Sonic Highways | ||||
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Released | November 10, 2014 | |||
Recorded | September 2013 – July 2014 | |||
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Length | 42:08 | |||
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Foo Fighters chronology | ||||
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Singles from Sonic Highways | ||||
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Sonic Highways is the eighth studio album by American rock band Foo Fighters, released on November 10, 2014, through Roswell and RCA Records. [3] Similar to their previous album, Wasting Light (2011), it was produced by the band with Butch Vig. In writing the album's eight songs, singer and guitarist Dave Grohl traveled to eight cities across the United States to conduct interviews with musicians, recording engineers, record producers, and other individuals discussing each city's musical history, which he used as inspiration for the songs' lyrics. The band and Vig then traveled to a different recording location in each city to record the songs. [4] Each track features contributions from one or more musicians with ties to that city's musical history. The process was filmed for a companion television series, Foo Fighters: Sonic Highways , which was broadcast on HBO in the months surrounding the album's release. [5] [6]
Despite initially announcing a break after supporting Wasting Light , Grohl later stated in January 2013 that the band had started writing material for an eighth studio album. [7] On February 20, 2013, at the Brit Awards, Grohl said he was flying back to America the following day to start work on the next album. [8] In an August 2013 interview with XFM, Grohl announced that their next album was slated for a 2014 release, saying:
"Well, I’ll tell you, we have been in our studio writing and in the past few weeks we’ve written an album and we are going to make this album in a way that no-one’s ever done before and we’re pretty excited about it... It’s a little ways off – it’s not ready to happen right now – but I think next year is going to be a really big year for the Foo Fighters, without question." [9]
According to lead guitarist Chris Shiflett, Grohl would finish the lyrics just before recording his vocals, the last part of each song. This time the compositions would drift away from "love letters and confused relationships" to deal with the feelings Grohl had regarding each city during production. [10]
On September 6, 2013, lead guitarist Chris Shiflett posted a photo to his Instagram account that indicated 13 songs were being recorded for the album. [11] Keyboardist Rami Jaffee recorded parts for three songs, one of which is entitled "In the Way." [12] Butch Vig, who produced the band's prior album, Wasting Light, confirmed he produced Sonic Highways as well. [13] [14] On July 30, 2014, Vig revealed that the band had finished recording and mixing the new album and that it was slated to be released a month after the Sonic Highways TV series. [15] In an August 2014 press release, Grohl spoke about the album, saying: "This album is instantly recognizable as a Foo Fighters record, but there's something deeper and more musical to it. I think that these cities and these people influenced us to stretch out and explore new territory, without losing our ‘sound’." [3]
The album artwork by Stephan Martiniere [16] has a cityscape amalgamating landmarks of every town used for production – Seattle's Space Needle, the Hollywood Sign in Los Angeles – and a recurring motif of the number eight, marking both the Foo Fighters' eighth album and infinity (∞). [3] The vinyl pressings of the album are packaged in nine different covers, depicting each of the eight cities and the "Forever" building shaped like the infinity symbol. [4] Most retailers would not guarantee which cover the purchaser would receive, and album art is "randomly selected" for orders from the band's official website. [17]
On January 16, 2014, a picture was posted to the Foo Fighters Facebook page with several master tapes, some labeled "LP 8". [18] On May 15, 2014, it was announced that the band's eighth album would be released in November 2014 and that the Foo Fighters would commemorate the album and their 20th anniversary with an HBO TV series directed by Dave Grohl entitled Foo Fighters: Sonic Highways . [19] On August 11, 2014, it was announced that the album would be titled Sonic Highways and released on November 10, 2014. [20]
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AnyDecentMusic? | 6.4/10 [21] |
Metacritic | 68/100 [22] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [23] |
The A.V. Club | B− [24] |
The Daily Telegraph | [25] |
Entertainment Weekly | B [26] |
The Guardian | [27] |
NME | 7/10 [28] |
Pitchfork | 5.6/10 [29] |
Q | [30] |
Rolling Stone | [31] |
Uncut | 8/10 [32] |
At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 68, based on 31 reviews indicating "generally favorable reviews". [22] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic says the album "celebrates not the coiled fury of underground rock exploding into the mainstream, the way the '90s-happy Wasting Light did, but rather the classic rock that unites the U.S. from coast to coast." [23] Philip Cosores at Consequence of Sound stated "the album plays out more like a bonus feature, something that can enhance the series’ enjoyment or simply further inform the experience". [1]
