Foo Fighters Return To Metro A Memorable One

By Michelle Meywes Kopeny in Arts & Entertainment on Aug 9, 2011 6:00PM

Foo Fighters at Metro

At sixty bucks a pop, you really had to be a fan to buy tickets, but at two and a half hours in a mid-size venue, this was a concert that was really worth it for a hardcore fan.

We're talking, of course, about the Foo Fighters Saturday night show at the Metro. The concert was a last minute addition on Thursday, with tickets going on sale just one hour after the announcement. The excitement and resulting traffic crashed Metro’s site, and Etix froze up for many once the sale started, but a happy few were lucky enough to score spots for themselves and a guest.

The group began the intimate evening with something they rarely do: playing their new album, Wasting Light, from start to finish. This was a treat for long-time fans since the album is being called a return to the garage rock roots of early albums (amplified even more by actually playing in the garages of contest winners across the country). Wasting Light is also special in marking the official return of one of the band’s original members, guitarist Pat Smear. After Dave Grohl and crew ran through the new album, they launched into a number of hits like “My Hero” and the first single (and as Grohl pointed out, the first Foo Fighters song most of us had ever heard), “This Is a Call.” Those with memories of screaming the break to “Monkey Wrench” in their cars on the way to school were thrilled at its inclusion in the three song The Colour and the Shape encore that ended with the ever popular “Everlong.” Needless to say, there was a lot of singing along throughout the whole show.

Grohl has a long and special relationship with the Metro--including a stop there on their first tour in '95--so it's not much of a surprise that he would want to return for a performance on a Foo-centric Chicago weekend culminating with headlining Lollapalooza. Throughout the night, Grohl shared memories like this one, and maybe the most important one of all, the one that introduced him to live music: his cousin Tracy taking him to see local punk band Naked Raygun down the street at The Cubby Bear when he was just thirteen.

It was memorable evening for all on many levels, especially with the complimentary, hand numbered posters passed out at the exit. But, those who bought t-shirts on their way out know just how unique the night was--not only does the design say “Chicago, Illinois” instead of the general tour tee's “Wasting Light,” but the show-specific commemorative tee has the venue and the date printed on the inside tag. It was just another example of the extremely personal touch in evidence throughout the entire Foo Fighters appearance at The Metro.