Friday Foo Fighting Frenzy

in #music6 years ago (edited)

Foo Fighters Website

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My Brother Shaun and I have been Foos fans for what seems like forever. They are a band that I first took notice of in the mid/late 90's with their brand of big drums and rock guitars. Dave Grohl is their talented and charismatic frontman of ex Nirvana fame, Pat Smear on guitar, Nate Mendel on bass, Rami Jaffee on keyboards, Chris Shiflett on lead guitar and last but not least Taylor Hawkins on drums. They are also well known for the great humour in their videos like Learn to Fly and Everlong

Insane En Seine

I have been fortunate enough to see them three times. I saw them with my wife Jayne and daughter Jaime at the Rock En Seine festival in Paris and at the Budapest SportArena after a crazy 12 hour drive from Bucharest. So it was a nice surprise when Jayne and Jaime had purchased tickets for the latest gig in London for my Christmas present and an early birthday present for Shaun.

A link to my video of the Rock En Seine Opening

Wembley

The first time that I got to witness these guys in action was pretty special. It was at Wembley in 2008. It was an eighty five thousand capacity gig that sold out in minutes and Shaun and I were lucky to get tickets. The band actually added a second day that also sold out. It was a pivotal moment in their history and it felt like a privilege to be a part of it.

Watch this excerpt from Back and Forth about the history of the Foos. This bit is about the Wembley gig and you really get a feel for how big it was for all of them. There was even a guest appearance by John Paul Jones and Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin to top off a phenomenal night.

The Plan

We pre planned the day beforehand. The idea was to catch the coach from Bristol, visit with our cousin David in Balham, London , have some food and a few beers, on to the Foos gig and back to Dave’s for a few beers and some sleep before catching the coach back to Bristol the next day.

Is Someone Getting the Best of You?

On the day of the concert I woke up and, as usual, the first thing I checked was steemit but in the meantime I played a little Foos to get me in the mood. Breakfast devoured, tickets ready and bag packed, I was ready to rock. My dad offered to drop us down to the bus station so we left to go pick up my brother. He was blasting out his favourite Foos track Best of Youwhen we got there and as time was of the essence, we hit the road.

It's All Going to Well

The three hour coach journey was thankfully uneventful, the tube straight forward and a short easy walk to my cousin’s was easy enough, we never took a backwards step! That was too easy! What's going to go wrong? We arrived at David’s and had a great afternoon catching up. We then went to the Balham Bowls Club which is a real cool old style pub with great food and lots of different beers and ales. We were having such a laugh that we forgot the time. We had an hour to get across London before the Foos were on stage!

Ruuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuunnnnnnn!

This brought back memories of the last gig in Budapest when we missed the start. Surely it’s not going to happen again? Is it? We left David and sprinted to the tube station. Found the right line and also changed trains with no issue. 40 minutes left. So far so good. Then I get a tap on the shoulder from a lady sat next to me saying that she overheard that we were on our way to the concert and that the line was having trouble. Nooooooooo! 20 minutes left. Luckily, she was heading there as well and could show us an alternative route. What a star she was!


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I Should Have Known

She guided us to the stadium and we went to our gate thanking her for the assistance. We hit the turnstile 3 minutes over the start time but we couldn’t hear any music. Maybe we have made it? Sprinting like Usain Bolt we rushed around to our sector and climbed the stairs. No band! We had made it. Hi fives and hugs all round.

Here We Go

No sooner had we sat down than Dave and the boys came out to a huge roar from the crowd. They went straight into All My Life and we are underway. The sound was immense and even though we were in seats near the back you felt like you were at the front. Actually for anyone that’s not ever been to a Foos gig it’s pretty much what happens. Dave makes you feel like you are all individually involved and important. They are incredible musicians and you always feel like they give you their best effort, every time. Dave says that they will play as long as we want them to at every gig and even though you know that they can’t, you still believe him.


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I Got Chills

They played a really balanced set with a few old tracks and a few new ones from their brilliant album Concrete and Gold. In a surreal moment they even gave us a rendition of Grease Lightning! Dave did a stripped back version of My Hero on his own, which was awesome. The stadium itself was very impressive and conducive to a good concert. The sun had set by this time and they suddenly shut off the stadium lights and got the crowd to switch on their phone torchlights and lit the stadium up. It was truly stunning.

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Whooooaoohh Whaaooooooooohhhh!

They played Times Like These and Everlong as an encore and as quick as that, it was over. Everyone left exhausted and happy. As everyone was filtering out they were whaling the tune to Best of You which went on for a good 15 minutes. One thing to note about the stadium was that it cleared so fast. 60,000 people dispersing with very little fuss or any issues. It was a great concert and I will be in the queue to see them again at the next opportunity.

I love the Foo Fighters! Click on the links and see if you do too.

Thanks for reading.

Gaz

😁

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Wow, that looks like an amazing concert. I have been a big fan of the Foo's and have been lucky enough to see them live twice. Once in 2004 I think at V festival in the UK and then more recently in 2014 in South Africa. Their music just does not age!

Nice one @gholsa

I agree that their music doesn't age.

V festival? How was that? I've never been but I hear it's good.

What was the SA gig like? Was it a festival or their own gig?

I lived in the UK for 2 years and V Festival was my first big festival that I went to. We just went for the day but managed to catch some amazing bands. The SA gig was their own show. It was in the FNB stadium where the soccer world cup final in 2010 was held. What a venue, what a show!

We don't often get big headline acts at festivals here.

Very cool. The world cup final stadium looks amazing. That must have been a great gig.

Looks like it was a fun concert ! That place looks packed with fans.

Sixty thousand! The noise was unreal.

It really was a cracking gig.

Sounded like you had an awesome wonderful time! I have only been to one or two live concert and I remember how fun it was. It's just different when you are in a live concert and get to see them in the flesh! Unfortunately over here in Malaysia we don't get too many concert and even then they are crazy out of this world expensive. I just have to look forward to more concerts when I travel more!

Hey @khimgoh

Live music definitely adds something to the experience. It's not perfect but it has something else that makes it special.

I hope you get the chance to see more gigs, especially the Food.

Gaz

I grew up on Foo Fighters. Great post Gaz. This concert is on my bucket list. For some reason it won't let me upvote your post...guess I was too late. I'll upvote another. Keep sharing your adventures my friend. Love reading about them!

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A fellow Foos fan. Awesome. That's 4 gigs for me now and I would see them again in a shot.

I hope you get the chance to see them because they are special live. Dave's voice isn't going to last forever so it might have to be soon.

I’d LOVE to see them. Will keep my eyes open for tour dates nearby.

fantastic vlog I love it😍

Hey @makesushi

I'm glad you liked it. I had a lot of fun making it.

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I like how you write. Can I put your quote on my blog?

Hey @beautifulklare

Thanks very much.

Of course you can put it on your blog.

Gaz

Nice coverage of the foos :D one of my favourite bands of all time.

Hey @niko3d

They are great. Have you ever been to a gig?

Gaz

Loved the band since high school. I have a cassette tape of their album and after classes we head out to my house and just listened to the first album followed by the second one. Until now they still rule! I just hope to see them live one day. I'm so green with envy with the experience that you had.

It was a brilliant gig but they always are @watersnake101

I really hope you get to see them. They tour all the time so hopefully they will come to a stadium near you.

Binge listening to the Foos. Heaven!

Cheers, Gaz.

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