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Wasting Light

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Untitled

Wasting Light is the seventh studio album by American alternative rock band Foo Fighters, released April 12, 2011, on RCA Records. It was produced by Butch Vig and described by the band's lead vocalist and guitarist Dave Grohl as their "heaviest album yet."[2] The title is taken from the lyrics of the song "Miss the Misery". Guest musicians include Bob Mould and Krist Novoselic.

The album sold 235,000 in its first week of release and debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart, becoming the band's first number-one album in the United States. It also attained chart success in several other countries. Upon its release, Wasting Light received positive reviews from most music critics, who complimented its production and the band's songwriting. On November 30, 2011 the album was nominated for six Grammy Awards including Album of the Year.

Background and recording

List of the songs recorded for Wasting Light

Recording of the album began September 6, 2010 with producer Butch Vig, who had previously produced the two new tracks for the band's Greatest Hits album.[3] The band's lead vocalist and guitarist Dave Grohl said of the album, "With [Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace] we were too concerned with being musical. Now it's time for us to be a rock band again."[2] Unlike the band's previous two albums, In Your Honor and Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, Wasting Light was recorded in Dave Grohl's garage, as opposed to the band's home-built studio, Studio 606. Regarding this decision, Grohl states: "There's poetry in being the band that can sell out Wembley but also makes a record in a garage."[4] Vig said in an interview with MTV that the album was recorded using entirely analogue equipment until post-mastering.[5] All CD copies of the album contain a small section of the original analogue master tape, an idea by Dave Grohl.[6]

Although he has performed live with the band since 2006, Wasting Light is the first studio album to feature guitarist Pat Smear as an official member since The Colour and the Shape (1997).[7] The recording of the album was filmed as part of a career-spanning documentary called Back and Forth,[8] which Grohl said was essential to make audiences understand the decision to record the album in his garage.[9]

Release and promotion

On January 17, 2011, the band released a 30 second teaser of the song "Bridge Burning" from the new album via their website.[10] On February 1, the band released another teaser of the song "Miss the Misery" on their website, as well as announcing that the official release date of the new record would be April 12, 2011.[11] On February 12, a music video was released for "White Limo", featuring Lemmy of Motörhead.[11] On February 23, 2011, "Rope" was made available for online stream.[12] It debuted at #1 on Billboard's Rock Chart, making it only the second single to do so since the chart's advent in 2009.[13] The band's second single "Walk" was played during the bar scene and in the closing credits to Thor while "Miss the Misery" appeared on the soundtrack to Real Steel.[14][15] In addition, "Bridge Burning" appears in the videogame Madden NFL 12.[16]

Commercial performance

The album debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart, with first-week sales of 235,000 copies in the United States.[17] It is the band's first number-one album in the US and their second-highest sales week, following In Your Honor's first-week sales of 311,000 copies in 2005.[17] Wasting Light has sold 497,000 copies in the US as of July 6, 2011.[18] In Canada, the album debuted at number one on the Canadian Albums Chart, selling 21,000 copies in its first week.[19][20]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
The A.V. Club(B)[21]
Entertainment Weekly(A-)[22]
The Guardian[23]
NME(8/10)[24]
Pitchfork Media(6.4/10)[25]
Q[26]
Rolling Stone[27]
Slant Magazine[28]
Spin(9/10)[29]

Wasting Light received positive reviews from most music critics.[30] At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 78, based on 35 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews."[30] Allmusic editor Stephen Thomas Erlewine gave it four-and-a-half out of five stars and complimented its "untrammeled rock," calling it "the fiercest album they’ve ever made [...] the kind of record they’ve always seemed on the verge of delivering but never have."[1] Entertainment Weekly's Amanda Petrusich complimented its "catchy, pummeling anthems" and called the album "a muscular rock & roll throwdown."[22] Mikael Wood of Spin noted a "back-to-basics aspiration" and dubbed the album "Grohl's most memorable set of songs since 1997's The Colour and the Shape."[29] Rob Parker of NME wrote that the album is "both broad and focused enough to appeal to casuals and longhairs alike," describing it as "the pure sound of the band being the band, and through headphones or a decent system it sounds phenomenal."[24] Paul Brannigan of Q praised Grohl's lyrics and called Wasting Light "the most life-affirming, positively-charged album of his career."[26] Rolling Stone writer David Fricke commended Grohl's themes and producer Butch Vig for his "nuanced approach to weight and release."[27] David Gassmann of PopMatters gave the album an eight out of 10 rating and commented that it "has more modest intentions and scope than some of its predecessors."[31]