Patrick Doyle from Rolling Stone noted that some of the album's songs are among "the band's most ambitious moments yet". [31] Stuart Berman of Pitchfork was more critical of the album, stating "Foo Fighters completely demystify their own creative process, effectively turning the Sonic Highways project into a glorified homework assignment—educational, perhaps, but laboriously procedural." [29]
The album debuted at number two on the Billboard 200, with sales of 190,000 copies in the United States. [33] As of September 2015, it has sold 490,000 copies in the US. [34]
No. | Title | Recording location | Length |
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1. | "Something from Nothing" (featuring Rick Nielsen) | Electrical Audio, Chicago, Illinois | 4:49 |
2. | "The Feast and the Famine" (featuring Peter Stahl and Skeeter Thompson) | Inner Ear Studios, Arlington County, Virginia | 3:50 |
3. | "Congregation" (featuring Zac Brown) | Southern Ground Studios, Nashville, Tennessee | 5:12 |
4. | "What Did I Do? / God as My Witness" (featuring Gary Clark, Jr.) | Studio 6A, Austin, Texas | 5:44 |
5. | "Outside" (featuring Joe Walsh and Chris Goss) | Rancho De La Luna, Joshua Tree, California | 5:15 |
6. | "In the Clear" (featuring the Preservation Hall Jazz Band) | Preservation Hall, New Orleans, Louisiana | 4:04 |
7. | "Subterranean" (featuring Ben Gibbard) | Robert Lang Studios, Seattle, Washington | 6:08 |
8. | "I Am a River" (featuring Tony Visconti and Kristeen Young) | The Magic Shop, New York City, New York | 7:09 |
Total length: | 42:08 |
Credits adapted from the album's liner notes. [35]
Band
Additional musicians
| Production
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Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Australia (ARIA) [85] | Platinum | 70,000^ |
Austria (IFPI Austria) [86] | Gold | 7,500* |
Canada (Music Canada) [87] | Platinum | 80,000^ |
Germany (BVMI) [88] | Gold | 100,000‡ |
Italy (FIMI) [89] | Gold | 25,000* |
Netherlands (NVPI) [90] | Gold | 20,000^ |
New Zealand (RMNZ) [91] | Platinum | 15,000^ |
United Kingdom (BPI) [92] | Platinum | 316,770 [93] |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. |
Foo Fighters is the debut studio album by American rock band Foo Fighters, released on July 4, 1995, through Roswell and Capitol Records. Former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl wrote the entire album. He recorded it himself in six days with the assistance of producer Barrett Jones at Robert Lang Studios in Seattle, Washington, in 1994. Grohl said that he recorded the album just for fun, describing it as a cathartic experience to recover from the suicide of Nirvana bandmate Kurt Cobain. The album is considered to have started the post-grunge genre.
The Colour and the Shape is the second studio album by American rock band Foo Fighters, released on May 20, 1997, by Roswell and Capitol Records. It was the first album by the Foo Fighters to be recorded as a full band, as the previous self-titled album was both written and recorded entirely by frontman Dave Grohl. The Colour and the Shape is widely considered a defining album of the post-grunge genre, with its three singles becoming staples of rock-oriented radio in the United States. It was among the highest-selling rock albums of 1997 and 1998, and was nominated for Best Rock Album at the 40th Annual Grammy Awards.
There Is Nothing Left to Lose is the third studio album by American rock band Foo Fighters, released on November 2, 1999, through Roswell and RCA Records. It marked the first studio credit for drummer Taylor Hawkins, and is often seen as a departure from the band's previous work, showcasing a softer, more experimental sound. Vocalist and guitarist Dave Grohl has called it his favorite Foo Fighters album, stating that it was "totally based on melody" and that the recording process was a serene experience. The album was recorded using only three musicians; Grohl, Hawkins, and bassist Nate Mendel in the basement of Grohl's home in Alexandria, Virginia.
The Foo Fighters are an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1994. Founded as a one-man project by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl, the lineup now consists of Grohl, Nate Mendel (bass), Chris Shiflett and Pat Smear (guitars), Rami Jaffee (keyboards), and Josh Freese (drums). Drummers William Goldsmith and Taylor Hawkins, along with guitarist Franz Stahl, are former members of the band.
One by One is the fourth studio album by American rock band Foo Fighters, released on October 22, 2002, through Roswell and RCA Records. Production on the album was troubled, with initial recording sessions considered unsatisfying and raising tensions between the band members. They eventually decided to redo the album from scratch during a two-week period at frontman Dave Grohl's home studio in Alexandria, Virginia. The album, which includes the successful singles "All My Life" and "Times Like These", has been noted for its introspective lyrics and a heavier, more aggressive sound compared to the band's earlier work, which Grohl said was intended to translate the energy of the Foo Fighters' live performances into a recording. This was the first album recorded with Chris Shiflett as part of the band, and the first in which Grohl did not play drums, as drum duties were permanently assigned to Taylor Hawkins.
