June '05
Older posts have been archived
Old Shit
6/23/05 11:00am
Three new posts in three days? Oh my god... is BB on crack? No... I've just got the time. I was sent a personal review of the Roswell show from #1 Foo fan that is very good. Written with structure and proper grammar and way better to read than my shitty fourth grade gibberish. So here you go... enjoy.
Close Encounters of the FOO Kind…
On June 18th, 2005, I had the HONOR of attending a very special Foo Fighters
show in Roswell, New Mexico. How my friend and I won is beyond me, and I think
(only slightly)
surprised the band as well. But I do know as soon as we heard about it, we were
determined to go. The band flew a “bunch of weirdos” a.k.a. contest winners on
private jets for
a barbecue and show with the band. I am very lucky to have been in attendance at
this small event with 500 other winners- I won’t call them all fans, as many did
not appear to
be. In any case, this event should go down in the record books for all time as a
moving, memorable date in Foo Fighters history.
It was quite an honor for the Foo Fighters to play in Roswell. The band’s name
itself was taken from a slang term for strange lights in the sky that pilots saw
during WWII in
Germany. In addition to naming their label ROSWELL Records, Foo Fighters have
also contributed tracks to X-files movie and tv soundtracks and Grohl even has
had a (very brief)
cameo in an X-Files episode-blink and you missed it. The list of connections
goes on, but clearly the Foos, lead singer Dave Grohl in particular, are
fascinated with the
paranormal and avid fans of UFOs. Having been a self proclaimed “UFO freak”
since he was a little kid, Grohl declared Roswell to be the “mecca” of all
locations for him--the
one place he’s always wanted to check out his whole life. Hence, there is no
more fitting location in the WORLD for them to celebrate ten years as a band
than Roswell, New
Mexico, the famous site of the alleged 1947 UFO crash. Grohl admitted, “it’s a
little weird isn’t it, in a beautiful way”. Even Grohl expressed his amazement
at “some ten years
after our first record... sitting in the same hangar where they put all the
crazy stuff... I’m into it!” Yea, I’m into it too, Dave. ! I got really into the
night and the alien
theme, wearing my glittery antenna balls and green glow necklace –Grohl said he
felt like we were at a rave cuz of all the glow sticks. I did have two redbulls
for some energy,
but I really don’t need that when I get such a natural adrenaline rush from Foos.
This whole trip was such a special treat for me. I was really impressed with how
well it was put together and organized. A heartfelt thanks goes out to the
beloved Foos and
co., Rhapsody, KROCK, RCA and all those that made this so special for us. I
can’t speak for all that went, because it seemed that many were not as enthused
as us, but for
myself and my compadre, this trip was amazing!! They kept us very well fed and
hydrated-huge feasts on the planes that were bigger than our tray tables and
also unlimited
amounts of water and red bull. Dave apologized to us for having no Alcohol
allowed and he promised to buy a round of shots the next time he sees any one of
us “cuz you know I
ain’t gonna see any of you motherfuckers ever again!” um, I beg to defer dave, I
think one day you’ll owe me a shot!
It was pretty neat how we had to find the dude with the alien mask at the
airport and then board the shuttle to get to the private jets. Once on the
plane, we found our seats
stocked with foo goodies-Roswell/FF booklets, magazines, candies, even FOO BINGO
cards lol! We played Foo Bingo on the plane. And it was ridiculous, they had to
announce whose
band member’ s name each face was from left to right so people would know for
the game- pfft- like they need to tell US. This was one of the things that
really ticked us
off-the fact that we knew there were other dedicated, hardcore fans that yearned
to win, and deserved to go but did not and yet there were people there who
barely knew who the
band was. No offense to those who got to go, it seemed that a lot of the people
we talked to seemed to “know someone” and not really know the band’s music or
anything. I just
don’t get how people go on trips like this without being familiar with the band
they are going to see! Many people did not even have the new album yet. For
instance, this girl
next to us said "so, it only came out last week" when we were shocked that she
hadn’t heard it. To me, any HUGE fan would be scrounging for the album the day
it came out, if
not, cough, before. Anyway...we would have liked to have seen more real fans
there. But enough about that, the good thing was, the crowd was tame and we had
no trouble getting
front row, which is my favorite place to be. And I hadn’t seen them from the
front row in a few years, let alone also the fact that I don’t think I’d seen
them play a full hour
and a half set in a long ass time. To be there in that moment, in that secluded
location, seeing my favorite band in the world, I was awestruck and psyched.
