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CONCERT REVIEW: Foo Fighters @ Wells Fargo Center, 11/10
Early in the set, Dave Grohl bragged about Foo Fighters' stamina, as though it was some kind of feat that a band with seven albums should play for nearly three hours.
CONCERT REVIEW: Foo Fighters @ Wells Fargo Center, 11/10
Early in the set, Dave Grohl bragged about Foo Fighters' stamina, as though it was some kind of feat that a band with seven albums should play for nearly three hours. Truth is, on paper, it's the band's most impressive asset. But like Broadway pros, they hit their marks all night long.
It's not like they're known for their range; they've been playing the same songs in the same order just about every night, beginning with "Bridge Burning" and "Rope," the first two tracks on their latest album, Wasting Light, and ending with the aptly titled "Everlong," off 1997's The Colour and the Shape. And there's a limited set of tricks in the band's repertoire: They can't get enough of false endings, or of going from quiet to loud to quiet to loud, or of goading the crowd to sing along. But they make it work for them, blasting through the hits and weaving one song into the next.
It helped not to have a favorite album - unless you're partial to the new one, which accounted for nearly a third of the set. Early adopters were out of luck; "This Is a Call" was the only nod to the 1995 debut that was 99.9 percent Grohl. Subsequent albums yielded just two or three songs apiece.
But the highlights were there for the taking: "Stacked Actors" featured a shredding contest between Grohl, on an elevated platform in the center of the arena, and Chris Shiflett, alone on stage. Ex-Hüsker Dü guitarist Bob Mould - the tour's celebrity DJ - joined in for the one-two punch of "Dear Rosemary," the best by far of the new bunch, and a cover of Tom Petty's "Breakdown." And just when Grohl seemed to be about to do real damage to his vocal cords, as on "Monkey Wrench" and "Let It Die," he found a way to hold back without seeming to wimp out.
For all Grohl's boasts, he and drummer Taylor Hawkins seemed to spend nearly as much time talking as rocking, with a running gag about all the venues Foo Fighters had paid their dues in before filling the Wells Fargo Center. "This is the last chorus," Grohl said during his solo acoustic take on "Wheels," the first song of the encore. "If you sing it loud as shit, we'll come back and play the Electric Factory." The crowd complied. Five songs later, Grohl reiterated that vow: "I meant what I said about the Electric Factory. Good luck getting tickets."
You're more likely to score tickets to see opener The Joy Formidable next time they play, and it'd probably be a good idea. The Welsh trio made the most of playing to a mostly empty room, setting off big pop grenades that ably filled the space. Their charm offensive wasn't totally lost on the crowd; noting the reception, which ranged from blank to respectful, singer-guitarist Ritzy Bryan optimistically counted enough converts to pad their Dec. 12 show at the North Star Bar.
At the other extreme, veteran SoCal punks Social Distortion ran on autopilot, churning out one chugging excuse for a chorus after another while the enthusiastic hordes shouted out requests for Mike Ness and his hired guns to ignore.
Photos by Chris Sikich
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