If
you regularly read my reviews, you know my biggest concert pet peeves are
paying $100 for a ticket to see a band play for 90 minutes. That and a lack of
screens in an arena show. In the case of The Foo Fighters October 27th concert
at the Saddledome, neither of those were a concern, something singer Dave Grohl
made clear shortly into the show.
"I hope you wore comfortable shoes, we aren't one of the bands who only plays
for an hour and forty-five minutes. We are going to play for an hour and
fifty-five," he quipped.
The final time? Two hours and forty minutes. With a price tag of $50 - $75 the
13'000 in attendance got what they paid for.
For Foo Fighter fans it was nirvana, no pun intended. From lengthy powerful
solos to multiple hits, the show defined what a rock concert can and should be.
From non-stop energy to a stage at the back end of the arena and a ramp, it
played up the rock show gimmick without it being cliched. For those that
attended that weren't hardcore fans – dates, casual fans for example – some of
the lesser known songs may have dragged but the overall experience was a great
one.
The Foo's hit the stage with Grohl screaming "These are my famous last words"
and launching into Bridge Burning and Rope off of their current
album Wasting Light. Massive sing alongs occurred with The Pretender,
My Hero, and Learn To Fly.
Grohl can still hit the notes and scream like madman, as evidenced in songs
like Monkey Wrench and is a captivating ball of energy on stage as
frontman. The rest of the band – bassist Nate Mendel, guitarists Chris Shifley
and Pat Smear, and drummer Taylor Hawkins – "the only shirtless member of the
band" Grohl said – were obviously having a great time on stage and it
translated to the near sold-out crowd. Many of them admitted via cheers to
attending their first Foo Fighters concer that night.
"I'm glad you waited 16 fucking years." Grohl admonished, before saying that he
meant it because the band was great now.
After teasing the crowd in a backstage video about how many songs would be in
the encore – Grohl suggested 2, Hawkins upped it to 6, Grohl appeared on a
stage at the back of the arena, saying hi to "the people in the shitty seats."
Said people showed their appreciation with cheers, and some with flashing.
"After 20 years they all look the same. They are just tits." Grohl said before
acoustic solo versions of Wheels and Best of You. Times Like
These started acoustic then the entire band came back to end it on a
powerful note. The show wrapped up at the promised near three hours with a
cover of Tom Petty's Breakdown and crowd pleaser Everlong.
The Foo Fighters have defined music in the past 16 years. They also seem
like the kind of guys you could grab a beer with – rock starts without the
pretentiousness. Grohl promised multiple times that they would be back, and you
can bet the fans will be as well.
Foo Fighters Setlist
Bridge
Burning
Rope
The
Pretender
My
Hero
Learn
to Fly
White
Limo
Arlandria
Breakout
Cold
Day in the Sun
Stacked
Actors
Walk
Monkey
Wrench
Let
It Die
These
Days
This
is a Call
In
the Flesh? (Pink Floyd cover)
All
My Life
Encore:
Wheels
Best
of You
Times Like These
Dear Rosemary
Breakdown
(Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers cover)
Everlong