Given five months of recording in a garage, Dave Grohl called the Foo Fighters' newest creation Wasting Light the band's heaviest album to date, according to Spin. With the return of Pat Smear, former touring guitarist for Nirvana, sprinkled with a pinch of Krist Novoselic and Nevermind producer Butch Vig, it's also their gutsiest album to date.
Recreation of a Nirvana-like album is a futile task. But boldly choosing to return to his roots for inspiration to shift the dynamic of Foo Fighters ever so slightly, isn't a bad idea. And Grohl couldn't have picked a better time. It was 20 years ago that Nirvana reigned the music scene, giving pop a bad name with the spellbinding Nevermind, and Wasting Light could very well suffice for an ode to reviving and reliving that monumental epoch.
Wasting Light's Likeness to Nevermind
The 11-track album, released April 12 by RCA Records, begins with "Bridge Burning," a ubiquitous score of layered riffs backed by building electric guitars and bazooka-sounding drums reminiscent of "Breed." With blazing ferocity, it combines the Foos signature in-your-face motif with the ruthless integrity of Nirvana: "These are my famous last words/ My numbers of bridges burned." The hooks also bear semblance to The Colour and the Shape era fused with the band's new post grunge approach.
"Dear Rosemary" is another jam exhibiting an iota of Nirvana, as its harmony carries similarity to "Sappy," a song recorded in 1987 when Nirvana was first formed, and was released on the rarities box set With the Lights Out (2004).
The Foo Fighters Nail the Analogue Feel
Contrasting the band's newfound post grunge sound, are the heavier compositions signifying the band's new full-on hard rock dynamic. "White Limo" is the most defining song on the album, as it exudes the group's aggressive reinvention. The lyrics to "Miss the Misery" shed light on the album's title: "Need a reason for a change.../Don't change your mind / You're wasting light."
The band's first smash single off the album, "Rope," though too, says much about their re-embracement of grunge, is the most poppy song on the album. And with pop, comes the inevitable, universal vulnerability that we music lovers cherish so dearly. While their sound might be more macho, the Foo's introspective songwriting remains, at least on a portion of the tracks: "Give me some rope I'm coming loose... / I'm coming out of my head, into the clear with you." The joy of primal sincerity.
Lianna Albrizio - Lianna Albrizio is a journalist from Bergen County, New Jersey. She is published in various community newspapers including the Northern ...
