The Foo Fighters rocked the Verizon center in Washington D.C on Friday as they played for a sold out stadium of screaming fans.
Sixteen years have passed since Dave Grohl, former member of Nirvana, started recording homemade cassette tapes in his Alexandria, Va. basement and it is clear by the way he carries himself on stage that he has not lost his love of the music he plays or the respect of fans who have consistently supported the Foo Fighters over the years.
This Friday was the first time that the Foo Fighters had ever completely sold out an arena show. This is a great accomplishment for the band as the Verizon Center, Washington, D.C., is set up to hold 20 thousand fans. In response and gratitude to the fans Grohl made a promised, “It’s gonna be a long a** f*ckin’ night… we’re gonna have to play extra f*ckin’ hard tonight!”
This was by no means an idle promise, they promised to play hard and they gave this performance everything they had and so much more.
During the nearly three-hour long concert, Grohl and his band mates completed an astonishing 23 song set list with seven of those songs coming from their 2011 cd release titled Wasting Light.
Although there was a mixture of newer songs and fan favorites being played the sound remained consistent throughout the entire performance. Some of the newer songs included: Walk, Arlandria, Rope, Bridges burning, and a somber song called These days, which was dedicated to audience members serving in the armed forces.
Although I have grown up with the music of the Foo Fighters I went into the night thinking that I would not know to many of their songs. It shocked me to find out that there were songs that I love and often sing along to in my car that I never realized were Foo Fighters songs, it was small surprises like this that made my night.
Another surprise was the energy and stamina of the band, which was greatly enhanced by the magic of the videographers and stage crew. It was through the incredible video effects that were shown up on the screen and the light up photographic stage floor that helped to add emphasis and drama to the performance. While in comparison to the talent of the band, these small effects may seem trivial but they definitely took the performance to another level.
The Foo Fighters have a unique fast, slow and fast again way of playing their music that leaves the untrained ear wondering whether the song is beginning or ending and the confusion continued as they gave little to no transition between songs.
As the concert began to come to a close, Grohl took a few opportunities to thank the fans, tell Foo Fighter history and to thank The Joy Formidable and Social Distortion, who opened up the show for them. It was also here that Grohl was able to instigate a stadium wide crowd wave. This was a truly incredible sight to see 20 thousand fans moved up and down in nearly perfect progression circling the Verizon Center.
It was these moments of spontaneity and fun that made it clear that the band did not want to end the show anymore than the fans wished to leave the arena.
“Ladies and gentlemen that was f*cking fun!” Grohl exclaimed during the concert.
Even with the six-song encore the show must end sometime and it did so with the news that the Foo Fighters will be returning home to play the 9:30 Club, Grohl’s adolescent hangout and Washington DC’s Premiere live music venue. News that sent the crowd wild and left them planning ahead to their next Foo Fighters experience at the famed 9:30 Club.
Leslie Arakelian 