!!” Watch above.
Ahead of their recent gigs, Foo Fighters called on fans to “assemble” and began sharing some photos from the studio – suggesting that their next era was about to begin. They instructed their followers to sign up for “info you won’t want to miss… just sayin’”.
The band’s 11th and latest album, ‘But Here We Are’, was released in 2023. It marked their first material since the death of drummer Taylor Hawkins the previous year, and saw them enlist Josh Freese as a touring sticksman.
This summer, they celebrated their 30th anniversary by sharing a new single titled ‘Today’s Song’. Earlier this year, Freese announced that he had departed the Foos after they “decided to go in a different direction with their drummer”.
Following his first shows with Foo Fighters, Rubin spoke out about joining the line-up: “After keeping my head down for a couple wild months and throwing myself into the material, that first show was such an incredible release of energy.
“I’ve been taken aback by all the positivity and support, and I just wanted to say thanks! Excited for all the volume and sweat that lies ahead.” See what Foo Fighters played at their first gig of 2025 here.
Freese recently addressed his sacking from Foo Fighters, explaining: “Looking back, it was probably more an issue with their management.” However, the drummer said the Foos’ material “wasn’t music that I really resonated with”. He rejoined Nine Inch Nails last month for their North American ‘Peel It Back’ tour.
Upon sharing ‘Today’s Song’, Grohl thanked every former member of the band for their contributions throughout the years. He praised “the thunderous wizardry of Josh Freese”, and said Hawkins was “still in everything we do, everywhere we go, forever”.
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