Five Finger Death Punch, also abbreviated as 5FDP or FFDP, is an American heavy metal band from Las Vegas, Nevada, formed in 2005. The band originally consisted of vocalist and keyboardist Ivan Moody, rhythm guitarist Zoltan Bathory, lead guitarist Caleb Andrew Bingham, bassist Matt Snell, and drummer Jeremy Spencer. Bingham was replaced by guitarist Darrell Roberts in 2006, who was then replaced by Jason Hook in 2009. Bassist Matt Snell departed from the band in 2010, and was replaced by Chris Kael in 2011. Spencer then departed the band in 2018 due to recurring back issues, and was replaced by Charlie Engen, making rhythm guitarist Bathory the only remaining founding member of the band. In October 2020, British guitarist Andy James became the band's lead guitarist, replacing Jason Hook.
Five Finger Death Punch are the recipients of the RadioContraband Rock Radio Awards for "Indie Artist of the Year" in 2011, 2012, 2013, and 2014. They were also honored with the Radio Contraband Rock Radio Award for Album (American Capitalist) and Song of the Year ("Coming Down") in 2012 and "Video of the Year" for "Wrong Side of Heaven" in 2014.
Five Finger Death Punch was founded in 2005[1][2] by former U.P.O. bassist[1][3]Zoltan Bathory and drummer Jeremy Spencer, Zoltan deriving the band's name from classic martial arts cinema.[4] Bassist Matt Snell joined in early 2006.[1][5] Later that year, Bathory contacted former Motograter vocalist Ivan Moody, sending him some of the material the band had recorded and asked him to audition for the vocalist position.[1] Moody flew from his home in Denver Colorado to Los Angeles and quickly began recording material with the band.[6]
Jason Hook, who replaced guitarist Darrell Roberts in 2009
By the end of 2006, their debut album, The Way of the Fist had been recorded and entirely self-produced.[1] The album was recorded with Stevo "Shotgun" Bruno and Mike Sarkisyan and was mixed by guitarist Logan Mader.[1][7] After searching for a second guitarist, they found Caleb Bingham who played some shows with the band, but was later replaced by Darrell Roberts.[1][8] Shortly after recording the album, they signed a record deal with Firm Music, a branch of "The Firm".[1][9] On July 10, 2007, they released an EP, Pre-Emptive Strike exclusively through the American iTunes Store.[1][10] The album's lead single, "The Bleeding", was released on July 13, 2007.[11]The Way of the Fist was released on July 31, 2007.[12] The album entered the Billboard 200 at number 199 and was certified gold in 2011.[13]
From July 30 to September 2, 2007, the band went on their first major tour cycle as one of the supporting acts on Korn's Family Values Tour.[14] They were also a supporting act of the North American leg of Korn's Bitch We Have a Problem Tour from September 22 – October 27, 2007.[14] They were set to tour with Chimaira and All That Remains from January through March 2008, but due to singer Moody developing cysts on his vocal cords they were forced to pull out.[15] He made a full recovery and they began to tour again.[16] They supported Disturbed on their Indestructible US Tour from April through May 2008.[17]
The Way of the Fist was re-released on May 13, 2008, with 3 bonus tracks.[18] One of the bonus tracks, "Never Enough" was released as the album's second single on July 15, 2008.[19] Later that year they were a part of the 2008 Mayhem Festival playing the Jägermeister Stage.[20] The third single from The Way of the Fist, "Stranger Than Fiction" was released on September 17, 2008.[19]The Way of the Fist was released through Spinefarm Records in Canada on November 4, 2008,[21] and in Europe on January 19, 2009.[22] In January 2009, Darrell Roberts was rumored to have been fired;[23] the split was confirmed a few days later, and Roberts was replaced by guitarist Jason Hook.[24] They ended their support for their first album playing the main stage at the 2009 Download Festival.[25]
In May 2009, Five Finger Death Punch announced their second studio album, War Is the Answer.[26] The album was produced by Kevin Churko and mixed by Randy Staub.[27] The album debuted at number 7 on the Billboard 200[28] and has been certified platinum by the RIAA.[29] The first single from the album, "Hard to See", was released on July 21, 2009.[30] To promote War Is the Answer, Five Finger Death Punch embarked on "The Shock and Raw" US Tour. Main support on the tour was provided by Shadows Fall, with additional support coming from Otep and 2Cents.[31] Upon completing the US run of the tour, Five Finger Death Punch then brought the Shock and Raw tour to Europe, finishing off with a run of dates in the UK. Main support for these dates was again Shadows Fall, and opening acts for the UK portion of the tour were Rise To Remain and Magnacult.[32]
The second single from War Is the Answer, "Walk Away", was released on November 2, 2009.[1] The album also spawned two UK-only singles, "Dying Breed", released on November 16, 2009,[33] and "No One Gets Left Behind", released on March 8, 2010.[34] During March 2010, Five Finger Death Punch traveled to Iraq and played 10 shows for the U.S. troops.[35] The band's cover of Bad Company's self-titled song was released as the fifth single from War Is the Answer on May 17, 2010.[36] On their way to perform at Rock am Ring and Rock im ParkZoltan Bathory, Matt Snell and Jeremy Spencer were detained by German police for alleged international weapons violations. After recognizing the event as a misunderstanding, German police released the band members and they appeared at both Rock im Park on June 4, 2010, and Rock am Ring June 6, 2010, as scheduled.[37]
