Charley Kassabian
News Lite Editor
The grounds of Oakland shook Wednesday night as the Oracle Arena packed with die hard fans, counting down the minutes until the Foo Fighters took the stage.
By the time the opening band, Cage the Elephant, was finished, the crowd was sweaty and energized. After 40 minutes of set up time, the lights finally went out, and the guests of honor took the stage.
The feedback rang throughout the stadium, barely audible over the crowd’s roar. With the intensity growing, the volume rising, and the excitement brewing. All of a sudden, the Foo Fighters exploded into their powerhouse song “Bridge Burning” from their new album, “Wasting Light.”
The band continued to blow the crowd away as they flowed into “Rope,” their new hit single, followed by “The Pretenter,” one of their most popular songs.
The Foo Fighters finally took a break after about 15 minutes of consecutive, powerful play time. As lead singer and guitarist Dave Grohl slowly approached the microphone, the stands grew silent. The crowd was on the edge of their seat, waiting to hear what he has to say.
The first thing that the crowd heard from Grohl, other than Foo Fighters lyrics, was a blood curdling scream, whose volume was matched only to that of an area of cheers.
“You guy’s had better not have work tomorrow, because it is going to be a long night,” announced Grohl, once he is done with his shrieks.
But this did nothing but get the crowd even more energized. The Foo Fighters ended up playing a 23-song set, lasting two hours and 45 minutes.
The band’s set was filled with a huge diversity of the Foo Fighters music, featuring both old and new songs, such as “My Hero,” “Monkey Wrench,” “Learn to Fly,” “These Days,” and acoustic performances of “Long Road to Ruin” and “Best of You.”
The Foo Fighters also covered songs by Pink Floyd (“In the Flesh”) and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers (“Breakdown”. The band ultimately closed with one of their most powerful songs “Everlong.”
Excitement permeated throughout the area during the Foo Fighters performance. Accompanied with an incredible light show, featuring LED lights across the floor of the stage, their performance was one to remember.
The band’s performance was evidence to the fact that the Foo Fighters are genuine rock stars. Their set was filled with massive jams and constant energy. Grohl was constantly running up and down the stage, along with straight down the isle-ways into the audience. The crowd covered the front-man in hands, each desperate to feel his sweaty shirt and greasy hair.
Opening for the Foo Fighters was Cage the Elephant, a Kentucky rock band. They served their purpose as an opening band, slamming on power chords and playing their fast paced, energetic music. Their raw energy got the arena’s heart racing, with the lead singer Matthew Shultz screaming into his mic while diving into the crowd. When Shultz wasn’t being levitated by the crowd, he could be found writhing on the floor, all while staying on time.
The fans that attended the Foo Fighters concert on Wednesday got their money’s worth. By midnight, the parking lot filled with sweaty, exhausted concert goers, complete with ringing ears and smiling faces.
