Latest Release
- 17 NOV 2023
- 2 Songs
- The Colour And The Shape · 1997
- The Colour And The Shape · 1997
- In Your Honor · 2005
- There Is Nothing Left to Lose · 1999
- One By One (Deluxe Edition) · 2002
- Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace · 2007
- One By One (Deluxe Edition) · 2002
- Wasting Light · 2011
- The Colour And The Shape · 1997
- Greatest Hits · 2009
Essential Albums
- After the emotionally charged anthems and notable underground pedigree of 1997’s The Colour and the Shape, Foo Fighters’ third album proved more grounded in classic American rock than in the subcultures of punk, grunge or emo. With the departure of guitarist Pat Smear (for now) and the promotion of touring drummer Taylor Hawkins to full-time member since the last record, Dave Grohl took up guitar duties against the road-hardened rhythm section of Hawkins and bassist Nate Mendel. Just as vital as that rejiggered lineup was the no-frills setting. After relocating from an unhappy stint in Hollywood, Grohl purchased a house not far from his former high school in Alexandria, Virginia, and christened the newfound basement studio 606—later to beget an LA version called 606 West and also inspire the 2022 horror flick Studio 666. Working with co-producer Adam Kasper, the core trio set about shaping the album under much mellower circumstances than the last time around. The results followed suit, smoothing out many of the previous album’s diamond-sharp edges. That’s most apparent in the platinum-selling hit “Learn to Fly”, an arena-sized power ballad that hints at what Grohl might have picked up from Tom Petty in his brief fill-in spot drumming for The Heartbreakers. Complete with ringing hooks and an accessible message, the song became a resounding calling card for the band’s radio-friendly potential. Other tracks follow suit, with “Live-In Skin” bringing heartfelt heft to its straight-down-the-middle rock, and “Next Year” channelling AM-radio gold with its optimistic refrain “I’ll be comin’ home next year”. Even the more experimental choices aren’t exactly abrasive, from the phaser motif in “Breakout” and talk-box hook in “Generator” to the bleary effects rippling through “Aurora” and “Headwires”. By stark contrast, the red-herring opener “Stacked Actors” pairs jazzy verses with stoner-rock bluster while Grohl lashes out at Hollywood’s well-documented emptiness. Other songs pick up that thread later, with “Ain’t It the Life” again puncturing actors’ vacant facades before “M.I.A.” goes as far as to call them “mannequins drunk in their hollow town”. The latter ends the record on a triumphant note, with Grohl emboldened by his choice to ditch that lifestyle. Released at the very close of the decade that first made Grohl famous, There Is Nothing Left to Lose very much broadened Foo Fighters’ appeal, even earning them a Grammy for Best Rock Album. But more than anything, it established Grohl’s staying power far beyond the lingering shadow of Nirvana.
- Once Dave Grohl had cleared the hurdle of launching his post-Nirvana project with Foo Fighters’ 1995 self-titled debut—on which he juggled all the instruments—it was time to put an actual band together. Tapping bassist Nate Mendel and drummer William Goldsmith from emo outfit Sunny Day Real Estate, along with Germs/Nirvana guitarist Pat Smear, Grohl then brought in Pixies producer Gil Norton to nail down the bracing contrasts and more personal songwriting of 1997’s The Colour and the Shape. Things didn’t go well at first: Initial sessions got scrapped, and Grohl wound up replacing most of Goldsmith’s contributions with his own, before hiring drummer Taylor Hawkins for future albums. Norton pushed the band especially hard, requesting take after take to get everything just right. Yet that disciplined approach paid off, yielding three Top 10 hits and what remains Foo Fighters’ best-selling album in the US. It also represents the band’s anointment as a mainstream rock powerhouse, both in the studio and onstage. Written in the fallout from Grohl’s divorce from photographer Jennifer Youngblood, these songs definitely cut more deeply than the first album’s lower-stakes power-pop. The most enduring anthem here—appropriately titled “Everlong”—is quite pointedly about connecting with someone on every possible level. All forward momentum, the song captures both the challenge and reward of true intimacy, kicking up the drama yet another notch with its whispered bridge and then adrenalised return. Lead single “Monkey Wrench” similarly balances the ecstatic and cathartic (“I’d rather leave than suffer this”), while “My Hero” comes closest to Sunny Day’s intricate emotional exorcisms. But there’s plenty more territory covered beyond those three hard-driving singles. Soft-sung opener “Doll” plays like an intentional link to the previous album’s demo-like intimacy, and the confiding acoustic ballad “Walking After You” feels all the more vulnerable following directly from “Everlong”. Likewise, the jaunty lightness of “See You” provides an immediate counterpoint to “My Hero”. Often singing with fresh pain in his voice here, Grohl proves himself to be not just a gifted songwriter but an undeniably impactful frontperson. And if you’re looking for foreshadowing of the tireless arena staple that the Foos would soon become, “Wind Up” ratchets up the band’s distorted riffing and even lets Grohl sneak in a proper scream.
