There are some bands whose impact goes well beyond their music, and for me, Foo Fighters are one of them. Tonight, Dave Grohl and company take over Sydney’s Accor Arena, supported by The Belair Lip Bombs and TEENS, and the sense of history is impossible to ignore.
I’ve never seen Foo Fighters live before, but I remember exactly what happened when Grohl’s former band, Nirvana, turned the music world upside down. In 1992, Nirvana arrived in Australia for the inaugural Big Day Out just as Nevermind was becoming a global phenomenon. Alternative rock was suddenly everywhere, and the music industry would never quite be the same. For those of us who lived through it, that moment remains unforgettable.
More than three decades later, Grohl is still at the centre of rock music, this time fronting one of the biggest bands on the planet. What began as a solo project following Kurt Cobain’s death in 1994 has grown into a stadium-filling institution, with songs such as ‘Everlong’, ‘My Hero’, ‘The Pretender’ and ‘Best of You’ becoming part of rock’s modern vocabulary.
Foo Fighters have also developed a particularly strong relationship with Australia, returning regularly and taking their shows well beyond the usual capital-city circuit. Their recent sold-out performance at Launceston’s UTAS Stadium made history as Tasmania’s biggest concert, and this latest tour includes regional stops in Townsville and Newcastle alongside the major cities.
But tonight carries an unexpectedly poignant connection to the band’s Australian history.
News of the death of Todd Russell, one of the two miners who survived the 2006 Beaconsfield mine collapse in Tasmania, adds a sombre note to the occasion. Russell and fellow survivor Brant Webb spent 14 days trapped underground in an ordeal that gripped the country. During their rescue, Webb requested Foo Fighters music on an iPod, a detail that eventually reached Grohl. Moved by their story, Grohl later composed ‘Ballad of the Beaconsfield Miners’, an instrumental tribute that appeared on Foo Fighters’ 2007 album Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace.
Tonight’s Sydney show also offers a platform for two Australian bands handpicked by Foo Fighters themselves.
Frankston’s The Belair Lip Bombs have been steadily building a reputation for their sharp, guitar-driven indie rock, while Hobart’s TEENS represent another exciting corner of Australia’s independent music scene. It’s a strong local pairing for a band that has consistently championed Australian talent on its visits.
As thousands of fans make their way into Accor Arena, I’m struck by the sheer span of Grohl’s career. From the drummer behind one of the most disruptive albums in rock history to the frontman of a band that has filled stadiums for decades, his place in music history is secure.
For me, tonight is about finally seeing Foo Fighters live, but it’s also about remembering where this remarkable story began. Nirvana changed the landscape of rock music, and Grohl went on to build something entirely his own.
And on a day when Australia remembers Todd Russell, there’s another chapter of that long connection between Foo Fighters and this country worth reflecting on.
Some concerts carry more history into the room than others. Tonight feels like one of them.
The tour continues to Newcastle, Melbourne, Adelaide and New Zealand, tickets HERE.
Images Deb Pelser