Five Finger Death Punch also played the Maurice Jones Main Stage at the 2010 Download Festival on June 12, 2010.[38] While playing the song "Dying Breed", their set was cut due to too many people crowd surfing up to the stage.[39] They were allowed to play one final song, "The Bleeding".[40] They played the main stage at Mayhem Festival 2010 with Korn, Rob Zombie and Lamb of God from July 10 until August 14, 2010.[41] On August 17, 2010, they performed the songs "Bad Company" and "Hard to See" on the ABC show Jimmy Kimmel Live!.[42] On September 16, 2010, The band released "Far from Home" as the sixth single from War Is the Answer.[43] They supported Godsmack on their "The Oracle 2010" tour from October 3 – November 4, 2010.[44][45] The song, "Dying Breed" was featured on the soundtrack for Namco Bandai Games' remake of Splatterhouse, released on November 23, 2010.[46]
Snell's departure and American Capitalist (2010–2012)
The band began to record their third studio album in November 2010[47] at The Hideout studios in Las Vegas, Nevada. Bassist Matt Snell departed from the band in December 2010,[48] and in June 2011, Chris Kael was announced as Snell's replacement.[49] The band's third album, titled American Capitalist, was released October 11, 2011.[50][51] Production for the album was handled again by Kevin Churko.[52] The first single from American Capitalist, entitled "Under and Over It", was released on July 27, 2011,[53] following a music video in September 2011.[54][55] In support of the album, Five Finger Death Punch embarked on their "Share the Welt" tour from October 16 – December 14, 2011 with support from All That Remains, Hatebreed and Rains and their "Furious and Deadly" tour from March 23 – April 12, 2012 with support from Soulfly, Windowpane, and Persist.[56] The song "Back for More" is included on the soundtrack for the video game Madden NFL 12.[57] "Back for More" was released as a digital single on September 13, 2011.[58] "Remember Everything" was released as the second official single for American Capitalist in November 2011,[59] with a music video following in February 2012.[60] "Coming Down" was released as the third official single from American Capitalist in April 2012,[61] with a music video, directed by Nick Peterson, following in June 2012.[62] The song also won the band an Independent Music Award in 2013 for Best Metal/Hardcore Song.[63]
On February 28, the band posted a picture on Facebook of Moody recording vocals for the album. On March 12, an update video was posted to YouTube.[65] On March 18, the band was announced to be playing Mayhem Festival 2013.[66] On March 18, Five Finger Death Punch posted a promotional video for their next tour with a new song "Here to Die".[66] The band also announced that they were working on a fourth album, due in the summer.[66]
On May 1, 2013, the band announced the release of their next two studio albums collectively titled The Wrong Side of Heaven and the Righteous Side of Hell with Volume 1 being released on July 30, and Volume 2 following on November 19.[67][68][69] During the fifth annual Golden Gods Awards, Five Finger Death Punch performed a new song with Rob Halford of Judas Priest entitled "Lift Me Up".[70][71] The song was released as a single on May 14.[72]
On June 6, Five Finger Death Punch revealed the artwork for The Wrong Side of Heaven and the Righteous Side of Hell, Volume 1 and also released a snippet of future single "Dot Your Eyes" [73] Volume 1 reached the No. 2 position on the Billboard 200 with 113,000 copies sold in its first week, making it the band's most successful debut to date.[74]The Wrong Side of Heaven and the Righteous Side of Hell Volume 1 has sold over 210,000 copies as of August 2013[update].[75]
On September 9, 2013, the band released a new single, "Battle Born", in anticipation of their fifth studio album The Wrong Side of Heaven and the Righteous Side of Hell, Volume 2. It sold 77,000 copies in its first week, and once again landed in the No. 2 position on the Billboard 200.[76][77][78]
On December 12, 2013, Five Finger Death Punch revealed in a radio interview that they had already begun working on a sixth studio album.[81] On January 14, 2015, Five Finger Death Punch announced US Spring headline tour dates from April 25 to May 9, 2015, and their intention to enter the studio to write and record a new album.[82] On May 2, 2015, the band released the title of their sixth album, Got Your Six as well as a teaser for a new song titled "Ain't My Last Dance" on their official Facebook page.[83] The album, which was slated for release on August 28, 2015, was later pushed back to September 4.[84][85] On May 19, 2015, the band announced a co-headlining North American Tour with Papa Roach to promote the upcoming album and were accompanied by In This Moment as special guests with support by From Ashes to New for the tour.[86][87][88] The band also performed on the main stage as part of Download Festival 2015.[89][90]
And Justice for None and Spencer's departure (2016–2019)