Peering outside the plane windows as we descended upon Roswell, I saw how barren
and sparsely populated the area appeared to be. We really were in a restricted
area. Stepping
off the plane a few yards from the hangar, I immediately felt the heat. Yet, as
Dave later pointed out, there was no humidity there, so it was rare for the band
to not get
sweaty when on stage. It was a hot one and even hotter inside the hangar.
Therefore, many opted to enjoy the barbecue outside, apparently Dave Grohl too,
but his dinner was
interrupted by tons of individuals seeking autographs and pictures. I’ve done
the picture thing with the guys before and I think I’ve had enough. But I really
don’t see the
point of autographs at all. However everyone, including the band, was pretty
laid back and lounging around enjoying the bbq and the guys signed autographs,
patiently posed for
pictures, and we even witnessed Shifty doing interviews.
The show was so amazing! The only thing is, and it might be because I have seen
them so many times, but it seems to me, and perhaps for the other hardcore fans,
I would have
liked to have seen them do less singles/hits and more rare songs, especially
given the nature of the location and show. Enough complaining from me though,
because of course,
seeing the band at all is something I always cherish. They do take old hits to
new levels. For instance, the live breakdowns at the end of My Hero and Monkey
Wrench are really
cool. Plus, the new songs sound so killer-This show kicked my ass! The new
double album, In Your Honor, is very emotional and moving with epic guitars,
rolling, heavy drums and
heartfelt lyrics. The Foos really know how to do it. Highlights for me of their
performance that night were hearing three new songs for the first time, In Your
Honor, Free Me,
and Miracle. The rock side of IYH is definitely meant to be played live. I was
so stoked to hear the opener In Your Honor, which is the opening track of the
new album. Nate
seems really into the new stuff, doing his “nate bop” and rocking out. They all
were really into it actually. Free Me is a real screamer and heavier track!!
Other new songs
included the single, Best of You, and The Last Song, which rocks so hard live,
it is definitely their older song Breakout taken to a new extreme. I absolutely
adore Taylor
doing backups now. Hearing him is so rad!
Times Like These was amusing as Dave, experiencing some guitar troubles,
improvised the lyrics, ad libbing lines such as “It’s times like these you break
a fucking string.” His
stage presence is very entertaining. “It happens, every once in a while I rock
on my shit so hard that it just fucking breaks, there’s nothing I can do, that
shit breaks!” He
explained. Such joking around is an example of what good spirits the guys seemed
to be in as I’m sure they were a bit more rested then in NY the week before. It
is fun watching
Taylor do little stunts such as tossing his drumstick high in the air and
catching it. LOVE it.
My friend and I were so busy being dorks and screaming for Aurora, that we plum
forgot about our favorite new track, so when they busted into End Over End, we
probably looked
like we were just about having passionate seizures as we spazzed out in the
front row. This was a big surprise and the best part of the night for me. I just
about lost my
antenna balls on my head as I rocked so hard for this song! The guitar harmonies
are so lovely and this entire song is BEAUTIFUL. I think the camera people
noticed our
energetic enthusiasm and were capturing us a lot on film.
Speaking of rocking out, Stacked Actors is sooo awesome to take in and is easily
one of my faves ever, live in particular. For this night, the crowd did not seem
to
stretch that far back, and Dave opted to do his staple move of running through
the crowd, as the band totally jammed this song the fuck out, with it extending
up to ten
minutes. I was FEELING IT!! oh yea! Dave was playing his guitar behind us and
laughing like a little kid. You could see the joyful glee in his eyes as he
battled it out in a
ripping guitar duel with Shiflett. I loved watching Chris on stage with his
ass-shredding guitar riffs as he dueled back and forth with a hyperactive Grohl.
Such ladies’ men, both Dave and Taylor are. They really know how to make women
melt and feel weak in the knees. Miracle off of the acoustic side is a mellow,
sweet tune that
they managed to pull off electric this night. I almost thought he said Marigold
when Dave said he was gonna play Miracle, “a mellow one for the ladies” as he
dedicated it to
the “poor sweetheart that had her trip spoiled by that nasty boyfriend.” Haha
At Dave’s cue, a fan named Rob proposed to his girlfriend at the end of the
night. That’s always touching when we see something like that. Dave even gushed,
“someones getting
marrieeed” as he wished them the best. Aww. Ten years of foo, ten years since
the couples first concert together? Sweeet The last time I saw a couple do this
at a Foo concert
was before Everlong at Hammerstein Ballroom in 2003. This stuff always kinda
makes me tear up its so touching and I’m a sap.
