Foo Fighters - Echoes, Silence, Patience and Grace (2007)

Review by Elyse Stoupe

Download Now:
Purchase CD:  

Hey, it's the Foo Fighters! Everyone knows the Foo Fighters - makers of solid rock anthem hits 'Learn To Fly', 'Breakout' and 'Times Like These', they can do no wrong!

... Can they?

"Echoes, Silence, Patience and Grace" kicks it off with The Pretender which exploded up the charts across the world when it was released. The song has everything; the slow haunting beginning, the punchy drums and bass that echo the guitars movements, the strong lyrics with the powerful theme of independence, it even has the killer bridge that builds up to the last explosive chorus. It's catchy, mean and oh so right.

Let It Die follows suit, opened by a softly played acoustic guitar to contrast the sound of Grohl’s pained scream at the end. Erase/Replace is another strong track, with memorable hooks and a song structure where everything comes in at exactly the right part. Cheer Up Boys [Your Makeup Is Running] is a cheeky little title but the song could be interpreted in any way, a distorted guitar at the beginning gets a big thumbs up and the simple chorus gets in your head.

What happens next, however, is a little disheartening - just when you think the album is a return to the old heavier style, the Foo’s go back to the acoustic styling’s heard in 2005’s "In Your Honor".

Grohl is an amazing musician and he seems to be smitten with the more subdued way of playing. It allows Grohl's vocals to shine and the songs are sincere and heartfelt. The piano appears on the album too, which Grohl has only recently started playing and of course, he's already mastered it.

Everything is gentler and the grunt is stripped away for a more detailed and refined sounding guitar. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.

The tracks switch between the old rockier Foo Fighters and softly played acoustic tracks, delicately put together. Standout tracks for the new ‘nice’ Foo's would be But Honestly for it's well played throw-you-off rock ending and Ballad of The Beaconsfield Miners which is a complicated but memorable instrumental track that anybody would be proud to say was dedicated to them.

"Echoes, Silence, Patience and Grace" is a good album, it's something you can sit back and quietly appreciate for it's intricacies - and it's strong playing by all the Foo members. They’re doing something new and trying to attract a different audience, clearly growing tired of being known simply for making a good drinking song – and they should be applauded for that.

But for all the older Foo fans still wanting that grunt, either hit repeat on The Pretender or slip in your old copy of "There Is Nothing Left To Lose". The Foo Fighters are here for the long run, but they need a little more  'anti-hero' and a little less 'white knight'.

ALBUM RATING: 3 out of 5

Download Now:

Purchase CD:  

Brought to you by The Dwarf