Foo Fighters

Brittany Cicchese, Cassie Carlson, George Rodriguez, Jacob Hayes, Vitor Milagres

History• The Founder of the Foo Fighters, Dave Grohl, was previously the drummer for the

band Nirvana. He would write his own songs but was intimidated by Kurt Cobain, so he did not show the band.

• After Cobain’s death, Nirvana disbanded and Grohl found an opportunity to spread all the songs he had written.

“One man band”• He went to a studio to record all the

songs he had written

• He sang and played every instrumenton the recordings

• He recorded the songs under the nameof Foo Fighters

Formation• Nate Mendel (bassist) and William

Goldsmith (drummer) were disbanded from the group Sunny Day Real Estate and decided to join Grohl

• Pat Smear had been a touring guitarist for Nirvana and also decided to join him

• However, the major influences of the band came from Grohl

Debut Album

• Live debut on 02/23/1995• First album, Foo Fighters, in July

Second Album• In 1966, they recorded their second album, The Colour and the Shape,

• Grohl wrote all the songs, however, the band played the instruments this time

Replacement (drums)• Grohl did not like the sound of the drums and decided to re-record the

drums himself.

• Goldsmith felt hurt and decided to leave the band

• Taylor Hawkins, a drummer for Alanis Morissette, took his place.

Replacement (guitar)

• Pat Smear decided to leave the band and a childhood friend of Grohl’s, Franz Stahl, decided to replacehim

Trio

• However, Stahl and Grohl’s ideas in songwriting did not match and Grohl fired him

• The trio was Grohl, Hawkins and Mendel

Third Album

• The album There Is Nothing Left to Lose, gave them their first single on the Billboard Hot 100

Chris Shiflett

• Chris Shiflett, guitarist, joined the band

Fourth Album

• When recording their fourth album, disagreements and debates about it made them decide to take a short break from the band.

• However, after reuniting to play at the Coachella festival, they got back togetherand recorded their fourth album, One by One

Fifth album

• They built a recording studio, Studio 606 West, and recorded their fifth album, In Your Honor

Sixth album• In 2007, they recorded their sixth album, Echoes, Silence, Patience and

Grace

• The album was nominated for five Grammy and won two of themo Best Rock Albumo Best Hard Rock Performance

for the single, “The Pretender”

• Pat Smear rejoined them

Seventh Album• In 2011, they released Wasting Light, which was recorded in Grohl’s garage,

using only analog equipment

• This album won five out of six Grammy nominations:o Best Hard Rock/metal performanceo Best Long Form Music Videoo Best Rock Albumo Best Rock Performanceo Best Rock Song

• Number one album on the Billboard 200

Current Members

• Dave Grohl – Lead Vocals, rhythm and lead guitar

• Nate Mendel – Bass guitar• Taylor Hawkins – Drums and background

vocals• Chris Shiflett – Lead guitar and background

vocals• Pat Smear – Rhythm guitar and background

vocals

Contemporary Bands (Nirvana)• Nirvana is the band that is the most similar to Foo Fighters

• They were the epitome of angst-ridden lyrics and grunge bands

• In the beginning of Grohl’s success, Cobain overheard him working on a song and joined him. The band released this song, titled “Marigold”, the only Nirvana song which feats Grohl on lead vocals.

• When Grohl went to Foo Fighters, he covered the song

• Many of their songs focus on social issueso “Smells Like Teen Spirit”: general apathy of the generationo “Breed”: being trapped in middle class America

Contemporary Bands (Korn)

• Alternative metal sound• They became known after the grunge era• Their songs also focus on society

o “Falling Away from Meaning”: violence and abuse and how this is a big issue on their time.

• It is believed that many of their songs drove the students to shoot up their schools. However, they were in fact promoting the prevention of abuse and violence

Influences (John Bonham)

• Grohl drew a lot of inspiration and influence from the drummer John Bonham, from Led Zeppelin

• This was proved after Grohl got a tattoo of John’s three circle ring

Influences (9:30 Club)• The 9:30 Club in DC has also influenced Grohl’s career

• He once said: “"I went to the 9:30 club hundreds of times. I was always so excited to get there, and I was always bummed when it closed. I spent my teenage years at the club and saw some shows that changed my life.” – Dave Grohl

Other influences• These quotes show other bands that have influenced:

o “I always felt fortunate to have been in that band (Nirvana). I've always felt it was incredibly unfortunate how it ended. But I know that if it weren't for that band, I wouldn't be here right now” – Dave Grohl

o “It wasn't until I got the Beatles albums that I really fell in love with rock 'n' roll. I learned how to play drums from listening to Led Zeppelin” – Dave Grohl

Influences on other people• After Foo Fighters received the Grammy for their song “Walk”,

Grohl’s speech struck a chord with a lot of musicians and listeners:

• “Rather than go to the best studio in the world. Rather than use all the fanciest computers, we made this one in my garage, with some microphones and a tape machine”.