However, Slant Magazine's Kevin Liedel criticized the band's "growing aversion to anthemic songs," writing that "the obvious high points of Wasting Light are those that strive for stadium-pleasing melodies."[28] Dave Simpson of The Guardian noted an "undue" arena influence and called the album "a typically supersized arena-rock barrage, with lots of howling and wailing, every chorus tailored to imaginary walls of pyrotechnics and some tracks seemingly specifically constructed to accommodate a guitar spot or drum solo."[23] Pitchfork Media's David Bevan commented that "There just isn't a melody or hook to really amplify."[25] Andy Gill of The Independent criticized its "bombastic level" and stated "the presumed desire for back-to-the-roots simplicity [...] jettisons the diversity of Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace."[32] Despite stating "beneath all the froth, really this is more of the same," BBC Online's Ian Winwood noted "a number of terrific songs" and commented that "this is nothing more than business as usual: some killer, some filler."[33] Kyle Ryan of The A.V. Club wrote that "it's a little surprising that an album so obsessed with getting back to the basics doesn’t deliver the hooks Grohl and company do so well," but viewed that it lacks the filler of the band's previous albums and stated, "As a return to Foo Fighters' specialty—melodic, hard-hitting rock with soaring choruses—Wasting Light is a success."[21] Sputnikmusic's Nick Butler stated "Wasting Light isn't a masterpiece, nor does it see Grohl really reinventing the wheel as far as the band's sound goes, but it's clearly painted from a broader pallette of colours and it's clearly their first consistently good set of songs."[34]

Track listing

All songs written by Foo Fighters.

No.TitleLength
1."Bridge Burning"4:46
2."Rope"4:19
3."Dear Rosemary"4:26
4."White Limo"3:22
5."Arlandria"4:28
6."These Days"4:58
7."Back & Forth"3:52
8."A Matter of Time"4:36
9."Miss the Misery"4:33
10."I Should Have Known"4:15
11."Walk"4:16
Total length:47:53
Deluxe edition
No.TitleLength
12."Rope" (Deadmau5 Remix)5:52
13."Better Off"4:12
14."White Limo" (Music video)3:35
15."Walk (Live at the Roxy)" (Video)4:23