The acoustics in Hanger 85 weren’t the best, it being such a large open building
and them in the middle. But they weren’t bad, and the guys really sound amazing
these days, not
that they ever don’t! This band’s immense talent never ceases to amaze and
impress me. One night in Memphis a year ago stands out in particular, when I saw
these guys play what
seemed close to a still flawless set, despite being in the middle of a pouring
rainstorm. They were getting totally drenched, having to continually wipe water
off of the
instruments, and they still blew us away with their powerful stage presence and
articulate and dynamic performance. It was really impressive and quite an
indication of how
mind-blowing this band really is to see live. Dave has the most gnarly kick ass
scream and funny sense of humor. Plus, the onstage chemistry is breathtakingly
awesome.
After the show we were whisked back to our respective cities on the private
planes...my friend and I hardly able to fathom what just happened. I am forever
indebted to this
band for the experiences, memories and friendships created. This was the most
enjoyable trip I have had in a long time. I really appreciated everything. No
one gets why I love
going to see them so much. But this is evidence of how they truly are
appreciative and wonderful to their fans. I feel this was an awesome
well-deserved prize for me. I’ve seen
my share of Foo Fighters- more than my share actually- but this show really did
get the best of me. Happiest I’ve been in a few years at a FF show probably…
really hyped up.
REALLY into it...feeling aliiiive. The FF survival packs we were given after the
show got me even more hyped in addition to my foo high from the performance-if
that’s even
possible. I was bouncing off the walls and totally giddy as I flipped out at the
FF logo souvenirs we received such as FF peanuts and socks! socks!! I kept
raving and laughing
happily. Hyper and happy, I was psyched. My friend spoke with someone from RCA
as we reboarded the plane, thanking him for all the cool stuff, and he said that
the band wanted
it that way, to be special. Awwww I love these guys sooo much. How sweet of
them. Seriously a show to go down in my top five ever at least, sheerly because
of the location
alone and the seemingly deep thought, preparation, and care that was taken to
make it truly special for us.
In a country in which rock radio stations are being taken over by rap/hip hop or
Hispanic genres, The Foo Fighters are a fresh departure from the popular music
of today. There
seem to be few bands keeping rock and roll alive and well such as the Foos.
Especially for the big fans that were fortunate enough to attend, Roswell was a
brilliant concept
and quite a surreal experience. A Foo takeover... a close encounter of the FOO
kind!
Nice one eh?
I'm off to the studio.
6/22/05
So we finished loading out the Roswell show at about 1:30 am then we hopped on the bus and started driving back to Albuquerque to catch our 6 am flights. Now I love American tour busses I actually sleep better on them than I do at home... it's like going back to the womb. A small dark place gently rocking to and fro with the deep hum of the bus engine hypnotically lulling you to sleep. But this trip across New Mexico was only four hours and most of us can't just jump on the bus and sleep. After a long day, a guys gotta have some wind down time. Long story short... we all got an hour or two of sleep before we pulled into the airport to fly home or in my case fly back to LA. The biggest cock punch was that once again we were booked on Southwest Airlines... the worst ever.
Got back to my LA house at about 10am and slept till about 6pm... god it felt good.
Yesterday I ran around town with Wiley picking up some borrowed gear to set up a rehearsal with. All of our band gear is in Europe waiting for us to start our next tour. Picked up a couple of Mesa Road kings and an Ashdown bass rig... we've got piles of drums at the studio to piece together a kit. We also stopped by roadie headquarters, a place called tour supply. I needed some strings and straps and tuners and other miscellaneous crap. We then headed down to the studio to meet a monitor rig that was being delivered. While I was waiting up in the lounge for shit to show up I kept hearing this knocking sound. Assuming it was the sound company with my gear... I kept running downstairs to let them in the front door. It happened about 6 times. Walking up the stairs after the seventh I was dive bombed by a small sparrow that had somehow snuck in to our studio. The knocking I heard was him (or her) running into the skylight trying to get out. I tried to herd the bird back down the stairs towards the only way out... the front door. I then tried to throw a towel on it to catch it as gently as I could. Nope. I gave up after about twenty minutes feeling stupid. After setting up the monitors I locked up but I couldn't set the alarm when I left cuz the bird would've set the motion detectors off. I went home and got into some serious TV watching.
Today was a rehearsal day. When studio manager Scott showed up this morning there was bird poo all over everything... woops.
The Jamming was good today. The boys are trying to come up with a fresh new set to kick your ass with. So they rehearsed some deeper cuts that haven't seen the light of day for awhile. I heard some shit I've never heard them play before... it was great. I won't reveal the possible surprises so don't ask... but I will say that y'all will be stoked.
One more day of rehearsal tomorrow then it's off to Moscow. I think I'm gonna buy a bride.
