I Pity the Foo'...

Originally posted July 17, 2006

...who didn't see Foo Fighters play their acoustic concert Friday night in Berzerkley!

Ryan and I saw Foo Fighters and Weezer play Oakland Arena last year. I have to admit, we went mostly because Ryan had never seen Weezer play live before and they're one of his favorite bands, although I was excited to see Foo Fighters too. It ended up being probably the best concert we've ever gone to. It was the last night of their tour, things were crazy, and Foo Fighters (OK, pretty much Dave Grohl) stole the show.

So when we heard FF was coming to town to play an acoustic set (which I believe they're calling "Afoostic"), we jumped to get tickets. I used my LIVE 105 pre-sale password to get us early Orchestra AA seats, worth every penny we paid for the crappy "convenience fee" thing they charge you per ticket.

The venue was awesome...the very art-deco, 3,500-seat theater at Berkeley High School. Orchestra AA was on the floor level, about halfway back from the stage. We had an awesome view.

Ignoring the fact that a really drunk and talkative (but funny) guy was sitting next to us and a large Samoan (?) couple was in front, continually snapping photos and video, the concert was a blast. I told Ryan I thought it might have been even better than the FF/Weezer concert, but regardless, definitely among the best shows we've attended. Dave Grohl is not only a talented singer and songwriter, but really, really good at picking the guitar and just chatting with the crowd.

At one point he apologized for talking so much, but I had to admit that I liked it when he talked. He's hilarious, and we ate up the stories behind some of the songs, such as hanging out in a depressing Seattle apartment with his then-new roommate and bandmate, Kurt Cobain, eating Hungry Man dinners and staring at cigarette butts on the floor while it constantly rained outside, the basis for "Friend of a Friend."

This time around, Dave, Nate, Chris and Taylor were joined by Petra Haden on violin and some vocals, Rami Jaffee on keys and accordion (he kinda looked like Boy George, but damn could he play!), Drew Hester on percussion and Pat Smear on guitar. This eight-piece veritable orchestra fleshed out a lot of the songs on the Foos' new double-album, "In Your Honor" (mostly the acoustic disc).

Aside from the really great music, I don't think I've ever laughed that much at a concert. It was like the ultimate entertainment experience. I walked out remembering why Foo Fighters are one of my favorite bands...they put on a damn good live show, and still manage to sound even better in person than they do on the radio. That's hard for some bands to do. Dave Grohl deserves every penny he earns. Some people might be bitter about always being remembered as "the drummer from Nirvana," but he embraces it. Hearing him do "Everlong" by himself during the encore gave us chills.

If you haven't had the chance to catch the Foos in concert yet, you're missing out. Next time they come around, get out there! You won't regret it.