Foo Fighters at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles: Concert Recap of Night 2

During a three-song acoustic set, Grohl belted out the gorgeous “Ballad for the Beaconsfield Miners” from the 2007 album. Echoes, silence, patience and graceHe wrote it for miners trapped in a Tasmanian mine in 2006 who requested an iPod with Foos songs while they waited to be rescued. He usually only releases it when the band is in Australia or New Zealand – according to setlist.fm, the last time Grohl played the song in the US was in 2008 – so it was a real treat to hear a rare instrumental from the band and discover this beautiful rarity. Another standout from the acoustic set was “Statues” from the same album.

It’s nothing new, but it’s still miraculous to see how hard Grohl gives in concert every night. From the opening screams of “The Teacher” to the end of the title track “Best of You,” he howls with the heartbreaking intensity of someone exorcising his demons. It seems impossible that he wouldn’t damage his vocal chords, but thirty years later, he’s still able to go from a feral scream to a vocal whisper seemingly effortlessly.

At Sunday night’s shows, the new generation was in full force. Grohl’s 18-year-old daughter Violet, whom he introduced as his favorite singer, joined him for “Show Me How,” a song the duo wrote for Grohl’s late mother. Taylor Hawkins’ son Shane, 18, came out during the encore to take over for Josh Freese on drums on the thunderous “I’ll Stick Around.” He’s joined the band several times since his father’s death two years ago, and he’s grown more confident and fierce each time. Although he and Grohl didn’t greet each other during his first appearance, just before “Everlong,” Hawkins ran back onstage and gave Grohl a sweet, brief hug.

Along with the screaming, there are plenty of smiles and plenty of swearing. Grohl may have truly broken the record for the most frequent use of the profanity “mother–er” in concert, but it’s all so good-natured that even the most prudish person can hardly take offense—although if you’re a prudish person, you probably aren’t at a Foo Fighters concert. The fact is, as he strode around the stage, drenched in sweat, it was clear that no one was having as much fun as Grohl, and that energy is contagious. In the many times I’ve seen the Foo Fighters play, I’ve never seen Grohl be anything less than 100 percent dedicated, enthusiastic, and appreciative, and Sunday night was no exception. His bandmates—Freese, guitarists Chris Shiflett and Pat Smear, bassist Nate Mendel, and keyboardist Rami Jaffee—are all sturdy but fairly static, leaving Grohl to do the heavy lifting when it comes to getting the crowd excited. With only three shows left on the tour, it would be understandable if Grohl were to lose some steam, but his energy never wavered.

Yes, the Foos played ‘The Pretender’, but the Pretenders, led by Chrissie Hynde, opened the second night and it was a 14-song, hour-long set that didn’t let up from the moment Hynde and company took the stage. Hynde’s vibrato remains beautifully intact, particularly on songs like ‘Don’t Get Me Wrong’ and ‘I’ll Stand By You’, as does her tough demeanour, although this was tempered by her big smile as the set wore on. Special mention to lead guitarist James Walbourne, who dazzled throughout the set with his muscular guitar playing.