Alot of you have written me and asked about gear and techy shit.... I'll write about it but I don't think most of you will like what I write. Touring gear vs. recording gear... some people think it's all the same... well it's not. Now I will admit that with say... a vintage 58 les paul, a hot rodded Marshall amp, a cabinet with some old greenbacks, an echoplex and maybe a bunch of other expensive boutique or hard to find vintage gear will get you a great and distinctive sound but I would say you are an idiot if you want to take this shit on tour. In a controlled studio environment... I say fiddle away with whatever you want, but carefully consider what you decide to take out to the front lines. In a washy club with bad power and a crappy PA system or an arena with more echoes than the Swiss Alps... that fragile vintage gear will be a liability. I would bet that I could get damn close to any boutique vintage sound with a crappy Peavey or even Crate amp and a thrift store Lyle guitar. Once everyone is in full rock at 130 DB, making ears bleed... none of that subtle tone, "it's my sound" bullshit matters. Unless someone can pass the blindfold test and take the Pepsi challenge in the middle of the show and tell me that the distortion pattern they're hearing just doesn't live up to the Vox distortion that they heard on Nothing left to Lose... my opinion will stand fast. 99.9% of all audiences will never know any difference. As a roadie the most important thing is that the artist is comfortable so having said that, if Grohl wanted to play a 14 string ukulele through a pignose then re-amped through a Fender Twin split into Budda combo.. I would do my best to make it happen. For my comfort as a roadie and a musician, I want durability, consistency, and reliability. You can have the sweetest sound in the world... but it wont matter if your shit is crapping out every three shows. I like Mesa Boogie shit. They make the best all around product on the market today. There are more durable products out there and there are better sounding products out there but not both together. We use Road King amps... it's a four channel amp that is so very diverse. I can get so many different sounds out of this thing. Once again when we are playing a show I would challenge anyone to tell the difference between my Mesa gear and other more vintage or boutiqish gear. The best thing about my mesa amps is that after they get dropped off of a loading dock... they actually sound better. I've never had a major problem with a mesa amp in 10 years of touring with major label bands. They sound fucking good... I'll put them up against anything.
Nate played through a peavey bass rig for many years... it sounded great. Now he's playing through a really nice Ashdown rig. It does sound quite a bit better, however, I doubt that 99.9% of the people that came to see a show lately were able to tell the difference. Although I'm sure, after writing this, I'll get a few jackasses emailing me saying "dude, my ears are golden, I totally noticed".
The subtle nuances of sound a valuable in a studio environment and getting picky about sound can really pay off there... but still... it's all subjective... and your sound is only as good as the weakest link in the signal chain. You can play the best guitar through the best amp and have amazing tone... but if you mic it wrong or send it through a crappy sound console or even a bad effect pedal it's all shot to hell. On the other side of the coin a bunch of crappy gear in the right combination can be magic. The scary thing is... "modeling" sounds are so good these days ... products like Line 6's pods are quickly replacing guitar amps, bass amps and real guitar sounds. Hell, I did a whole Weezer tour with nothing but pods and it sounded awesome. The fans never knew. Also, with the versatility and ease of use of "Pro Tools" recording, musicians don't even have to play very well to make spectacular records. But don't worry... the new Foo record is all real instruments and real performances.
So many musicians will blame "their sound" for shabby playing. Gear is a convenient scapegoat for poor musicianship. If you don't know your part... fiddle with some knobs and cuss at your amp... you might keep your job.
If a guitar or bass feels good in your hand and you can afford it... play it. If an amp goes loud enough for you, sounds O.K. and you can afford it... play through it. The most important part is the playing. My friend Paul can pick up my crappy, out of tune, nylon string, beater, thrift store guitar that I leave out on my back porch for BBQ's and he can make it sing... he makes it sound like a four thousand dollar Martin... Cuz he's a great player. Me... I make the same guitar sound like it's been at the bottom of a lake for a couple years.
You can buy ten grand worth of shit and still suck... or you can buy 500 bucks worth of shit then spend the other 9500 on guitar lessons and lots of practice and make that 500 bucks worth of shit sound like 100,000. Sorry for the math quiz... you get my drift... if a train left Chicago with a Les Paul going 50mph.....
One of my favorite things about the Foo's and particularly Dave is that when shit goes wrong... the show actually gets better. If his monitors blow up... he listens harder and sings better... If I fuck up his guitar... he puts it down and runs out in the crowd and sings the song in the pit... If someone gets onstage he makes them part of the show... If it's even as small as a broken string... he will not change out the guitar till after the song is over, he'll keep playing it all fucked up and out of tune and still rock harder that anyone one the planet. You gotta respect that.