In Your Honor is the fifth studio album by American rock band Foo Fighters, released on June 14, 2005, through Roswell and RCA Records. It is a double album, with the first disc containing heavy rock songs and the second containing mellower acoustic songs. Frontman Dave Grohl decided to do a diverse blend of songs, as he felt that after ten years of existence, the band had to break new ground with their music. The album was recorded at a newly built studio in Northridge, Los Angeles, and features guests such as John Paul Jones, Norah Jones, and Josh Homme. Its lyrics deal with both resonating and introspective themes, with a major influence from Grohl's involvement on the campaign trail with John Kerry during the 2004 presidential election. It was the first album to feature keyboardist Rami Jaffee, although he would not join the band as full-time member until 2017.
Skin and Bones is a live acoustic album by Foo Fighters released on November 7, 2006.
Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace is the sixth studio album by American rock band Foo Fighters, released on September 25, 2007, through Roswell and RCA Records. The album is noted for a blend of regular rock and acoustic tracks with shifting dynamics, which emerged from the variety of styles employed on the demos the band produced. It also marks the second time the band worked with producer Gil Norton, whom frontman Dave Grohl brought to fully explore the potential of his compositions and have a record that sounded different from their previous work. Grohl tried to focus on songs with messages that resonated with his audience, writing reflective lyrics that drew inspiration from the birth of his daughter.
The discography of Foo Fighters, an American rock band formed in 1995 by Dave Grohl, consists of eleven studio albums, fourteen extended plays (EPs), six video albums, one live album, and 57 singles. The current Foo Fighters line-up consists of Grohl, Rami Jaffee (keyboard), Nate Mendel (bass), Chris Shiflett (guitar), Pat Smear (guitar) and Josh Freese (drums).
Greatest Hits is a greatest hits album released by American rock band the Foo Fighters on November 3, 2009.
Wasting Light is the seventh studio album by American rock band Foo Fighters, released on April 12, 2011, through Roswell and RCA Records. Wanting to capture the essence of their earlier work and avoid the artificiality of digital recording, Foo Fighters recorded the album in the garage of frontman Dave Grohl in Encino, California, using only analog equipment. The sessions were produced by the band alongside Butch Vig, with whom Grohl had worked on Nirvana's Nevermind. Since the old equipment did not allow for many mistakes to be corrected in post-production, the band spent three weeks rehearsing the songs, and Vig had to relearn outdated editing techniques. The band sought a heavier and rawer sound in contrast to the experimentation of their previous albums. Most of the lyrics were written as Grohl reflected upon his life and possible future. Guest musicians include Bob Mould, Krist Novoselic, Jessy Greene, Rami Jaffee and Fee Waybill. Pat Smear played as an official member of the band for the first time since The Colour and the Shape (1997).
Foo Fighters: Back and Forth is a 2011 rockumentary about the American rock band Foo Fighters, directed by filmmaker James Moll. The film documents the band's history and the recording process for their seventh studio album Wasting Light. The film's title is taken from a song of the same name on Wasting Light. In 2012, Back and Forth won the Grammy Award for Best Long Form Music Video.
Sonic Highways is a 2014 American documentary miniseries directed by Dave Grohl and written by Mark Monroe. The documentary was made concurrently with Foo Fighters' eighth album, Sonic Highways, and was broadcast on HBO. Grohl described the project as "a love letter to the history of American music". Each of the eight episodes is presented as an exploration of the musical history of a different American city through a series of interviews by Grohl. The group is also shown incorporating what they learned from the interviews into the writing and recording of a new song in or near that city. The series debuted on October 17, 2014.
"Something from Nothing" is a song by American rock band Foo Fighters from their eighth studio album Sonic Highways. It was released as the album's lead single on October 16, 2014. Recorded at Steve Albini's Electrical Audio studio, the song was influenced by the Chicago music scene.
"Congregation" is a song by American rock band Foo Fighters. It is the third official single and the second radio single from their eighth studio album Sonic Highways. It was released on October 31, 2014. The song features country music singer Zac Brown, with whom Grohl collaborated with on Zac Brown Band's extended play The Grohl Sessions, Vol. 1.
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The Essential Foo Fighters is a greatest hits album released on October 28, 2022 by American rock band Foo Fighters. It is part of Sony Music's The Essential series. It was the first Foo Fighters release after the death of longtime drummer Taylor Hawkins on March 25, 2022.
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