Is this guy the new drummer for the Foo Fighters? Let’s connect some dots.

Earlier this month, the Foo Fighters announced that they’re coming back with confirmation of three festival dates starting in May. These will be the first proper Foos shows since the death of drummer Taylor Hawkins last March.

The question everyone is asking is: Who will be the band’s drummer? We may have an answer.

First, let’s consider the requirements for this particular job description:

• Experience with big rock bands, major tours, and massive festivals.
• Extensive studio experience
• Serious chops and a quick study
• An INTENSE work ethic
• A mature team player who is healthy and clean.
• And most importantly, a personality that blends perfectly in with the Foo Fighters and the band’s organization.

Fans have been playing a guessing game for a while, putting forth a couple of names. Tommy Lee of Motley Crue. Travis Barker of Blink-182. The adorable Nandi Bushell. One of Taylor’s sons. Earl Hudson (Bad Brains). Chuck Biscuits (DOA, Black Flag, Social Distortion, etc.). Chad Smith of the Chili Peppers. RATM’s Brad Wilk. Cindy Blackman. And there’s even been speculation that Dave Grohl might have to take on the role.

In the last few months, Josh Freese’s name has been bandied about. Freese is a monster drummer, a friend to so many rock stars, and someone with a ton of experience playing with Guns N’ Roses, A Perfect Circle, Nine Inch Nails, Weezer, The Offspring, Bruce Springsteen, Paramore, and Sublime with Rome, among others. He’s co-written songs with Queens of the Stone Age, Devo, and even Sting.

It’s a helluva resume. But he’s not going to be the guy. I think.

Over the last 36 hours, there’s been a lot of speculation that the new guy in the Foos will be Rufus Taylor. Who?

Rufus Tiger Taylor is the 31-year-old drummer for The Darkness, a was close friend of Taylor Hawkins. If you watched the Hawkins tribute concerts back in September, you’ll remember that he joined the Foos on stage in both London and LA. He appeared with his father, Roger Taylor of Queen. And if you know anything about Taylor Hawkins, it’s that Queen was his all-time favourite band and Roger was his all-time favourite drummer. (I once had a private conversation with Taylor about this and his love for Queen’s drummer had no bounds. There’s even a poster for an obscure Roger Taylor solo album on the wall at the Foos’ 606 Studios.)

As a bonus(?), Rufus is another person named “Taylor.”

We shall see.