Foo Fighters – Live at Wembley (Sony/101 Blu-ray)

 

Picture: B+     Sound: B+     Extras: C     Music: B+

 

 

The Foo Fighters are not only one of the finer rock acts around, but one of only a few bands that have endured over the past few years and prove to be a band that could survive the fallout from the alternative rock/grunge era.  Live at Wembley proves exactly why.  This concert puts together some of the bands best material in a venue widely regarded as one of the finest rock outlets where some of the biggest bands have performed.  This is a band that is raw, emotional, and relentless in its performance, and it’s a delight to see a band continue to churn out solid material time and time again.

 

Keep in mind that these two dates for this concert sold out in a 24-hour period, which only shows just how popular they still remain.  It’s also an amazing journey to think that Dave Grohl was able to not only form this band shortly after the death of Kurt Cobain and depart from Nirvana to form this band, but to see this band healthy after 13 years and still performing at a high excellence level.  Most would have never thought the band could have made it, let alone thrive.

 

 

Track Listing

 

The Pretender

Times Like These

No Way Back

Cheer Up, Boys (Your Make Up is Running)

Learn to Fly

Long Road to Ruin

Breakout

Stacked Actors

Skin and Bones

Marigold

My Hero

Cold Day in the Sun

Everlong

Monkey Wrench

All My Life

Rock and Roll

Ramble On

Best of You

 

 

It’s hard to imagine any songs that are really left out here, even the two Led Zeppelin covers, which Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones guest star on really help fortify the experience as an all-out rock fest.  The band is in great form here and are definitely a band that not only knows how to entertain, but do not compromise their material in a live-setting, even the reworking on Everlong is a satisfactory rendition that fans seem to love.

 

 

The concert was shot in high definition and its transfer to Blu-ray is quite spectacular with a stunning high-bitrate 1080p High Definition transfer.  Blacks are deep and dark, while whites are finely rendered and not blown out.  The close-ups truly showcase some of the finer moments that Blu-ray can offer, there is only a small amount of softness that is evident now and again, but the print is virtually free of any noise or problems.

 

Equally impressive is the sound, available here in an uncompressed PCM 5.1, which has become my preferred method of playback for music titles, this particular mix is heavy with tons of depth and a huge soundstage making your listening space feel like a real live, loud concert.  The vocals bite through the mix and are distinguishable even amidst the overload of distorted guitars and thumping drums.  A solid mix for sure!

 

No extras included, but a fine concert for keeps!

 

 

-   Nate Goss