JOSH FREESE Says His Time With The FOO FIGHTERS Taught Him Their Music Wasn’t Some He “Really Resonated With”

Josh Freese had a notoriously good spirit after being let go from his position as the drummer for the Foo Fighters – he even made a list of the “top 10 reasons why” he might have been booted from FF. And, his recent interview with The New York Times revealed that the possible reason for Freese‘s nonchalance about being sacked might be because the Foo Fighters weren’t doing or playing music that Freese “really resonated with.”

According to the feature, Josh Freese started drumming at an early age, even garnering press attention at 14. He said that he “wanted to be a household name” and that he just wanted to “play drums” and do it for “the rest” of his life. And true to his word, Freese is still drumming. Best known for his work in Nine Inch Nails, a band which he just rejoined after his dismissal from Foo Fighters, and Guns N’ Roses, he’s also worked with Suicidal Tendencies, Rob Zombie, 3 Doors Down, The Offspring, Evanescence, and more. He’s appeared on over 500 records.

But, despite that, Freese explained that he felt an immense pressure when joining FF, stating that, he was “coming in as Dave Grohl‘s drummer, and the guy that’s supposed to save the day after the beloved Taylor Hawkins died,” and he mentally put himself in a place where he felt like he had to be “firing on all cylinders all the time.”

Assumedly, that kind of drive would lead to fatigue, especially alongside FF playing three-hour-long shows, and that fatigue in combination with what Freese cheekily told the journalist, Bob Mehr, “It wasn’t music that I really resonated with.”

Freese also makes sure to add that he felt that it was “more an issue with their management” than an issue with the band, and that belief is supported by the fact that Grohl was publicly praising Freese after the split, saying that Freese‘s drumming was that of “thunderous wizardry.”

The rest of the feature details Freese‘s early life and his beginnings as a musician, and how he got involved with Nine Inch Nails again, and the funny coincidence of replacing NIN‘s own drummer Ilan Rubin going to play for the Foo Fighters. You can check out the feature by Bob Mehr here.