For all you players out there... Keep it simple, don't hide your playing behind a bunch of gear... if you're the guy that has 30 pedals and only really uses a couple of 'em... pack 'em up. You'll get piles of tone through the signal that you'll get back and you'll lose a bunch of buzzes as well. Put the quadruple Marshall stack back in storage and take the combo amp to the club gig... it'll sound way better and you wont throw your back out stacking 'em up.
A long time ago I used to run this club in Portland called the Roseland and a tiny band at the time called Cake pulled up in a mini van. I thought "where's the truck full of backline gear?". Nope... out came the smallest, beat up drum kit on the planet... a fender twin combo amp, a teenie weenie GK bass amp about the size of my computer bag, and a couple of guitars. That's it.... Done. It was comical... seeing that pathetic amount of gear on the Roseland's big stage. Oh my god, it sounded so huge. The sold out show didn't know and didn't care that I could lift the bass amp up with a couple fingers. Cake killed it and sounded amazing doing it.
Forget about gear and just fucking rock. I dare you.
6/20/05
Toronto is always fun... I've never had a bad show there. As a matter of fact I don't think I've ever had a bad show in all of Canada. One of my favorite tours ever was across Canada. Somersault tour a few years ago. It's just a crappy festival tour... BUT... we took our pal Carlos along in a very special position... BBQ Tech. Basically Carlos would wake up every day and set up a couple of small tents and a couple of BBQ's then he would go with a runner to a local market wherever we were and buy whatever was the freshest... meats, seafood, produce... whatever. While all the rest of the bands and crews were eating the festival catering... Yuck... we were sitting outside in the sun eating some of the best BBQ on the planet. The smoke from the grills would drift across the festival sites torturing everyone. By the end of the tour... almost everyone was eating at Chez Foo. A couple of crappy tents set up outside our tour busses. Awesome.
Back to Toronto... So we arrived there on a day off. I had some friends in town and when going to a game was proposed I naturally thought Canada = Hockey. Not so... we ended up at the local enormadome for a baseball game. Bluejays vs. Cardinals. I haven't been to a ballgame in years... it was super fun. On the concourse there was a pitching net with a radar gun. for 2 bucks Canadian you got 5 pitches. I thought I had a pretty good arm but no... I suck shit through a straw. My best pitch was only 55 mph. Crap.
The three girls I was with pretty much ignored the game and talked to each other the whole time. I sat in the middle of them and they were talking across me Lisa said it would be just my luck to get hit with a foul ball... I swear... 5 or 6 pitches later one was coming right at us... and yes she had her head turned away talking across me to Libby. I yelled HEADS UP! The ball hit her in the stomach then landed in my lap.
After the game we were invited to some weird art party at bar. Burlesque show and topless patrons... we got free drinks (diet coke for me) and free horsedeuvres. Chocolate covered strawberries and other things that my creepy fasting ass didn't eat but the girls took advantage...
A good time was had by all.
The next day was a two show day. Acoustic performance for a few fans at a radio station and a rock show at a very small club. I loaded in at the club for an hour or so and then loaded a van with acoustic guitars and crap then went across town and loaded in and did sound check at the radio station. Jumped in the van again back across town to the club for sound check. After sound check at the club it was time for the radio station show so guess what? Back in the van, across town to the acoustic show. The first "official acoustic show" went great. The little room was packed and a couple hundred people stood on the sidewalks outside the storefront station. After the performance... you guessed it... I packed it back in the van and headed back across town to the club. As big of a pain in the ass as they are... the little small shows are always the best. For roadies it's trying to put ten pounds of shit in a five pound bag, for musicians it's loud and sweaty, for fans it's intimate and memorable. During the Stacked Actors jog... Dave jumped up on the main bar and drank a beer while he played.
DOA was sooooo fucking tight and powerful. The rest of the set was equally in your face as well. There wasn't really any space for us roadies to have "tech worlds" so I ended up on stage with the band right next to Taylor trying to hide behind a rack of guitars that I put on Chris's Mesa cabinet. I should probably wear earplugs. Every time Taylor hit his china... I thought my head was gonna explode. Here's some more shots.
This guy here is Ian Beveridge. He is our monitor engineer and one of my most favorite people on the planet. For those of you that don't know... there are two sound mixers. One for the audience and one for the sound on stage coming at the band. The audience sound is called FOH (front of house) and is arguably more important... you guys buy tickets and are paying for good sound but the onstage sound (monitors) is much harder and more complicated. It's a trade that should be held in the same respected ranks as craftsmen like masons, blacksmiths, jewelers and machinists. It is a skill that requires talent, creativity, and composure. Ian is legitimately the best in the business. We are all lucky to be working with someone of his caliber. If not for the outstanding job he does... all of our jobs would be much harder. If any of you Foo fans ever see this guy.... give him a hug, buy him a drink, and say thanks... (give him a few golf tips too... he needs it.).