Personnel

Template:Multi-col

Foo Fighters
Additional personnel


| class="col-break " |

Production

|}

Charts and certifications

References

  1. ^ a b c d Thomas Erlewine, Stephen. "Wasting Light - Foo Fighters". Allmusic. Retrieved 2011-04-12. {{cite web}}: Text "AllMusic: Review" ignored (help)
  2. ^ a b "Dave Grohl; Kerrang's Wasting Light review Q&A - May '11". Fooarchive.com. Retrieved 2011-08-13.
  3. ^ "Foo Fighters Promise Heavier New Album". idiomag. Retrieved 2010-03-10.
  4. ^ Treuen, Jason. "Foo Fighters: The TMN interview Artists". The Music Network. Retrieved 2011-08-13.
  5. ^ Posted 1/27/11 (2011-01-27). "Exclusive: Butch Vig Talks 'Primal, Raw' Foo Fighters Album - Music, Celebrity, Artist News". MTV. Retrieved 2011-02-16.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  6. ^ Gustavo Turner (2011-04-11). "EXCLUSIVE Interview: Dave Grohl on Cutting the New Foo Fighters Album's Master Tape to Pieces--and Giving Them Away to the Fans". L.A. Weekly. Retrieved 2011-06-18.
  7. ^ Q Magazine, May 2011, pg. 77
  8. ^ Posted 3/30/11 (2011-03-30). "New Foo Fighters Documentary 'Back And Forth' Traces Band's Entire Career". Rolling Stone Magazine. Retrieved 2011-06-13.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  9. ^ Foo Fighters Discuss 'Back and Forth' Documentary at SXSW, Billboard
  10. ^ "Foo Fighters Teaser". Tease.foofighters.com. Retrieved 2011-02-16.
  11. ^ a b Lipshutz, Jason (2011-02-15). "Foo Fighters Reveal Wasting Light Album". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2011-02-15.
  12. ^ Bhamra, Satvir (2011-02-23). "Foo Fighters: Rope". Amplified.tv. Retrieved 2011-04-10.
  13. ^ Trust, Gary. "Foo Fighters' 'Rope' Hangs a No. 1 Debut on Rock Songs". billboard.com. Feb 28, 2011.
  14. ^ "'Thor': Foo Fighters take a 'Walk' with Marvel film". Los Angeles Times. 2011-04-15. Retrieved 2011-11-3. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  15. ^ "real-steel-2011-ost". badsoundtrack. Retrieved October 25, 2011.
  16. ^ http://www.pastapadre.com/2011/06/21/madden-nfl-12-soundtrack
  17. ^ a b c Caulfield, Keith (April 20, 2011). Foo Fighters Earn First No. 1 Album with 'Wasting Light' | Billboard.com. Billboard. Retrieved on 2011-04-21.
  18. ^ Up for Discussion Jump to Forums (2009-09-14). "Adele, Katy Perry Rule Mid-Year SoundScan Charts". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2011-08-13.
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  20. ^ Williams, John (April 20, 2011). Foos' 'Light' shines bright at No. 1. Jam!. Retrieved on 2011-04-21.
  21. ^ a b Ryan, Kyle (April 12, 2011). "Foo Fighters: Wasting Light". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 2011-04-12.
  22. ^ a b Petrusich, Amanda (March 31, 2011). Wasting Light | Music | EW.com. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved on 2011-04-13.
  23. ^ a b Simpson, Dave (April 7, 2011). Foo Fighters: Wasting Light – review | Music | The Guardian. The Guardian. Retrieved on 2011-04-13.
  24. ^ a b Parker, Rob (April 6, 2011). "Album Review: Foo Fighters - Wasting Light (Roswell/RCA)". NME. Retrieved 2011-04-12.
  25. ^ a b Bevan, David (April 15, 2011). "Pitchfork: Album Reviews: Foo Fighters: Wasting Light". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 2011-04-15.
  26. ^ a b Brannigan, Paul (2011). "Foo Fighters – Wasting Light (Roswell/RCA)". Q (298). Bauer Media Group: 114–118. Retrieved 2011-04-13. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  27. ^ a b Fricke, David (April 28, 2011), "Wasting Light by Foo Fighters", Rolling Stone, no. 1129, pp. 93–94
  28. ^ a b Liedel, Kevin (April 13, 2011). "Foo Fighters: Wasting Light". Slant Magazine. Retrieved 2011-04-13. {{cite web}}: Text "Music Review" ignored (help); Text "Slant Magazine" ignored (help)
  29. ^ a b Wood, Mikael (April 8, 2011). "Foo Fighters, 'Wasting Light' (Roswell/RCA)". Spin. Retrieved 2011-04-12.
  30. ^ a b Wasting Light Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More at Metacritic. Metacritic. Retrieved on 2011-04-13.
  31. ^ Gassmann, David (April 13, 2011). "Foo Fighters: Wasting Light < PopMatters". PopMatters. Retrieved 2011-04-13.
  32. ^ Gill, Andy (April 8, 2011). "Album: Foo Fighters, Wasting Light (Columbia)". The Independent. Retrieved 2011-04-12.
  33. ^ Winwood, Ian (March 29, 2011). "Foo Fighters Wasting Light Review". BBC. Retrieved 2011-04-12.
  34. ^ Butler, Nick (April 7, 2011). Foo Fighters - Wasting Light (staff review) | Sputnikmusic. Sputnikmusic. Retrieved on 2011-04-13.
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  44. ^ "http://www.chartsinfrance.net - Foo Fighters - Wasting Light". Retrieved 2011-04-22. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
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  46. ^ "greekcharts.com - Foo Fighters - Wasting Light". IPFI Greece. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2011-04-17. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  47. ^ "Chart Track". Irish Albums Chart. GfK. Retrieved 2011-04-15.
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