Foo Fighters - Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace

Best rock band of the past decade strikes again!

It amazes me how many people think that this band has had weak offerings in recent years. The Foo Fighters' previous offerings in the 2000's--2002's "One By One" and 2005's "In Your Honor" to me just further strengthened this band's amazing discography. Well, for certain, this 2007 offering continues to add to the Foo legacy, cementing this band's place as the most consistent mainstream rock band of the "post-grunge" era.

How catchy is the lead track "The Pretender"? At least one reviewer compared it to 1997's "Monkey Wrench" as an incredibly accessible single, and I would agree. Subdued verses followed by explosive choruses, a Foo trademark, make this track an absolute winner. "Let it Die" starts slow and builds, to the point that Dave Grohl is screaming by the end of the track. "Erase/Replace" continues the early hard rock vein of the album. Then comes "Long Road to Ruin"--what a modern melodic masterpiece and true highlight of the album. "Come Alive" is a typical heavy Foo anthem--somewhat similar to "Come Back" on the "One By One" album but not as lengthy.

At this point, the album mellows out a bit more overall but continues to be utterly brilliant for the most part. How simple yet good is "Stranger Things Have Happened" with the acoustic guitar strumming leading the way? "Summer's End" is another modern melodic masterpiece with stunning melodies. "Home" is a surprisingly mellow piano ballad to end the album but to me (unlike others) is not boring--just another unique way for Dave Grohl to express himself musically. There are still rockers in the second half of the album as well--such as the amusingly-titled "Cheer Up Boys (Your Make Up is Running)" and the stronger anthemic "But Honestly"--another track that builds momemtum as it goes along.

Last time out with "In Your Honor", the Foos decided to divide up their sound variety into two disks--a "fast" one and a "slow" one. This time they decided to meld it all together into one cohesive masterpiece. For sure, they have succeeded in my book. Once again, the variety of sounds, tempos, and volumes of music on this album have made for an exciting and interesting rock album.

This band has proven to me once again that they can do little wrong. Strongly recommended for rock fans dating back to the '70s (like me) not to mention youngsters who just caught onto rock in the '90s. Many Nirvana fans (from where Dave of course originally came from) love this band, which makes sense. I, on the other hand, loved the guitar-based '70s rock and '80s melodic rock and was originally put off when "grunge" replaced my '80s guitar heros. None of that matters here. This band, and for sure this album, should appeal to most rock music fans of the past 30 years. July 4, 2008

What if I say you're not like the others?

Having weathered almost 15 years of being his own band, Dave Grohl probably has fans that don't know he was in a little band called Nirvana before the Foo Fighters were starting. Yet here he is, and the Foos have gradually become one of the best meat and potatoes rock bands in the USA. Their follow-up to the magnum opus In Your Honor finds them in superb form, incorporating the mix of elements from that album with the hard melodic chops from the classic The Colour and the Shape.

Some of that can be credited to Gil Norton, who returns to produce. But some if it also has to be credited to maturity. After all, several of the Foos are fathers now. Therefore, you have a certain viewpoint that may not have been present in 1993. The album starts with a thinly veiled political broadside ("The Pretender") and closes with the sentimental acoustic "Home" (a lyric from which the album takes its title). Packed between is the usual array of FF goodies, but the surprises are from the heavily harmonzied "Summer's End" and the instrumental "Ballad of The Beaconsfield Miners."

If you're really looking for the expected hard rocking pop thrills the Foo's excel at, it's hear in spades. Both "The Pretender" and "Cheer Up Boys" (with its infectious "stop stop stop" chorus). Consistent and solid all the way through, "Echoes Silence Passion and Grace" offers further proof that the Foo Fighters are a classic band. July 3, 2008

Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace

I don't know how it could be any better - Love it from start to finish, can't stop listening to it. July 1, 2008

Get you Headwires on, these guys ROCK

It's been almost a year since E,S,P&G has run the Billboard Charts and more importantly, won the Grammy for Best Rock Album, and it remains one of my all time favorites. In my opinion, the Foo's are the best "Hard Rock" band presently in commercial existence. Track one, The Pretender is an instant favorite, in classic Foo Fighter's format, it's a quiet, demure beginning, crescendo-ing to the rocking, balls-out finish, a storyline to so many of their best songs. It won the Grammy for best rock PERFORMANCE, but it's not even my favorite song on the album.
I love the introspective, "Stranger Things Have Happened". It's the formula Grohl uses to succeed with an acoustic guitar and metronome song. We are forced to focus on the simplicity and deep introspection of his lyrical patterns. Very similar to the wonderful "Friend Of A Friend", a song he wrote early in his career while still with Nirvana. It's such a dramatic and underappreciated song. The sound of the metronome being wound and the subsequent ticking gets your attention, then comes the clean, deep acoustic guitar, carrying the simple rhythm into the lyrics. "I'm breathing in this silence like never before." We are lead into a likely wasted realationship with a disappointing outcome. "I can change, I can change, I can change, but who do u want me to be?" is the strongest line in the song, and is so symbolic of a guy trying to adapt to his mate's desires, but falling short. "I'm the same, I'm the same, I'm the same, what do you want me to be?" This solidifies the frustration felt by Dave, or the main character in this song, who has done nothing different, but apparently underperformed by the will of his suitor. That's my take on it.
"Long Road to Ruin" is my Ringtone, and I am probably responsible for selling at least 20 albums by this alone. It's most easily described as a CSNY song, but it's full of Genesis and other prog rock changes. Very refreshing and upbeat. I will end now, as I am sure that there will be others to come. I heard an interview with Dave when he said that he wanted to get out when he turned 30. I'm glad he has changed his mind. I actually like these guys better than Nirvana. Please don't kill me for that statement, I am just a bit overwhelmed with grunge and all of it's countless sound-alikes. Yes, Nirvana was a wonderful band and I was there for the whole 80's hair-band to grunge musical transformation, but this is the MOST serendipitous thing that has occurred in modern rock. Cobain's passing (Listen to "Too Cool Queenie by STP for their take on this), resulted in the formation of this amazing band. They are ever-changing, and are currently defining what AMERICAN ROCK IS in this new millenium. Tell me otherwise. May 14, 2008

A CD of 2 sides

Remember vinyl ? When we had a "Side 1" and a "Side 2" ? Well, Side 1 is great, 4 stars, by the time side 2 comes along it gets a little tired, mediocre and ideas are thin on the ground. 2 Stars for side 2.


April 22, 2008

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