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Foo Fighters

Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace

Dave Grohl and co have been turning in honest, frequently very funny rock for years. So long in fact that it's easy to overlook how good the band are, how anthemic their best work is without ever resorting to empty spectacle. With Grohl's voice at their centre, their work is consistently intelligent, different and refreshingly pragmatic. All qualities that are on display on their latest album.

The Pretender

A typically small, reserved start on just Grohl's voice and a single guitar explodes into one of the most urgent, most driving songs the Foo Fighters have ever produced. A call to arms, packed with some superb turns of phrase ('I'm what’s left, I'm what's right, I'm the enemy' for example) this is frantic, angry, urgent rock and kicks the album off in high gear.

Also worth tracking down is the video which opens with Grohl in front of a large red panel in an aircraft hangar facing down a single riot policeman and builds, like the song to a crescendo which may be one of the most perfect moments in music video history.

Let It Die

Breaking similar ground, this is another track that starts small and builds, with the lyrics showing off the repetition that makes other tracks stand out. There's another explosion of noise at the mid point, another thunderous bass and drum line but it's Grohl's voice which is front and centre, the sarcasm on 'Did you ever think of me? You're so considerate?' snarling its way out of the microphone.

Erase/Replace

The first flat out rock track of the album, hitting hard and never letting up this is the first time we get a clear example of how versatile Grohl's voice is. His guttural growling snarl is a world away from the verses of the previous tracks and only adds to the track's muscle and energy.

Long Road to Ruin

The second single and actually rather marvellous. A slightly, and deliberately, old fashioned guitar line and driving drums power Grohl's voice along in the mid range, the lyrics echoing the call to arms of The Pretender but adding a clear romantic element.

Until, that is, the chorus hits with such incredible earnestness and honesty that it's actually, deliberately I suspect, very funny. There's something wilfully old fashioned and chest beatingly emotive about the track which the slightly 'doo wop' backing only accentuates. It's not quite emo, it's not quite metal and it's not quite parody. What it is, is charming in a way only the Foo Fighters could manage.

Again, by the way, the video is wonderful. Portraying the band as the cast of a particularly lousy 70s hospital soap with Grohl front and centre as the fallen from grace rock star lead, it's an explosion of dreadful hair, worse back projection and full on kitsch. Dave Grohl, doing what can only be described as frugging in a polyester leisure suit is not a sight that will soon leave you believe me.

Come Alive

And again the album shifts gear, an acoustic guitar backing Grohl's voice at its gentlest. Again there's a lot of lyrical repetition, the title phrase being used over and over again as the song builds through some surprisingly romantic moments to a thunderous wall of noise at the close.

Stranger Things Have Happened

The Foo Fighters have an immense emotional range, running the gamut from humour to romance to fury to oddly, restrained sinister and it's that last one which is in full effect here. Opening again with an acoustic guitar and an almost whispering Grohl building to something impassioned and again, laden with foreboding.

Cheer Up Boys (Your Make Up's Running)

Another driving, slightly old fashioned backing combined with Grohl's impassioned vocals makes this impressive but, somewhat inevitably, it suffers from coming after such a phenomenal six tracks. Again though the harmonies are amazing.

Summer's End

The most relaxed track on the album, this is a surprisingly middle of the road entry that puts Grohl's gentlest vocals out in front of a distinctly rural, and at times again, wilfully old fashioned guitar backing. It's a deliberately gentle, deliberately traditional track and it works extremely well, a welcome break from its predecessors.

The Ballad of the Beaconsfield

And out of nowhere this lands. It's nothing but two minutes thirty two seconds of acoustic guitar, of Grohl and his band doing nothing but having some fun. No lyrics, no complex orchestration just world class guitarists showing off.

Statues

Another wildly eccentric track, this has an almost Bond movie theme to it, Grohl's voice in soulful mode over a soaring guitar and gentle drums. It's a simple, open song which manages to nail the slightly crumpled romanticism that the Foo Fighters do so well and this, combined with the unique tone make it a real stand out.

But, Honestly,

As is this. With little but a guitar backing, Grohl's voice is restrained but impassioned and the overall effect is similar to 'Statues', a pragmatic but deeply romantic song with some wonderful lyrics ('And tonight I thank the stars, as I count my lucky scars' and 'give it back my precious time' being the stand outs) Again a smart, emotive without being over done and technically staggering piece of rock that, just for good measure, kicks into high gear in the closing bars.

Home

Simply put, the best song on the album. Nothing but a piano and Grohl's voice at its most delicate it's a beautiful, quiet little song that embodies the pragmatism, the compassion that the Foo Fighters work at its best is crammed with. Very few rock songs have ever succeeded in being moving without descending into opera. This is moving on a profound and deceptively simple level. Wonderful.

Once and For All

The final song is a return to the ground covered by The Pretender. A storming, anthemic piece of rock that's triumphant chorus ends the album on a high it’s listed as a demo but is a strong and definitive ending track.