Foo Fighters @ AAMI Stadium, Melbourne, Dec 2, 2011.
Review by Jordana Borensztajn.
“Make no mistake; this is a big f**king rock show,” Dave Grohl screamed at the sold-out crowd at AAMI Park last night.
And he wasn’t joking. For two and a half jam-packed hours, the Foo Fighters gave Melbourne fans exactly what they were pining for; high-energy, fast-paced, dirty, greasy, Foof rock.
“I hope you don't have to work tomorrow because the Foo Fighters don't d**k around. We've got a lot of f**cking songs we need to play tonight,” Grohl said.
“And we play till they tell us to stop. You cool with that?”
The group hit the stage at 8:20pm and wrapped up just before 11pm. The focus of the show was arguably on Grohl – who proved his ultimate ‘frontmanship’ every step of the way.
Often referred to as one of the greatest musicians of our generation, last night Grohl showed Melburnians why he’s so deserving of that prestigious title. Not only did he smash his vocals and master his guitar, but he effortlessly and organically engaged and geared up the crowd, guiding and baiting them through a carefully mapped-out musical journey that would ensure maximum rock returns on their Foo Fighters investments.
Surprisingly, Grohl and his crew seemed genuinely smitten to be performing in front of such a huge crowd. Several times throughout last night’s show, Grohl stopped, and stood totally still, desperately trying to absorb the scene in front of him; deafening chants and roars coming from a stadium full of fans, all waving their hands in the air.
“We've been out here many times but this is the biggest venue. For the Foo Fighters to play in front of this many people, is a f**king honour,” he told the crowd, smiling. “When we see this many f**king people we feel like the luckiest f**cking band in the world.”
The Foo Fighters have been making rock music together for 16 years. Grohl wants fans to realise that rock will never, ever die. “We don't need computers do to do what we f**king do,” he yelled at the crowd. “Kids, you can get a guitar and start a rock band. That’s all you f**king need.”
Some of the stand-out tracks from last night’s set were "All My Life", "Rope", "Walk", "Monkey Wrench", "Best Of You" and "Generator".
When the band left the stage, they revved up the crowd for an encore in an untraditional manner. Grohl and drummer Taylor Hawkins spent close to five minutes miming through a hilarious debate about how many tracks they’d perform when they re-appeared. The behind-the-scenes footage was displayed on the stadium’s massive LCD screens and Grohl and Hawkins kept boosting the number of songs every time they heard another huge wail from the crowd.
When Grohl finally re-emerged, he treated fans to a solo acoustic performance of “Wheels” before launching into a part-acoustic performance of “Times Like These.” They then wrapped up the show with memorable tracks like "Generator" and "Everlong".
If there's anyone out there that believes rock music is dying, get yourself to a Foo Fighters gig. Grohl and his mob will assault your senses in the best way possible.
Photo: Getty/ Getty Images Entertainment/ Kevin Winter
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