Josh Freese has insisted no one “should feel sorry” for him after he was sacked by the Foo Fighters.
The sticksman was drafted into Dave Grohl’s band following the death of longtime drummer Taylor Hawkins in 2022, but he was abruptly dismissed from the group last summer and has now returned to performing with former bands Nine Inch Nails and Weezer and he has dismissed suggestions he had a “tough year” because he’s very happy with his career at present.
He told Modern Drummer magazine: “Someone recently said to me, ‘Man, you’ve had a tough year.’ And I thought, Really? So the Foo Fighters thing is over. Big deal, that was a blip.
“The fact that I’ve been touring with Nine Inch Nails and A Perfect Circle again, playing some shows with Weezer, working in the studio with everyone from Danny Elfman to Billy Idol.
“I feel like I’m back where I belong. Trust me… no one should feel sorry for me.”
But Josh admitted he was “in shock” when he was let go by the My Hero hitmakers.
He said: “The day it went down I was hanging out on a day off with A Perfect Circle and the Primus guys. Everyone was in shock and asking me what the hell happened.
“I just remember thinking that I was really grateful to be out there on tour with my friends and with a great crew… playing music I liked with people that I’ve had a long history with.”
Josh insisted the reasons why he was fired by Foo Fighters are still a “mystery” to him, particularly because his exit seemingly came out of the blue.
He said: “I have a couple small theories, but I can’t really go into them right now.
“I did really enjoy the two years I spent with those guys however, and they were good to me… until they weren’t.
“I liked playing with them. And I loved having Dave [Grohl] as a bandleader. I truly respect him so much as a drummer first and foremost.
“To me, he’s a drummer first and everything else is second. I’ve listened to him on all the great records he’s played drums on more than I’ve listened to any Foo Fighters stuff. It really was cool being in a band where the leader is a phenomenal drummer that you respect.
“I enjoyed being around those guys, they were generous and good to me… and that’s what makes the whole thing even more of a mystery.
“I think I’m a pretty good read on people, and I did not see that coming. One day it was nothing but laughs, we’re on stage and Dave’s looking at me every night like, ‘You’re killing it dude!!!’ And then it was just… over.”