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FLYING HIGH WITH THE FOO FIGHTERS
By Michele Martin
There are many reasons why the Foo Fighters are the most exciting band
performing & recording in Modern Rock today, but the most important center
around intelligence & passion.
Witnessing them 'live' is a crash course in excitement. As soon as the
"Foo's" hit the stage, I was gone, daddy, gone. As best as one tries to be
objective, it is virtually impossible not to get caught up in the rush of
adrenaline that absolutely hits the audience like a locomotive engine gone
off the track.
As a 40-something year old who started her concert-going at age 15 with
one of the first shows of Kiss at Delta College where Gene Simmons spitting
blood was a real novelty, I thought I had seen it all - from Alice Cooper
to Zeppelin, - but I have never witnessed the amount of audience
"gratitude", if you will, for a band like I did with the Foo Fighters.
The focal point is lead singer, guitarist, and songwriter Dave Grohl,
formerly the drummer with the groundbreaking band Nirvana, who formed the
band with Nate Mendel after the unfortunate shotgun-suicide of Nirvana's
Kurt Cobain.
Grohl took complete command of the audience from the very first song & the
rush never stopped until the dreaded house lights came on. What is
impressive about Grohl & Company is their personable attitude towards the
audience. Like it or not, most notable bands, (i.e., money makers) come
across as "you're so damn lucky to be here to see ME, whereas with the
Foos, there isn't much of a cross-over from "star" to audience.
The Foo Fighters rocked the house with their hard-hitting music as much as
they were "open" to the audience. That's an extreme in my book. All
concert-goers will attest to the "snot" appeal of certain bands, (backs to
the audience, no communication, sniff, sniff, "You're lucky to see my ass
play"), but the Foo Fighters had us in the palms of their hands right from
the beginning to the final song, and they never let go.
Grohl, in his black-on-black attire, mentioned that he didn't like the
thought of "arena rock", after playing back-up to many "festivals", but
that he is now seeing a heavy & healthy return to it and has adopted a new
attitude towards large arenas. Hey, we're a Michigan audience and that
means you're either taken under our wing or booed right off the stage;
there isn't really a middle ground when you play Michigan.
When our local icon from Michigan, the Iggster (Iggy Pop), local hero, can
get booed off the stage when he opened for the Rolling Stones, I would call
us a "hard" audience to please, and most bands know this.
But 'please' is what the Foo Fighters did, above & beyond the call of
duty. Grohl walked a cat-walk to both sides of the arena, including taking
a stroll to the back of the massive venue for an extended version of
Stacked Actors, where he grabbed a cowboy hat from a fan (lucky fan that he
grabbed her hat, or unlucky to lose your hat), through the moshers,
groupies, & God knows what else, to connect with us & share his enthusiasm;
which is rare, as most bands tend to hug the stage like a life-line. Not
the Foo's! Having a little fun with the crowd, they played a few bits of
covers from Pantera & Metallica.
This was a true 'rock show' in every sense of the word. And, by a show, it
doesn't necessarily mean, pyrotechnics, heavy make-up, dancing girls in
cages or decapitation. Hey, for a great show, that means great music,
great rapport & just plain "IT". And the Foo Fighters certainly have "IT".
As I walked out of the arena, I talked to at least 50 people to ask their
opinion of the Foos. Over & over, the response was, to the letter, "they
Rocked, man"! Also, I listened to alot of the audience say that the Foo
Fighters brought back the golden years of Nirvana, which makes this writer
wonder how much David Grohl had to do with the writing & dynamics of
Nirvana.
Don't hate me; I just think Mr. Grohl had a huge influence on our beloved &
departed Kurt Cobain. Instead of bringing a somewhat negative attitude to
the lyrics & performance, he brought a fresh, upbeat, "What the hell do we
care" attitude with him. Not to say this is anything like "anthem rock",
but more of a "full-balls, rock show", without the angst of Nirvana.
Indeed, the post-Nirvana experience was both sobering in terms of marking
an 'end', and enlightening in terms of setting a new 'beginning'.
"After Kurt's death, I was about as confused as I've ever been," says
Grohl. "To continue almost seemed in vain. I was always going to be 'that
guy from Kurt Cobain's band' and I knew that. I wasn't even sure if I had
the desire to make music anymore. But as much as I missed Kurt and as much
as I felt so lost, I knew there was only thing I was truly cut out to do,
and that was music. I decided to do what I had always wanted to do since
the first time I'd recorded a song all by myself. I was going to book a
week in a 24-track studio, choose the best stuff I'd ver written out of the
3-40 songs that had piled up, and really concentrate on them in the studio,
and I didn't want this to be some ridiculous solo project."
With three albums under their belt (The Foo Fighters, The Colour & the
Shape, and the recently released There Is Nothing Left To Lose, The Foo
Fighters have brought melody, passion, and mirth back into music. Their
videos are equally self-deprecating as the music is sincere. And Grohl
admits that he is equal parts facetious and sincere - devoted to music
while at the same time harboring a healthy cynicism about the music
industry machinery, and a healthy dose of humor about himself.
Indeed, while the Foos have ventured into more sophisticated, melodic,
'sensitive-guy' terrain on the latest album, as a veteran of the world's
premier Grunge band, Grohl has no shame. On the contrary, Grohl states:
"I'm a little unhappy with popular music these days, and the lack of
introspection is my biggest problem. People aren't inspiring audiences to
reach inside themselves. When I was younger I was in hardcore bands that
were about being hard, fast, and loud. Then I was in a band (Nirvana) that
was hard, fast and loud with feel and melody. It was an awakening. Kurt
made it seem so simple, simpler than it is."
The current line-up consists of Grohl on vocals & guitar, Mendel on bass,
drummer Taylor Hawkins and guitarist Chris Shiflett. Grohl credits the
casual, comfortable atmosphere of the music to no label executives offering
suggestions, no clock ticking, and most of all recording his guitar parts
sitting on the couch he's owned for eight years - for the latest album's
natural, breezy feel.
"We finally feel like the band is what it should be," concludes Grohl. Now
relocated back in his native state of Virginia, Grohl explains that "A lot
of what I hated about Los Angeles was brought on by missing Virginia. At a
time in your life when you feel lost, and are searching for things that are
real, L.A. is the worst place to be. Here, no one questions anyone's
intentions. People live for the sake of being happy."
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