1997–2007: Train of Thought and the formation of Foxy Shazam! In 1997, Eric Nally started nu-metal group Train of Thought. After Loren Turner joined the group in 2003, they later released a self-released
extended play (EP), which consisted of two songs. In 2004, they decided to change the name of the band to "Foxy Shazam!" due to several members of Train of Thought leaving and a change in sound. On June 15, 2005, the band released their official
debut album, titled
The Flamingo Trigger. In support of their debut album, the band toured all across the country from 2005 to 2007.
2008–2009: Signing to Ferret Music and Introducing After the band's debut tour, the group announced that they signed a record deal to
Ferret Music. On January 22, 2008, they released their second album, titled
Introducing. The album was supported by their lead
single: "A Dangerous Man". In 2008, they were named as one of the "100 Bands You Need to Know" by
Alternative Press, which led to the band earning their spots on tours with bands such as
The Darkness,
The Strokes,
The Sounds,
The Fall of Troy,
Hole,
Portugal. The Man,
Tub Ring,
The Dear Hunter,
Tera Melos,
Free Energy, Bad Rabbits,
Panic! at the Disco and
The Young Veins, to support for their second studio release.
2010: Signing to Sire Records and self-titled album In 2010, Foxy Shazam was included on the
Spin list of "Ten Bands You Need To Know". The lead vocalist from the band, Eric Sean Nally wrote songs for
Meat Loaf's album
Hang Cool, Teddy Bear. The band announced that they signed a deal to
Sire Records. On February 7, 2010, their single "Unstoppable" was used in the
Super Bowl XLIV telecast as background music for the first half highlights. The track was featured on the
NHL 11 video game and it was included on the
Cartoon Network's second live-action show
Tower Prep as a theme song. The song was also included in a trailer of the movie
Your Highness, and the song was featured in a series of the commercials for
MLB Network. On April 13, 2010, they released their self-titled third album,
Foxy Shazam. The band then performed at
Lollapalooza festival. They appeared in many magazines such as
Alternative Press and
Spin to support the album. The band played a 3-song set on Fuel.tv's
The Daily Habit,, a 5-song set on shockhound.com, as well as performing an acoustic 3-song set for
Spin Magazine. In July 2010, the band visited the Chicago's
JBTV, where they were interviewed and then they performed live and premiered their exclusive version of "Oh, Lord" to the music discovery app, titled
Shazam. The band was later named as the spotlight band for the
2011's Warped Tour.
2011–2013: Signing to IRS Records and The Church of Rock and Roll On December 5, 2011, Foxy Shazam announced the title to their fourth album,
The Church of Rock and Roll, revealed the album's final track listing, along with a cover artwork and the release date for January 2012. On January 24, 2012, they released the album. It included three singles: "I Like It", "Holy Touch" and "Welcome to the Church of Rock and Roll". After the band toured, serving as the opening act for
The Darkness, Foxy Shazam announced that they would be embarking on a headlining tour starting in April 2012. They performed at their hometown Bunbury Music Festival in Cincinnati, OH in July. They then toured as the opening act for
Slash on his North American tour dates from September 4 to October 4, 2012.
2014: Gonzo and hiatus On March 12, 2014, it was announced via 96ROCK that the band had completed work on their latest LP and that it would be released in the same month. The album's title was announced and it was indicated to be a
concept album. On April 2, 2014, the band released
Gonzo online for free through
Bandcamp.
Gonzo is the band's first self-released album since 2005's
The Flamingo Trigger. The band recorded the album together live in one room with producer
Steve Albini. The band released a music video for the single "Tragic Thrill". On October 27, 2014, Foxy Shazam announced on their Facebook page that they were disbanding indefinitely, four days before embarking on the second US leg of their Gonzo tour but intended to get back together at some future date. In 2015, Eric Nally was featured on
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis' song "
Downtown", the first single from their upcoming second album. Other band members have remained in Cincinnati and have gone on to have considerable local and regional success since the hiatus began. In 2015 trumpet player Alex Nauth formed The Skulx with ex-members of Cincinnati bands The Killtones and Cadaver Dogs. The band was nominated for a Cincinnati Entertainment Award for New Artist of the Year in late 2015. In late 2014 bassist Daisy Caplan founded Cincinnati-based band Babe Rage. The group disbanded in 2015. In 2016, Caplan began playing drums for Lung, an experimental rock duo, with electric cellist Kate Wakefield. The band received two Cincinnati Entertainment Award nominations in 2017 in the categories of Best New Artist and Best Indie/Alternative Artist. Guitarist Loren Turner performed briefly with a group called Trxlleydxdgers (pronounced "trolley dodgers") in 2016. Keyboardist Sky White performs with the J Dorsey Band and founded the Wendigo Tea Company in 2015.
