Foo Fighters - Concrete and Gold

I'm not sure that the Foo Fighters know how to make bad music. It just isn't in their bones. I mean sure, there are songs in their back catalogue that stand out more than others, but nothing springs to mind that's a bad track or an experiment gone wrong. They just continuously write hit after hit. It's actually kind of annoying, from a musicians point of view, that they're able to be so consistent. I love them, but also at the same time hold a burning rage and hatred towards their talent and ability. From what I heard running up to the albums release, Concrete and Gold appears to be following their well established formula. The two singles "Run" and "The Sky Is A Neighbourhood" clearly showcase that they haven't lost their edge, both boasting soaring choruses and catchy hooks. "Run" is a pure rock anthem, bound to get a crowd sweaty and running in circles. "The Sky Is A Neighbourhood" boasts a more relaxed bluesy feel, yet still explodes into rock tinged tones throughout, Dave Grohl smothering his trademark gravelly vocals all over the tasteful chords and licks. Both songs are very different, but showcase that the Foo's still have a lot of tricks up their sleeve. And boy, are there some nice tricks on this album.

They haven't done anything particularly revolutionary with this album. But be honest, do they need to? They're known for writing consistent bangers, album after album. You know the saying. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. And it's evident on Concrete and Gold that everything is very much intact. "La Dee Da" is a rock rollercoaster, speeding through a variety of different paces, melodies and overall feels. It reminded me of a Songs Of The Deaf era Queens Of The Stone Age, the overall tone and production of the track sounding very similar. "Arrows" is an anthem, the chords in the chorus providing a sonic wall of sound behind Grohl's unmistakable pipes. Dynamically it's very well executed, the pre-chorus expertly building suspense for the eruption of power that follows it. "Sunday Rain" has a very Beatles like feel to it, probably aided by the fact that it features the legendary Sir Paul McCartney on drums. Almost acting like a bluesy lullaby, it gently sways along, massaging your ear drums and providing a nice change of gear from the rest of the album. "Make It Right" is classic Foo Fighters with a twist. Big bluesy licks, all weaved together into a hard hitting wrecking ball. Taylor Hawkins drum playing is a highlight of this track, littering ghost notes all over the shop and really flaunting his prowess behind the kit. The album truly contains a little bit of everything that we know and love about the Foo Fighters, all rolled into noticeably individual packages. A musical multipack of Walkers, with every packet boasting a different flavour. I didn't mean to write a crisp metaphor, I'm just very hungry whilst writing this. I digress. This album packs punch, it packs variety, and it translates into a very good album. A very good album indeed.

If you've been missing your Foo Fighters fix, nothing being able to quench your thirst since 2014's Sonic Highways, this album will completely feed your addiction. Everything we've come to know and love about them is present on this album. If you listen to this album and can't picture the songs sounding absolutely enormous when performed live, you're either listening to the wrong album or you're deaf. I imagine if you're deaf you wouldn't even buy the album at all, so you must be listening to something else. Make sure you're listening to this album. And then you'll realise that yes, songs off this album are without doubt going to become arena anthems. Another corker of an album in the bag for the modern day rock legends.

D.S

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