Five Finger Death Punch

Five Finger Death Punch, also known as 5FDP or FFDP, is an American heavy metal band from Las Vegas, United States, active since 2005. The group’s lineup includes Ivan Moody, Zoltan Bathory, Caleb Bingham, Jeremy Spencer, Darrell Roberts, Matt Snell, Jason Hook, Chris Kael and Andy James. Its music is associated with alternative metal, groove metal, hard rock and heavy metal, and it is also tagged with metalcore, thrash metal and hardcore.

Formation and lineup changes

The band forms in Las Vegas in 2005. The original lineup consists of vocalist Ivan Moody, guitarists Zoltan Bathory and Caleb Andrew Bingham, bassist Matt Snell and drummer Jeremy Spencer. Bingham is replaced by Darrell Roberts in 2006, and Roberts is later replaced by Jason Hook in 2009. Snell leaves in 2010 and is replaced by Chris Kael in 2011. Spencer departs in 2018 because of ongoing back problems and is replaced by Charlie Engen. In 2020, Andy James joins as lead guitarist, replacing Jason Hook. Bathory and Moody remain the only constant members across the band’s album releases.

Albums and releases

The band’s debut album, The Way of the Fist, appears in 2007 and sells over 500,000 copies in the United States before later receiving gold certification. War Is the Answer follows in 2009, reaches number 7 on the Billboard 200 and later goes platinum. American Capitalist arrives in 2011 and also reaches platinum status. The band then releases The Wrong Side of Heaven and the Righteous Side of Hell, Volume 1 and Volume 2 in 2013, Got Your Six in 2015, and And Justice for None in 2018, with these releases generally earning gold or platinum certification in the United States. F8 follows in 2020 and AfterLife in 2022. The group also releases the independently issued EP Pre-Emptive Strike in 2007, along with one live album, four compilation albums and 33 singles.

Singles and soundtrack use

Early singles include “The Bleeding”, “Never Enough” and “Stranger Than Fiction”. War Is the Answer produces “Hard to See”, “Walk Away”, “Dying Breed”, “No One Gets Left Behind” and a cover of “Bad Company”. American Capitalist includes “Under and Over It”, “Remember Everything”, “Coming Down” and “Back for More”; the last of these also appears on the Madden NFL 12 soundtrack. Later singles include “Lift Me Up”, “Battle Born”, “Wrong Side of Heaven”, “Ain’t My Last Dance”, “Inside Out”, “A Little Bit Off”, “IOU”, “Welcome to the Circus” and “Times Like These”.

Touring, appearances and recognition

Five Finger Death Punch tours extensively and appears at the Mayhem Festival in 2008, 2010 and 2013, and at Download Festival in 2009, 2010, 2013, 2015 and 2017. Early in its career, the band supports Korn and Disturbed on major tours. It also performs for U.S. military personnel in Iraq in 2010 and appears on television programmes including Jimmy Kimmel Live!. The band receives multiple RadioContraband Rock Radio Awards, including Indie Artist of the Year from 2011 to 2014, along with awards for American Capitalist as Album of the Year, “Coming Down” as Song of the Year in 2012, and “Wrong Side of Heaven” as Video of the Year in 2014. “Coming Down” also receives recognition at the Independent Music Awards in 2013 in the metal and hardcore category.

Later developments

The band continues to release music and tour through lineup changes and legal disputes. In 2016, Prospect Park files a lawsuit alleging breach of contract after the band begins working on new material and negotiating with another label. Around this period, Ivan Moody’s status in the group becomes uncertain, and a concert in the Netherlands in 2017 is disrupted before he later enters rehabilitation and returns to performing later that year. Jason Hook leaves in 2020 after health-related absences, and Andy James becomes his permanent replacement. In 2025, the band releases a re-recorded greatest hits collection following a dispute over ownership and the sale of its original master recordings. It is also included that year in a list of notable metal acts formed in the 2000s.