2020: Reunion and Burn On February 7, 2020, the official Foxy Shazam Instagram and Twitter released a teaser trailer of the band's return, featuring lead singer Eric Sean Nally. The band released three singles in 2020: "Burn", "Dreamer", and "The Rose". On August 12, 2020, the band uploaded a music video for "Dreamer" alongside a new band photograph showing their new drummer Teddy Aitkins and masked bassist "Trigger Warning". Shortly after the shooting of the videoclip for dreamer, guitarist Loren Turner left the band. In October 2020, they announced their sixth studio album,
Burn, which was released on December 11, 2020. For the recording process of the album, the band split up into duos; pianist Sky White and drummer Teddy Aitkins recorded their parts in the Legendary London Bridge studio in Seattle, guitarist Loren Turner and bassist "Trigger Warning" recorded at The LodgeKY studio in Dayton, Kentucky. Finally, vocalist Eric Nally and hornplayer Alex Nauth added their parts in Ryan Lewis' Mundon Canyon Studios to complete the album. It was released on both vinyl and CD on their own label eeeoooah releases.
2022: The Heart Behead You and Hidden Treasures Tour On October 5, 2021, the band announced their seventh studio album,
The Heart Behead You, and released a short vignette featuring the opening track of the new album "I'm in Love". The album was released on
Valentine's Day, February 14, 2022. This was the first Foxy Shazam album to feature the band's new guitarist Devin Williams. On October 27, 2021, the group announced the first leg of the Hidden Treasures Tour, which would begin with their previously announced return show at the
Andrew J. Brady Music Center in
Cincinnati on February 12, 2022 (which had been rescheduled twice due to the COVID-19 Pandemic American blues and soul singer-songwriter
Robert Finley opened for Foxy on all stops on this leg of the tour. On January 18, 2022, the band released the official music video for "Dancing with My Demons", the second single from
The Heart Behead You. On March 30, 2022, the band announced an additional nine dates for their Hidden Treasures Tour. Jigsaw Youth opened for Foxy for all of these additional dates. On June 30, 2022, the band released a remaster of their debut album,
The Flamingo Trigger, on digital streaming services and stores. Later that night, a pre-sale began for both vinyl and CD versions of the album. This was the first time
The Flamingo Trigger was officially available anywhere outside of the initial set of CDs that had been sold at the CD release party in 2005 and on their subsequent tour. The 2022 vinyl presale included a limited edition bundle containing a teal-colored pressing of the album, an exclusive t-shirt, and an original flyer from the 2005 CD release show (the bundle was limited to only 200 copies). A gold-colored pressing limited to 180 copies was also made available after the teal bundle sold out. Both limited editions sold out by the early afternoon on Friday, July 1, 2022. The vinyl was released in March 2023. On July 28, 2022, the band announced the last of the dates for their Hidden Treasures Tour. Thumpasaurus, Shamon Cassette, and Lung (former Foxy bassist Daisy Caplan's current band) each opened some of the dates. This leg of the tour included a performance at
Riot Fest, an annual Chicago punk rock music festival.
2023: Dark Blue Night and tour with Head Automatica On March 17, 2023, Foxy Shazam released their new 18-song album
Dark Blue Night with
almost no prior promotion. It was available for vinyl and CD preorder, with the vinyl coming in an "Ice Disk Blue" colored pressing. Bundles with a vinyl and exclusive shirt were also available. In July 2023,
Head Automatica announced their first tour since 2012, with Foxy Shazam as support. The tour took place throughout September and early October, with 18 dates crossing the United States from Seattle to New York. Foxy Shazam did not perform at what would have been their hometown show in Cincinnati, Ohio, although they added a few headlining shows in between dates with Head Automatica. On New Year's Eve 2023, the band performed at the Andrew J. Brady Music Center in their hometown of Cincinnati, Ohio, with Tweens as support. The show included a countdown to midnight and the live debuts of some songs from
Dark Blue Night. In July 2024, the band played 3 shows in Indiana, Illinois, and Wisconsin surrounding their performance at
80/35 Music Festival in Iowa.
2025: Animality Opera, Rockin' Rolla Coast Tour, and Box of Magic In January 2025, the band released the single "Rhumbatorium" and announced their ninth album,
Animality Opera. They released the second single "Pink Sky" on February 13, 2025, with
Animality Opera itself coming out on March 20. The promotion for the album included a 3D interactive website created with Metimmerse, which can be viewed here; items inside its rainforest landscape linked to the presale for the CD/vinyl purchase and tickets for the band's upcoming shows.
Animality Opera included spoken word verses from artist Shamon Cassette (who opened for Foxy Shazam on their Hidden Treasures tour in 2022) throughout the album. In spring 2025, the band embarked on the Rockin' Rolla Coast Tour, a 5-week headlining tour across the United States.
The Number Twelve Looks Like You and Lobby Boxer opened, with
sideshow performers from
Coney Island on most dates. The tour was well-received, with reviewer Joe Abbruscato comparing it to "
Freddie Mercury getting an adrenaline shot straight to the heart and being set loose on a pop rock-infused acid trip at Coney Island" and calling it "exquisite, joyous, theatrical chaos". On August 8, 2025, lead single "Magic" from their upcoming tenth album,
Box of Magic, was released. The album was recorded at
EastWest Studios in
Hollywood and will feature an appearance from actor and musician
Corey Feldman. ==Music style and influences==