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Foo Fighters
Jan. 16, 2008
BankAtlantic Center
Sunrise, FL
By Rafael Sangiovanni
Photos courtesy www.foofighters.com.
The Foo Fighters have always been a band for the fans, and their most recent show in South Florida was a case in point. Although this tour is in support of Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, the Jan. 16 concert was really a crash course in all things Foo, which included a number of obscure tunes. The band came here to please, and please they did.
Dave Grohl, ever the charismatic and inebriated front man, said it best: “We’ve been a band for a long time, so we’ve got lots and lots of shit to get through.”
With a huge catalogue of consistently catchy rock songs at the ready, the Foos kicked off their first South Florida show in two years with “Let It Die” and their pounding single “The Pretender.” The band was noticeably bigger than before with the addition of a cello player, a second percussionist and a third guitarist (former Foo Fighter Pat Smear). They were a little shaky at first, given that they hadn’t played together since November, but by the fourth song they were rolling right along.
For the next 20 minutes, the Foos played songs from their five previous albums, with the same live variations they’ve used for a while (e.g. an extended solo in “Stacked Actors,” a quiet breakdown in “Breakout” and Grohl screaming “Here we go!” where lyrics should be). So far, it was clear the Foos, for all their enthusiasm and wild energy, hadn’t really changed much since their last visit.
That was before a separate, smaller stage descended from the roof into the middle of the pit. Grohl played “Skin And Bones” while the rest of the band waltzed onto the stage to start the acoustic portion of the show. This was easily the most diverse and entertaining part of the night. It glowed with an intimate vibe, even in a stadium setting. The songs ranged from “My Hero,” “But, Honestly” and “Cold Day In The Sun” (sung by drummer Taylor Hawkins) to the little-known “Marigold.”
At one point, the lights dimmed and the band members vanished. A spotlight shone on Grohl as he quietly strummed the chords to “Everlong.” When the chorus came around, hundreds of voices sang along softly. Those near whispers exploded into cheers when the rest of the band joined in with thundering energy. Back on stage, the Foos seemed revitalized as they tore through “Monkey Wrench” and “Best of You.” In a moment of hilarious improvisation, Grohl drunkenly asked the band what song they wanted to play. “F**k it,” he said, “let’s play ‘For All The Cows,’” referencing a sarcastic and obscure song from the Foos first album.
This Foo Fighters concert reaffirmed the band’s guiding principle: total fan satisfaction. While they’re still relying on a few old tricks, the band is unfailingly passionate about their music—and it showed all night.
Are you a Foo Fighters fan? Let us know at outloud@outloud.com..