Dave Grohl Fills In For Hospitalized Cage the Elephant Drummer

It was a once (well, maybe twice) in a lifetime experience for the members of Cage the Elephant when Dave Grohl filled in for drummer Jared Champion after Champion’s appendix burst on Monday night. And it sounds like Grohl will be making another appearance with the band tonight in Los Angeles at the Forum. The band has been supporting the Foo Fighters on their tour behind Wasting Light.

The band told Spin about how Grohl contacted their manager after hearing about the emergency and offered his services:

“Dave somehow heard what had happened and called our tour manager," guitarist Lincoln Parish told Spin. "He said, ‘Hey, so do you think the guys would go for it?’ Our manager was like… ‘Um, yeah!!!’”

Grohl filled in for five songs, with the tour’s monitor engineer playing the first half of the set. Grohl played on the songs he knew best, which were “In One Ear,” “Shake Me Down,” “Sell Yourself,” and “Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked.”

“I had to pinch myself,” Parish told Spin. “I turned around and Dave Grohl is playing the drums. It’s an amazing, once-in-a-lifetime experience. Nobody can replace Jared. But…it’s Dave fucking Grohl. If you’re going to be replaced by anybody, it might as well be the best.”

As for Champion, it sounds like he’s going to be OK. The band expects him to rejoin the band on Oct. 17 in San Diego, Calif. You can watch Grohl joining Cage the Elephant below courtesy NME.