There Is Nothing Left To Lose

Nothing Left To Say
by: steven jacobetz

You've probably heard a lot about Dave Grohl and the Foo Fighters. You've seen interviews with Dave and his short hair. You've heard about the spring tour with The Red Hot Chili Peppers. You hear them constantly on rock radio. But if you have the band's latest record, There Is Nothing Left To Lose, you might suspect that the band's glory days will soon be over.

After two records with Capitol, the Foo Fighters switched labels to RCA for this one, but it's a case of different label, same old music. Bottom line is that the band has made three very similar albums now. Not that there's anything wrong with that. AC/DC has made the same record about twenty times, but eventually the general public will get bored, and only the band's hardcore fans will stay loyal unless Grohl and company find a spark of fresh creativity pretty fast. Maybe a more appropriate title fo this album would have been We Have Nothing Left To Say.

Several people have pointed out the close similarities between the main riff of the song "Gimme Stitches" and Foghat's 70s classic "Slow Ride." Check it out yourself. It's just more evidence of the band's lack of creativity. It must be hard writing new material with the whole world waiting and expecting a lot, but others have done just fine in the same situation.

It seems clear that Grohl is writing from a formula. He continues to churn out the same catchy pop/rock tunes with very singable melodies, but little substance.

The band has never really got beyond the funny videos. At least visually they're on the cutting edge. The CD is even enhanced so that you can watch a video message from Dave on your PC. The reality is that they need all these extra attractions because musically they're coasting.

The most interesting track is the opener, "Stacked Actors" The main riff of the song is the most Nirvana-like thing on the album. Courtney Love interpreted the lyrics as a personal attack. Other than that angry blast, the rest of the record is shiny, poppy pop rock.

It's obvious that Kurt Cobain was the one who gave Nirvana its edginess. With each passing album, Foo Fighters sound more and more like Nirvana neutered.

Well, break out the Mentos and smile. Even with all the stagnation, the Foo Fighters are better than most bands around today. However, if you're a casual fan reading this who has a previous Foo Fighters album and is still undecided about if you should buy this one, don't bother. If you have one, you have them all. Stick with the debut album. It has the most heart of the three. The band's been on cruise control ever since.