Rock and roll is alive and well thanks in big part to the Foo Fighters. Dave Grohl and company have once again brought fans of the band and alternative music alike to a fever pitch with the announcement of a new album. Concrete and Gold, the upcoming ninth album is set to be released on September 15th.
Thus far, the track “Run” has received a pretty positive response. No surprise. The Foo Fighters have consistently released strong material through their twenty-plus career. Not to mention, they have one of the biggest icons, if not the biggest icon in rock music leading the way. Dave Grohl is rock and roll royalty. He’s no stranger to it. His Nirvana front man, the late Kurt Cobain wrote that book in the early 90’s,
But here’s where this takes a turn. Dave Grohl is a bigger icon than Kurt Cobain. That’s right I said it. Here are the Top Ten Reasons why.
- Nirvana Still Reigns Supreme
This is a gimme. Dave Grohl could have called it a post-Nirvana world and we’d still be talking about him. Just think about Krist Novoselic. His musical output has been sparse at best in the years since the death of Kurt Cobain but he is still revered for his solid playing and contributions. By being part of Nirvana, Grohl carries that torch with him adding to the overall total package of Icon-status.
- Dave Grohl is Hilarious
Dave’s personality and his humor and its role in his music, specifically music videos is top notch. By being a goof and being funny, Grohl comes across as “the rocker next door.” An everyman’s everyman that anyone and everyone can find funny and personable yet extremely charming. For all of Kurt Cobain’s strength, and the man had a plethora of them, there was a persistent darkness and edge to him right up until his untimely death.
- Get This Man on Your Talk Show
In the late 90’s-early aughts, Grohl popped up on The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn. It was opportunities such as these appearences that allowed Grohl to spread his wings and let the world get to know the real Dave Grohl. And once everyone did, everyone became a fan.
- Dave Grohl The Innovator
Sonic Highways. Probot. Sound City. Three strikingly ambitious projects. Three fantastic results. The lone Probot album brought together a number of Grohl’s idols from punk, hardcore and heavy metal, including the almighty Lemmy to make one hell of a treasure of an album. Between the television show and the album, the Foo Fighters eighth, Sonic Highways, Grohl wasn’t content to sit in in his 606 Studio and basically just churn out another album. Traveling the country, finding inspiration and writing and recording songs in different cities; who else would attempt this?
- Dave Grohl- Drummer Extraordinaire
If you underestimate his ability on the drums, you are making a huge mistake. Lightning fast fills, multi-layered patterns and back beats and the ability to serve the song put him in a class all his own. He is widely considered one of the best drummers of not only his generation, but of rock music in general. And the man hasn’t drummed full-time since 1994!
- If You’re Looking For A Guest Musician….
You can make the argument that Dave Grohl is the world’s most famous studio musician. Think about some of these names in music: Tom Petty, Nine Inch Nails, Tenacious D, Tony Iommi and Slash. What does this diverse group of musicians have in common? You guessed it! Dave has either played live with or recorded with them. It seems like whenever there is a concern of, “Who is going to drum on this?’”, Grohl is instantly swung into action, a superhero drummer of sorts, here to save the tempo and song.
- The Drummer Wants To Sing
A quick shout out to Phil Collins and Don Henley. No disrespect intended. Nirvana was a juggernaut. Think about this. Ringo Starr went solo, like the other Beatles. But he had a history of jumping in front of a mic (pitch and key irregardless) throughout the Beatles history. And even on some hit songs. Grohl did not sing “Come As You Are” or “Rape Me”. Althogh we did have Marigold. No one saw this transformation coming. Oh yeah, the drummer wants to be the singer…I feel like that’s a recurring joke. But for Grohl, the joke was on everyone who doubted his ability as a singer, guitarist and above all else, an absolute masterful songwriter.
- QOTSA & TCV
Around 2002, Dave joined forces with Queens of the Stone Age. It was on that band’s masterpiece, Songs For the Deaf, that Dave really got back into the swing of drumming full time. Killer tracks “No One Knows” and “Song For The Dead” show that for Dave, he was only getting better. Fast forward to 2013, Dave once again joined QOTSA for their sixth album, the number one charted …Like Clockwork. In between stints with QOTSA, Grohl teamed once again with Josh Homme and Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones to create the wonderful Them Crooked Vultures. I feel they’re criminally underrated. Their 2009 eponymous debut (and only album to date) is a must own for any rock fan. Again here, Grohl goes back home, returning behind the drums, delivering song-for-song what might be his strongest album as a drummer.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pz8EjuOx1C0
2 Foo Fighters The Most Consistent Band in the Business
To date, Grohl and the boys have released eight albums. Five have gone platinum while a further two have been certified Gold. On top of that, on Billboard’s Mainstream chart, the band has an insane twenty songs that have landed in the Top Ten. Wait. Correction Twenty-one. The lead single, “Run” from their upcoming album currently sits at number four. And just to drive this point, of these twenty-one, a ridiculous six have landed at the number one spot. The band has survived past post-grunge, nu-metal, pop-punk, emo, screamo and a bunch of other hot trash to establish themselves as the reigning kings of alternative and rock music. Foo Fighters have released a greatest hits album back in 20009. By time their career is done, if CDs still exist, it’ll need to be a triple-album.
- It’s Been Almost Thirty Years
This goes hand and hand with everything else on this list but tops it off nicel. It’s longevity. Kurt Cobain influenced a generation. That is not for debate. But t was a short window. Time is not always kind. Think Poison and Ratt. They were huge! Huge in the 80’s but time has only diminished their contribution(?) to the world of music. I’m not saying Kurt Cobain is anything like those bands or musicians. He is not. But the point is, that Grohl proved he can hang for nearly thirty years. Fairly or not, Kurt Cobain was not afforded that opportunity. Grohl played in a throne with a broken leg just to keep the rain rolling. This man, for his sheer tenacity and unwavering need to produce and play beautifully rich and strong music for as long and as often as he can. And for his ability to do in longer and better than anyone else, he is the biggest icon in rock music; bar none.
