The Foo Figthers brought their talents to "Spaceland" in Silver Lake on Tuesday night. This was the fourth stop in a string of club dates that the band's using to promote their new Butch Vig-produced album (due in April). At 4:30 fans were instructed, via the band's website, to head to the Echoplex to pick up tickets for the evening's show. Once there, fans found out the show was actually happening at Spaceland (now known as the Satellite) which was the site of the band's first show ever.
Opening the show, was Dave Grohl's pre-Nirvana band, Scream. They were tight, hardcore (with a little bit of reggae thrown in) and seemed to be having a great time. They repeatedly said they preferred the vibe at Spaceland to the Roxy (where they played the night before). "The Roxy was cool, but more like playing the Staples Center with a bunch of celebrities there. This is more like playing the old Forum or something."
The Foo Fighters took the stage and immediately started playing. They didn't stop until they'd finished their new album in its entirety. Some of the songs rocked very hard and hinted at Grohl's hardcore past while others were the more commercial, melodic type of songs that have made Grohl a very rich dude. They were extremely tight for a band that just got out of the studio and hasn't been touring. The crowd had to be hearing the songs for the first time and was still very responsive.
Grohl saved any verbal interaction with the crowd until after they'd finished the new record. He mentioned that the venue was the site of the Foo Fighters first show ever and said something like: "We played our first show ever here, so this place has a lot of meaning to us. I mean, I think I've been here once since that show." Then he commented how fans had to go to pick up their tickets at the Echoplex and how they hadn't played there "yet" [what's the over/under on that being the site of the next secret show?]. Then came the hits. You forget how many there are. There was even some crowd surfing. It's great to see fans so excited to be at a show - smiles all around.
On a side note, remember when Foo Fighters campaigned for Alive & Well? Weird. I'm sure glad those days are over...
All photos by: Steven Cervenka