After the show I hung out with my friends... at a couple of bars and watched them get drunk. We ended up at another bar called something like "the Bovine Sex Club", which is a crusty, loud, punk rock bar. After my day... I kinda wasn't into it. So I kindly said goodnight and went back to my hotel. Ya see... alot of people think that touring is endless streams of hot chicks and naked hot tub parties at every stop but it's just not the case. It's all quite tame. I suppose it would be different if I was out with Poison or Pantera or Limp Bizcut... but no... B-O-R-I-N-G.
Next on the Foo agenda was our Fancy Record Release Party in the UFO hangar in Roswell, New Mexico. The journey to and from Roswell was kind of a cock punch to the crew but... whatever. Flew from Toronto to Dallas where a 1 hour layover turned into a four hour layover due to our late arriving connection plane. Then Dallas to Albuquerque where we jumped on a bus a drove four hours to Roswell. The plane tickets came up on travel computers as one way travel, and whenever that happens, you get ssss on the boarding passes which means extra security screening. Which I really don't do well with. I hate the post 9/11 redundant, ineffective, inconsistent, and invasive security measures. Why didn't we fly into Roswell you ask? I dunno... I'm sure there was some perfectly good explanation but after a long dumb day of traveling I don't think any reason would have been good enough.
We arrived in at the best hotel in Roswell at the lovely Best Western Motor Lodge. A couple of drunk chicks asked if we were the Foo Fighters as we were trying to check in. I introduced Sean as Dave Grohl informing them that since Nirvana, he's really let himself go. My eyes Burned as I walked into my room. I don't know what it was... mold or mildew or maybe some kind of cleaning chemistry but the smell was soooooo strong.
Driving through Roswell the next day on the way to the gig I felt bad for the people of Roswell... it really had that vibe of a dying town... like Flint, Michigan and many other towns across the U.S. that were dependent on military bases or factories that have now closed or moved to cheaper labor countries thanks to NAFTA... and any of you fucks that voted for Bush. Sorry... it winds me up.
The Hangar Site was really amazing. Props to the organizers. With one criticism... Large soft goods should've been hung across the middle and ends of the hangar to control the sound a little better. But whatever... it was still amazing.
The band and families pulled up just in time for sound check in their private jet with the New FF logo on the door.... Bling Bling... hehe. Here's some shots of sound check.
A little while later the contest winner planes pulled up and the BBQ feast was served... I really wanted to partake but I'm sticking to my guns.
After the sun went down... our good friend C started spinning good tunes.
Once the show started... a seemed a feeling settled over everyone. I think everyone kind of realized how special this experience really was including myself.
I have to give props to who I think is the biggest Foo fan of all you psychos and Foo freaks. Lovely Emily. I have seen her at more shows than anyone. I've told her many times to please find a new obsession and get a life but after seeing how happy she was at this event... I take back everything I've ever said. Whatever makes you happy girl... if it's the Foo Fighters... then you go girl. Who the fuck am I to tell you what to do with your life. I am always amazed at the steps you take to see this band. It's fans like you that enable guys like us to have the great jobs that we do and to keep great bands like the Foo Fighters able to keep putting out great music. So thank you... you're the best. Oh yeah... Nice bug ears.
At the end of the show Dave helped a guy propose to his girlfriend. I guess they met at a Foo show so it was quite appropriate.
After the show, much fun was had with the huge weather balloons that were flying behind the stage. Taylor's fiancée Allison started the fun by jumping off some cases hoping to float gently down... hmmm... not so much. Dave's sister got in on the fun and Sean put 'em all to shame by floating up to the ceiling.... NOT.
Took some some mpegs of the tom foolery that I put together into a windows media file. It's about 12 megs worth of download... it's probably not worth the bandwidth but here you go... big lame balloon fun movie.
Look how good Geoff looks in the FOB shirt... I just got some more printed up... you guys know you want one. Write me and tell me what size you want and where to send 'em. 14 bucks plus shipping.
Until next post. See ya.
6/14/05
Sorry for the lack of posts folks but I've been pretty busy... sometimes after a string of long days, the last thing I want to do is recap them on this wacky internet thingy. But, I'm just sitting here looking at porn so I might as well do something a little constructive.