On April 27, 2016, Billboard reported that Five Finger Death Punch's record label Prospect Park had filed a lawsuit against the band on April 21, 2016, for breaching their contract.[91] The basis of the claim cites that the band began working on a new album without Prospect Park's consent and will be working with Rise Records. In a recent interview, vocalist Ivan Moody has said he will be completing the current tour and leave the band at the end of 2017.[92] The next day however, an announcement was published on the official site of FFDP, where it was revealed, that rumors about Ivan's departure are false. According to the announcement, the vocalist plans to start a side project beside Five Finger Death Punch, which does not mean he has plans on leaving.[93][94]
However, during a concert in the Netherlands, Moody did not show up to perform the first song, which was sung by Tommy Vext, with Moody saying he was running "a little bit late". Vext also sang a second song during the set later in the evening while Moody walked off stage. During the show all of the members left the stage for long periods on several occasions, and Hook also threw his guitar down and walked offstage at one point. During the set, Moody said that "there is no other singer for Five Finger Death Punch", and then later said "This is my last show with Five Finger Death Punch" before making a slit-throat gesture.[95] Bathory shortly after the show tweeted that the events that transpired were "not a publicity stunt."[96]
The day after the show in Tilburg, Netherlands, the band announced a headline European tour with In Flames and Of Mice & Men in late 2017.[97] Later that same day, the band released a statement addressing what happened at the show via their Facebook page, stating that bands that tour as heavily as they do will "inevitably have a few derailments, but the train always keeps on moving", implying that all shows would proceed as planned and that Moody would remain as the band's frontman.[98] Ivan Moody subsequently checked himself into rehab and sat out the remainder of the tour. Tommy Vext filled in for Moody while he sought treatment.[99][100] On August 19, Ivan Moody returned to the stage at the Illinois State Fair, although just days prior it was still unknown if he would be taking the stage.[101]
In December 2017, it was announced that the band was working on their seventh studio album.[102] The album, And Justice for None was released May 18, 2018.[103] On December 21, 2017, the band released a video for their cover of "Gone Away" by The Offspring. The cover song was featured on Five Finger Death Punch's greatest hits album, A Decade of Destruction.[104][105] On April 5, 2018, the band released "Fake" as the lead single from And Justice for None.[106][107] On April 20, 2018, a second single was released, titled "Sham Pain".[108][109] A third single "When the Seasons Change" was released on May 4, 2018.[110][111]
For a Fall 2018 tour with Breaking Benjamin, Charlie Engen replaced Jeremy Spencer to allow him to undergo backsurgery.[112] On December 18, it was announced that Spencer had departed the band permanently.[113] In June 2019, it was announced that Jeremy Spencer has continued the band's support of first responders and was sworn in as a reserve police officer in Indiana.[114]
Five Finger Death Punch have also worked with Brantley Gilbert, Brian May of Queen, and Kenny Wayne Shepherd to re-record a new version of Sheperd's song "Blue on Black". The proceeds from the recording support The Gary Sinise Foundation. While a cover of the song had already appeared on And Justice for None, this new version merged Sheperd's blues rock, Gilbert's country, May's classic rock and Five Finger Death Punch's mainstream rock styles.[115]
On May 9, 2019, the band released a video announcing a "new record in the making".[116] The album, F8 was released on February 28, 2020.[117][118] The album's lead single, "Inside Out", was released on December 2, 2019.[119][120] "A Little Bit Off" was released as the second single in June 2020.[121][122][123] Both songs topped the BillboardMainstream Rock songs.[124] On February 4, 2020, it was announced that lead guitarist Jason Hook was forced to miss the remaining shows of the European tour due to health issues. Andy James was named as substitute lead guitarist for the rest of the tour.[125] It was confirmed on October 12, 2020, that Hook officially left the band,[126][127][128] with James replacing him permanently.[128]
In May 2021, it was announced that the band planned on recording their ninth album in 2022.[129][130] They will also make a 15th anniversary re-recording of their debut album, The Way of the Fist.[130] On April 12, 2022, the band released the title track from their ninth studio album, AfterLife.[131][132] On the same day, the band announced a U.S. tour with Megadeth, The Hu, and Fire from the Gods, set for August through October 2022.[131][132] On May 13, 2022, the band released the second single, "IOU". They also announced the release of their ninth studio album, AfterLife, which was released on August 19, 2022.[133] On June 9, 2022, the band released the third single, "Welcome to the Circus".[134] On July 8, 2022, the band released the fourth single, "Times Like These".[135]
Amy Sciarretto of Loudwire wrote that the title track of Five Finger Death Punch's album American Capitalist "could get a crew of Marine cadets through boot camp".[139]
^Gibson, Caren (June 13, 2010). "Download: Five Finger Death Punch". Metal Hammer. Archived from the original on March 23, 2011. Retrieved November 13, 2010.((cite web)): CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
^Ramirez, Carlos (February 22, 2010) (February 23, 2010). "2010 Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival". Noisecreep. AOL. Retrieved November 14, 2010.((cite web)): CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
