Foo Fighters UK Tour 2024: Support act Chroma discuss the continued issues of being a female in a band

Foo Fighters start their UK tour next week, performing in Manchester, Glasgow, London, Cardiff and Birmingham with several support acts across the numerous dates. Nothing of noteworthiness there - international acts often have smaller acts opening for them.

But for this tour, Foo Fighters' choice of support acts comprise 70% of either female-fronted bands or solo artists, including Welsh alt-rock trio Chroma. The group, with lead singer Katie Hall, will be opening for Dave Grohl and company at their Manchester shows.

While Dave Grohl has many times demonstrated why he is considered “rock music’s good guy” and fans at the shows are usually well-behaved, the same cannot be said for some shows Chroma have performed in the past, including brags of sleeping with lead singer Hall.

“This bloke had come up to both of you [band members Zac Mather and Liam Bevan] and said, ‘I’m going to have sex with Katie after the show’. The boys came up to me and said, ‘Katie; near that man.’ I know the boys have got my back a hundred per cent, but it’s still wild.”

The trio opened up about the experiences of being in a female-fronted rock act in this day and age to Sound, the Welsh Government’s flagship campaign to end violence against women ahead of their tour dates to platform the continued problems regarding misogyny in the music space.

That platforming - something that Just Vote believe is essential for musicians to undertake especially ahead of the general election - also included the band naming their 2023 album “Ask for Angela,” based around an initiative in the hospitality sector.

“There are still risks for everyone”

That initiative sees any females out at a bar, nightclub or other licensed businesses across the United Kingdom to “ask for Angela” if they feel threatened, unsafe or vulnerable. Staff members would then know what to do to assist the female.

“I saw the campaign poster on a toilet and thought it was interesting because it recognises that even in this modern age, there are still risks for everyone,” Hall explains regarding the album title. “As a woman, that fear is real. Every time I walk home from a friend’s house which is only down the road, they’re anxious and say to text them when I get in.”

“It’s about knowing and learning how as men we can do better to respond to individuals when they say something that doesn’t flow right,” Mather remarks. “It’s important to have those difficult conversations with men without feeling like you’re putting yourself in a dangerous position where they may become violent with you, or disregard what you’re saying.”

Bevan also revealed: “Since we’ve been going, there’s been a lot of conversations we’ve had. There are things I have never had to think twice about before as a man. It’s only when you are in those environments again, you have that fresh angle on what could be happening around you that you might not have clocked before.”

But it’s the conversation men can and should have with other men to call out these behaviours that Hall believes will make the biggest difference. “It’s the only way things can really change, in terms of misogyny and men calling out other men’s bad behaviour. It is important to sound it out because that person might not be aware of the full picture or aware that they’re even doing it.”

What date are Chroma opening for Foo Fighters on their UK tour?

Chroma will be opening for Foo Fighters at their show at Old Trafford, Manchester on June 15 2024. Resale tickets are available through Ticketmaster UK.