So the first thing I have to tell you about is the MTV movie awards. I didn't get any photos... sorry... I was dumbstruck cuz Katie Holmes stood next to me. Yes... I got star-struck.... well, star-struck isn't exactly the word... hmmm.... you can figure it out. Yes, I watch Dawson's Creek. It's embarrassing but true. That Joey is so fucking hot. All the celebs were sooooo insanely anorexic. I was shocked. I could write alot more about this show like about the Foo performance and some of the behind the scenes antics but who really cares... I stood next to Katie Holmes.
The award show finished at about 1am for us crew guys and I had to drive all the way out to the valley to the studio to sort and label some gear and cases cuz we were looking at a potential four days off and I was gonna drive my van and motorcycle back to Portland. I didn't want to waste any part of the next day working. I was at the studio till about 5 am. I slept for about 3 hours then hightailed it back down to the studio to help load a truck with gear and grab a few of my belongings to take back to P-town. Everything just fucking slowed down at that point. By the time I got my motorcycle on the trailer and packed my van it was about four in the afternoon. I drove north up the 5 till about 3 am. I made it to They were fucking raging... I wasn't mad though... hell, if I would have finished high school, I would have wanted to party down. I didn't get to sleep till about 7am. I was woken up by the motel manager beating on my door. I had slept right through checkout and knocked my phone off the hook during my sleep. It was 2 pm. Wooops. I gassed up and started driving again.
I've done this drive many times now and it's always kind of hard but this time it really kicked my ass. I made it to Eugene by 10pm and was nodding out so I had to pull off into a rest area and nap for a few hours. I finally made it home at about 4am and just sacked out.
Waking up in my own bed was nice but let me tell you... after not being home for about six months I was immediately anxiety ridden knowing I only had one day to be at home at this point. I spent my day unloading my van (thanks AJ for helping) and driving around visiting a few friends. I flew back to LA the next day for the Leno show.
As far as talk shows go... the Leno show is a good one to do because once you're set up, you don't have to strike your gear again. There is a little more space than the other talk shows. At Letterman, Conan, or most others... right after soundcheck and camera blocking cables get coiled and shit gets struck. Then during the commercial break before the performance you've got about three and a half to four minutes to reset the gear and get the band on stage. The other good thing about Leno in the commissary... pretty good food... not that I had any (I'm currently about a month into my juice fast). Heather Locklear was the guest... she looks so good for being 50 something.
After the show we hightailed it to Burbank airport to fly to Oakland for a radio festival the next day. Why anyone flies on southwest airlines I'll never know. If we ever fly that airlines again I swear I'll kill someone. The no seat assignment thing brings out the worst in people. You should be required to wear a helmet to board their planes.
I actually took some photos at this festival... Dave did the Stacked Actors crowd jog and FOH console dance again... Short poor quality movie #1... Short poor quality movie #2...
But the special thing about this show was that Stewart Copeland of The Police came out and played with the band. Taylor relinquished the kit and grabbed Dave's mic. It was pretty cool... Short poor quality movie #3...
The song they played was The Police's "Next to You". The Foo's use to play this cover occasionally back in the day. But seeing Mr. Copland play it was quite a treat.
The next morning we woke up at 4 am to catch an early flight to NY for MTV's 24 hours with the Foos. The band flew right after the show so that they could make it in time for their 24 hours to start at noon the next day. I'm actually kind of grateful that we didn't have to do that with them. One of the things they had planned for the 24 hours was "win a date with a roadie". It was to be "The dating game" with myself, Sean, and Nick Flynn. But since we didn't get to NY till about 5pm they just sent Nick Flynn who was already there on the date. I know it sounds like it would have been slightly humorous... but equally humiliating for Sean and I. Believe me... we humiliate ourselves enough every day... we don't need to broadcast it all over the world.
Anyway, we landed in NY and hauled ass to Times Square where MTV studios are. We walked in and immediately started soundchecking the acoustic set. We found out that the band didn't really sleep on they're flight out so at the time the 24 hours started... they'd already been awake for 24 hours.
Let me take this time to point out that during this "promo phase" of a record release... the band works harder than any road crew (not to say we're not busting our buts as well). Those fuckers are going non-stop all day doing interviews and performances. And if you think that doing interviews is not work... you're wrong. The crew gets a few hours here and there to take a breath, a nap, or just have a little private time. Band doesn't. Their meals are scheduled as interviews or meetings. Their only downtime is sleeping at the hotel... which isn't very much. Once we start touring properly that'll all change and they'll have more time but not right now.
