The Foos Play Two

Grohl and Co. recording double album

The Foo Fighters have begun pre-production on a fresh batch of songs frontman Dave Grohl envisions as a double album, with an acoustic and a rock disc.
"I'd love to have an album that requires us to stretch farther in both directions, eliminating any middle ground," posts Grohl on the band's Web site. "The idea also comes from the fact that we've always explored both dynamics, just not to their fullest potential. Why not get heavier? Or quieter? Why try and cram all of that onto one CD? Why not make two albums, and call it one? We've been a band for quite a while now, so it's time to start challenging ourselves, because I think we're capable of doing things beyond our immediate imagination."

After recording a pair of albums in Grohl's Virginia basement, the Foo Fighters are transferring operations to California, and recently purchased a warehouse to serve as a studio and storage for band gear.

"It all keeps with the tradition of doing things yourself, building from the ground up, staying self-sufficient," Grohl continues. "It's like building a wall around the band to keep it from being corrupted, or poisoned. It's a massive project, one that's on it's way to being finished, and the end result will be amazing. We're in real deep this time. I like that feeling."

Like many musicians this election year, Grohl has become more public with his political views, recently spending a week on the campaign trail with Senator John Kerry, in response to President Bush's usage of Foo Fighters music at his political rallies.

"I don't give a shit if President Bush likes my band," says Grohl. "I just don't want him using my music at his campaign rallies. So rather than sit back and watch, I took action . . . not as Mr. Foo Fighter, not as Mr. Nirvana, not as Mr. Rock Star . . . just an American citizen from Springfield, VA, who wrote those songs with an acoustic guitar and a notebook and a pen in his basement. Sing those songs, which are supposed to represent love, and hope, and compassion, and inspiration, and truth for a person that I 'personally' believe represents all of those things."

The Foo Fighters will play San Diego's Street Scene festival on August 28th, as part of a bill that includes Ludacris, Cypress Hill, Jimmy Eat World, A Tribe Called Quest, P.O.D. and Dilated Peoples.

COLIN DEVENISH
(Posted Aug 20, 2004)