 Fans come first at 'Foozer' two-fer
Grade: B+
On most rock tours, there's a very strict division. One band is the headliner, one is the opening act, and never the two shall meet unless there's a mix-up backstage in catering.
Not this time. Even the backstage passes for the Foo Fighters/Weezer tour showed that this was different, calling the tour either "Foozer" or "Wee Fighters."
Gee, what a concept. Take two bands who could headline large venues in their own right (and toss in hot up-and-comers the Kaiser Chiefs), let them each have full sets of their biggest and best songs, and charge a decent price for fans to come and see it.
How very 1974, right down to the guitar solos and wah-wah pedals.
Foo frontman Dave Grohl has made no secret of his love of '70s music, both rock and punk, so such a tour very much fits within his musical sensibilities (including the Who-like green lasers that accented the Foo Fighters' savage, rocking set).
Foo Fighters closed the show, which technically makes Weezer an opening act, but only technically.
In some previous shows, Weezer fans stayed just for the band's set and left. That didn't seem to be the case Friday night, as the packed house stayed packed.
You forget how many hits Weezer has till they rip through everything from Buddy Holly to Islands in the Sun .
For all of Weezer leader River Cuomo's real or manufactured quirkiness, the guy still puts on an intense and focused show, working through a range of styles and at one point ( Islands in the Sun ) mesmerizing an entire arena with just an acoustic guitar.
The camaraderie between the two bands was apparent with Weezer covering the Foo Fighters' Big Me in their set.
The Foo Fighters could afford to let that one go. That whole "forgot how many hits they had" thing applies to their set as well, as they were able to come out and start tearing into radio song after radio song, especially the double-blast of the new Best Of You roaring into Learn To Fly , cranking up the intensity even more a couple of songs later with Times Like These.
At press time the Foo Fighters were still onstage with plenty of energy to go. If they've inherited any of the bad excesses of '70s rock, it's that volume equals power; the Foo Fighters' set was so loud and distorted it seriously detracted from the quality of the music.
Next time spend a little less on the light show and video screens, spectacular as they were, and put a bit more into the sound. |
