Faith No More was the kind of band that usually garners a cult following, but not commercial success. Their style often varied and was quirky, hard to describe, and far away the mainstream, or so it seemed. Their first recorded incarnation as a rap-metal band with lead singer Chuck Mosley gained some notice with the track "We Care a Lot", though they had previously featured Courtney Love as lead singer.

Their sound meshed a lot better, though, when Mike Patton took over vocal duties and their cult status changed when the band scored a massive hit with 'Epic' off "The Real Thing".

This was followed by the groundbreaking "Angel Dust", which put them at the forefront of the post-Guns 'n' Roses alternative metal scene. The album produced a number of hit singles, but nothing compared to the impact they made with a song they started playing live as a joke - the Commodores' 'Easy'. Released as a single, their overblown rendition of the song, complete with a video featuring the band in drag, was a worldwide hit and hit the No. 3 spot in the UK charts.

Internal tensions within the band came to a head when keyboard player Roddy Bottum came out publicly. Guitarist Jim Martin was subsequently fired from the band. The band's popularity was on a downhill slope from then on and their decision to split up in 1999 was not too surprising.

Several members had other projects in the works and there was increased reports of creative friction between various members. Mike Bordin was/is touring (or working with) Ozzy Osbourne, and Mike Patton had the now defunct Mr. Bungle to fall back on, as well as Fantômas and Tomahawk (6).

On February 24, 2009 the band announced their reunion.