• He goes on to say that “the human element of making music is the most important. It’s not about what goes on in a computer. It’s about what goes on in here” (Grohl finishes his speech pointing at his heart and at his brain).

• His words about “being a human being” has amazed other bands and, no doubt, some of them are now more likely to drift in that direction.

Music Analysis (“Best of You”)

• “Best of You” (2005) - Highest charting single in the US Hot 100 (#18), the UK (#4), and Australia (#5). Nominated for the Grammy for Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance by a Group or Duo Vocals in 2006

• Song link: o http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h_L4Rixya64

Music Analysis (“Best of You”)

• Texture:o Song starts off monophonic for a few secondso Instrumental kicks in and it becomes homophony

melody-and-accompaniment o Vocal Dynamics get louder after the first verse and

chorus

• Meter:o Duple meter

Music Analysis (“Best of You”)

• Beat Subdivision:o Quadruple subdivisiono Emphasis on back beat (2 and 4)

• Form:o AAAA in the verseso AABCDA in the chorus

Music Analysis (“Best of You”)

• Instrumentationo Song starts off with one guitar playingo Drums and second guitar come in after the first two

stanzaso Instrumental break after the chorus (fourth stanza in

lyrics) with emphasis on the rhythm guitaro After second chorus (fifth stanza), it goes back into

just a guitar playing a melodyo Ends with a drum breakdown

Other Notable Songs• These two songs are their other two best selling ones, from

different periods of their career.

• “Learn to Fly” (1999) - Second highest charting single on the Billboard 100 (#19), nominated for the Grammy for Best Rock Performance by a Group or Duo Vocals in 2001.

• “Walk” (2011) - The third song of three consecutive #1s in Billboard’s Rock charts. Also reached number one in the Mainstream Rock and Alternative charts. Won two Grammys for Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance by a Group or Duo.

Conclusion

• In a society where rock music is losing out to pop and rap music in popularity, the Foo Fighters are a band that has managed to keep rock music relevant and popular. They are an influential group in rock music and will continue to help define the shape that modern rock music will take in the future.

References• Keyes, J. D. (2001). Foo fighters. Rolling Stone, Retrieved from

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/artists/foo-fighters/biography

• Erlewine, S. (n.d.). Foo fighters: biography. Retrieved from http://www.allmusic.com/artist/foo-fighters-mn0000184043

• Roberts, M. (1998, December 3). Bring back that sunny day. New Times Miami. Retrieved from http://www.miaminewtimes.com/1998-12-03/music/bring-back-that-sunny-day

• X-clusive: foo fighters vs president george w bush. (2005, May 11). Retrieved from http://www.xfm.co.uk/news/2005/x-clusive-foo-fighters-vs-president-george-w-bush

• DiPerna, A. (1997). Absolutely foobulous. Guitar World. Retrieved from http://www.fooarchive.com/features/guitarworld.htm

• The immortals – the greatest artists of all time: 14) led zeppelin. (n.d.) Rolling Stone. Retrieved from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wpdyn/content/article/2010/04/16/AR2010041602110.html

• Dave grohl biography. (2009). Drummerworld. Retreived fromhttp://www.drummerworld.com/drummers/Dave_Grohl.html

References• Welcome to the club: an oral history of d.c’s 9:30 club on its 30 thanniversary. (2010, April

18). The Washington Post. Retrieved fromhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/wpdyn/content/article/2010/04/16/AR2010041602110.html

• Marigold by Nirvana. (n.d.). Retrieved fromhttp://www.songfactss.com/detail.php?id4157

• Azzerrad, M. (1993). Come as you are: the story of nirvana. (p. 148). New York: Doubleday. 

• 10 questions for dave grohl. (2009, December 14). Time Magazine.Retrieved from http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1945348,00.html#ixzz1wfRyAiZG

• Foo Fighters. In Your Honor. [S.I.]: Sony Music, 2005. Print.

• Foo Fighters. Greatest Hits. Hal Leonard Corporation, 2010. Print.

• Foo Fighters. Wasting Light. Hal Leonard Corporation, 2010. Print.

• Apter, J. (2008). The Dave Grohl story: Nirvana – Foo Fighters. London: Music Group Sales

• McKinley, J. (2012, February 13). A prayer, a celebration, and a coronation. New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/13/arts/music/grammys-are-handed-out-in-los-angeles.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all