Few bands can split opinions as much as Foo Fighters do (rock music often derided by the more popular indie and electro heads alike) but nobody can deny their ever-impressive progression, notching up over 12 years of making music and still pushing their own barriers.
‘Echoes, Silence, Patience And Grace’ is no exception to this; its dual appeal shining from the bombastic moments as well as the intricate acoustic and more tender moments the result of previous album ‘In Your Honour’s acoustic forays. Starting off angrily, ‘The Pretender’ fires off Grohl’s question “What if I say I’m not like the others?” like a machine gun, instantly setting the Foos apart from the dull clod of rock bands around who follow in their wake. Similarly taut moments come in the melodic ‘Long Road To Ruin’ (with its religious undertones), ‘Cheer Up Boys’ and the driving 70’s vibe of ‘Summer’s End’. But it’s in the stirring serenity here that the Foos really endeavour to inspire. ‘Ballad Of The Beaconsfield Miners’ is a fleeting rush of acoustic riffs, very Led Zep, while ‘Statues’ is undeniably seeped in Wings, Grohl’s piano debut finds him open, personable and meditative: “We’re just ordinary people, you and me”. Obviously affected by his recent domesticity, the Foos as a result display a touching side of affection rarely seen before, and it’s wholly welcomed but Grohl’s heart is elsewhere; “All I want is to be home”, he laments in ‘Home’. Love may have mellowed the ‘Nicest Man in Rock’, but it’s only to the benefit of this instantly classic model of modern rock and, of course, us. It is, as they say, all you need.