- Following Kurt Cobain’s tragic suicide, no one would have been surprised had drummer Dave Grohl’s then-solo project, Foo Fighters, quickly faded away. Playing all the instruments and penning all the songs, the production of this record made rock history. We know today how successful that Foo Fighters story has proved to be, but click play on this legendary self-titled debut and you’ll be pleasantly surprised: a mix of boundless energy and sweet nostalgia that blast through your speakers.
- 2022
- Dave Grohl built his band's legacy on a simple formula: Go big.
- The guitar-rock warriors take goofing around quite seriously.
- Inspiration to drive you everlong.
- Driving, all-or-nothing modern rock with unforgettable melodies.
- The famously upbeat alt-rockers also have their dark moments.
- Listen to the hits performed on their blockbuster tour.
Compilations
Radio Shows
- Foo Fighters celebrate the release of their 10th LP Medicine At Midnight.
- Strombo dives into the band and their album One By One.
- Mark celebrates his birthday and talks with Taylor Hawkins.
- Mark celebrates Halloween and chats with Nate Mendel.
- Dave Grohl and Taylor Hawkins on what it takes to join the band.
- The Foo Fighters discuss their “Everlong" and everlasting bond.
- Grohl chats Nirvana, Foo Fighters and everything in between.
More To See
About Foo Fighters
How do you follow up a stint drumming for Nirvana, the most influential rock band of your generation? If you’re Dave Grohl, you start one of the most consistent and enduring rock bands of all time. Whether covering Queen and Pink Floyd or collaborating with legends like Paul McCartney, Foo Fighters are the sturdy connective tissue between the classic-rock era and the modern age. After Kurt Cobain died in 1994, Grohl dropped his sticks and became singer-guitarist for a new project he named after a World War II-era military term for UFOs. His scrappy 1995 debut under the Foo Fighters alias—performed and recorded almost entirely on his own—revealed a Cobain-like gift for folding insidious hooks into raw, grungy riffs. But on the more polished 1997 follow-up, The Colour And The Shape, Grohl displayed bigger commercial ambitions, as evidenced by the Pixies-esque “My Hero” and the simmering “Everlong”. The Foos thereupon became a proper band, with Grohl flanked by former Germs and Nirvana touring guitarist Pat Smear, Sunny Day Real Estate bassist Nate Mendel and the hard-hitting, ever-affable drummer Taylor Hawkins. From the late ’90s onward, the Foos have reigned as alt-rock’s most reliable hit machine and—thanks to their comedic, heavily costumed videos—most eager court jesters, cranking out mosh-pit ragers (“All My Life”), scorching hardcore punk (“White Limo”), jugular-seizing power ballads (“Best of You”) and steady-as-Petty sing-alongs (“Learn to Fly”) with equal aplomb. Hawkins’ sudden death in 2022 cast a pall over the usually happy-go-lucky group. But Grohl channelled his grief into 2023’s emotionally raw But Here We Are—and when the band returned to the road after taking time off to regroup, their music and presence exuded even greater purpose. As one of the few ’90s-era rock bands to maintain festival-headliner status well into the 21st century, the Foos remain alt-rock’s most committed keepers of the flame.
- ORIGIN
- Seattle, WA, United States
- FORMED
- 1994
- GENRE
- Rock