"Introduce Yourself" is the second studio album by American rock band Faith No More, released in April 1987 through Slash Records. This album marked the band's major-label debut and is often considered by both fans and the band as their true debut album due to the limited availability of their 1985 album We Care a Lot, which was initially released through an independent label, Mordam Records. Introduce Yourself features improved production and includes a re-recorded version of the song "We Care a Lot," with updated, more topical lyrics.
Faith No More's We Care a Lot had been released through Mordam in 1985, but the band signed to Slash Records in late 1986, with Anna Statman securing the deal. The label, which had a distribution agreement with Warner Bros., offered Faith No More a broader release and marketing push for their next album. Introduce Yourself was the result of this collaboration. In promotion of the album, "We Care a Lot" and "Chinese Arithmetic" were released as singles, and both received radio play. The song "We Care a Lot" was also given a music video in January 1988, followed by another video for "Anne's Song" in May 1988.
The title track, "Introduce Yourself," was originally called "The Cheerleader Song" and was written during the band's 1986 U.S. tour. Keyboardist Roddy Bottum came up with the lyrics during a road trip from South Dakota to Portland, Oregon. "Death March" was inspired by the tragic drowning of a friend who had been under the influence of drugs. Chuck Mosley explained that the song is about someone talking to a deceased lover, with the "soul lingering on" after death. Despite the album's association with Chuck Mosley, Introduce Yourself contains one of the few performances of the song "Faster Disco" with new vocalist Mike Patton, though it was only performed live once at a 1990 concert in Germany. Several tracks from this album, including "Anne's Song," have not been performed live by Patton, keeping the Mosley-era material distinct from the Patton era of the band.
After the album’s release, Faith No More joined the Red Hot Chili Peppers on their Uplift Mofo Party Tour. The band opened for the Peppers during the North American leg of the tour, which saw the group traveling in a windowless box van for 52 dates in 56 days. During this time, future vocalist Mike Patton, who had joined the band in 1988, had a rocky relationship with Red Hot Chili Peppers frontman Anthony Kiedis. Following the tour, Faith No More also made their first UK tour in 1988 to promote the album.
The original release in April 1987 was on vinyl and cassette, featuring an album cover with a centered ink splatter. The design was initially suggested by bassist Billy Gould, who wanted a red splatter, but the label changed it to green. The album was re-released in 1996 through Slash/Uni Records, retaining the original ink splatter cover design. A further re-release occurred in 2000 through Slash/Rhino Records, with a slight variation on the cover artwork. Introduce Yourself stands as a key album in Faith No More's catalog, marking their shift to a larger label and higher production values. It's also notable for being Chuck Mosley’s final album with the band before he was replaced by Mike Patton in 1988, a change that would soon propel the band to even greater success with albums like The Real Thing and Angel Dust.