O.K. back to MTV. The performances were great even though the sleep depravation daze they were all in was severe. Dave's eyes were amazing... glassed over and far away. When I spoke to him it was like he looked right through me. Hilarious.
Sleepy eyes.
The crew was a little loopy on there own accord.
Ok... look at these last two pictures... something that kinda bugged me about this show and the movie awards... the audience is "casted". These girls would probably never be seen at a real Foo show. You'd catch them at Clay Aiken, the Backstreet Boys or maybe Nelly. Our normal Foo crowd is not filled with hot cheerleaders. The movie awards were even more unrealistic. Our crowd is mostly 20 and 30 something nerdy dudes. Not that we don't get the occasional hotties in there but c'mon...
The crew finished up at about 4am and had the next day off. Nice.
We did Letterman yesterday.... Nicole Kidman.... MMMMMMMMMMM. No photos... suck it.
Today I got up early to go to Howard Stern with Dave and Taylor. I was hoping to see a bunch of dirty vixens that he always has on his show... to no avail. Not on this day. I just sat in the green room with our posse for about an hour.
Howard played on old recording of Dave singing that creed song "Arms Wide Open" that I'd never heard... hilarious.
Immediately after Stern was over I skedaddled across town to Fuse TV... I must be so out of touch... cuz I've never heard of this music channel. Whoever writes the dialogue for the VJ's should be shot. The tactless overuse of "hip" industry lingo like "drop" and "tracks" and "rockin' out" was sickening. At least the crowd was a little more realistic at this show. But it was much more canned than the others. But the band played well and that's all we have control over.
Today the record is released... you all better go buy one cuz it's really good... I'm not just saying that cuz I'm part of this family. This is a grumpy old roadie that hardly likes any music at all anymore telling you that these are some of the best songs to come out of this great band called the Foo Fighters. Oh yeah... you might notice a credit on the inner sleeve with my name on it. Dave let me play on "Virginia Moon"... the song Nora Jones sings on. The 20 second face melting guitar solo is me... take that bitches.
There was a private record release party at a bar in Manhattan tonight... I stopped by but I always feel uncomfortable at those things... it was loud and smoky and since I don't have booze to hide behind anymore I bailed after about half and hour. I hope no one is bummed at me.
Which brings me up to date. Tomorrow we fly to Toronto early.
6/3/05
Melbourne... I love that town... if I moved to Australia, that's where I'd live. The Rove went well... long day though. Lot's of hurry up and wait... and high strung TV producers telling roadies what to do... we HAVE done this a couple of times. They keep that studio so damn cold.
The Rove show finished pretty late, and we left early the next morning to fly back to Sydney for a "secret club show" at the Metro. Thankfully our flight was late and by the time we got to the venue our gear was already loaded in. this particular club is up a couple of flights of stair with no elevator so all the gear has to be humped up.
What an amazing rock show the band put on... fuckin incredible. I'm always worried every time I'm at this venue cuz the room sounds like shit. Washy and Muddy with lots of standing waves. But I was blown away at how good the boys played. Dave did a crowd run again during Stacked Actors and yes, he jumped up on OUR own FOH console and rocked...
I took a couple of mpegs as well of this... click here... movie #1, movie #2
During Monkey Wrench, Dave got some kid up on stage to sing the screamy part... it was great except when the kid was done he stage dove back into the crowd and threw Dave's microphone into the barricade pit and it was lost for a few minutes... whatever. I took an mpeg of the kid too... click this... movie #3.
With all the new material some of the old stuff has to get cut. I know I really miss songs like, Watershed, MIA, headwires, and February Stars. But sometimes the old stuff makes it's way back in the set. Tonight was the night for I'll Stick Around and also Breakout. Breakout is always great cuz it's such a good crowd sing along. We played Reading Festival in England a couple of years ago and had 70, 000 kids sing to us but on this night it was only a few hundred and it was just as awesome. Watch this.... movie #4.
Even though I wasn't the one playing music... it feels really satisfying after a show like that... like "fucking mission accomplished".
I'm looking forward to going back to OZ for a proper tour soon.
Right now I'm on the plane heading back to LA. 14 hours... YIKES! It's O.K. I guess... it gives me time to catch up on posting to my website and time to play all the kickass games I got for my PSP. God I love that thing. Such a well designed gadget. And lord knows, I love my gadgets.
We've got the MTV movie awards coming up in a couple of days. Awards shows are always a nightmare but out of all of them at least the MTV movie awards shows are actually entertaining. The bastardized versions of hit movies they make are always great.
Thanks to all the folks that bought BB shirts from me. If anyone still wants one... you know where to find me...bbandhisfob@yahoo.com.