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Story and photos by Phil Bonyata Dave Grohl has rock pedigree oozing from his every pore - from his days of beating the skins with seminal band Nirvana to playing frontman with rock darlings The Foo Fighters. So, if Dave wants the band to go all acoustic for this tour and primarily play songs from their recent release In Your Honor - we better tag along for the ride.Featuring an eight piece band - with three guitars, violin, keyboards, bass, drums and percussion - The Foo Fighters engineered a rather electrifying performance despite the absence of any "juice." In true "MTV Unplugged" fashion everyone, including Dave, remained seated for the entire performance. Most of the songs off of In Your Honor were played with extreme precision by the entire band. The normally polished numbers took on a grittier side with Dave's loose and sometimes manic guitar playing. The tasty melodies were still intact along with the irreverent and bristling lyrics. While Grohl did remain seated throughout the show it didn't stop him from flailing his head and heavily stomp the floor as many of the swirling melodies reached their climax. Dave's easy banter with the audience helped the connection grow even further. The Foo Fighter's didn't forget the classics either. "Times Like These," "Hero" and "Everlong" all translated fine from electric to acoustic. The more barren arrangements highlighted the chord progressions along with Dave's gravelly and passionate vocals. On their encore the band played a haunting and brutally honest rendition of "Friend of a Friend." Stripping away all the fat - the Foo Fighters showed us that music does indeed have a soul. |
