Foo Fighters Play Snippets of New Songs, Confirm Glastonbury Gig at Surprise Frome Performance
Foo Fighters, who have been mostly inactive since the end of 2015, dusted off their instruments for a big announcement and a surprise show on Friday. After a taped bit where the band showed up in an empty English field months early only to be greeted by Glastonbury's organizers, the band indeed confirmed that they will be one of the headliners for this year's show.
You may remember Foo Fighters were set to headline in 2015 when Dave Grohl broke his leg falling off a stage, forcing the band to miss the event. At the end of the clip, the guys ask if there's anywhere they can play since Glastonbury's stages won't be built for some time, and they're directed to the Cheese and Grain club in nearby Frome, where the band then played a surprise show for fans watching online and those in attendance who were chosen to be at the performance.
This was the band's first full performance since Nov. 13, 2015, when they announced plans to go on an indefinite hiatus. The band did play together late last year at a benefit show and performed a couple of songs at the recent MusiCares Person of the Year tribute to Tom Petty during Grammy week, but the Frome show proved to be their first full set in well over a year.
In keeping with the theme of their website, which of late has included both a passport theme and an airline travel theme, the band started off the show with "Learn to Fly," then gave the St. Cecilia EP song "Sean" its official live debut. Many Foo Fighters standards filled up the set, but there were a few surprises thrown in. For instance, while it's known that the Foo Fighters are working on new music, they teased a bit of a couple of songs within the flow of familiar favorites. Alternative Nation uncovered the video above, which includes samples of tracks tentatively titled "Keep Your Pretty Promise to Yourself" and "Run With Me." "Keep Your Pretty Promise to Yourself" appeared in the midst of the band playing "The Pretender," while "Run With Me" was incorporated into "This Is a Call." Listen to both snippets above.
The band also worked in the rarely played song "Wheels" and opened things up to fan requests, performing the songs "Wattershed," "Big Me" and "For All the Cows" in succession toward the end of the show. They also worked in a rare performance of "Enough Space" ahead of the closing staple "Everlong."
Thrilled with the experience of playing a full set again, Dave Grohl posted a message to fans after the event that can be read below.
Foo Fighters have booked a number of European festivals, while the only U.S. date on their schedule comes May 28 at the Bottle Rock Festival in Napa Valley, Calif. See all of their scheduled shows here.
Foo Fighters Frome, England Cheese and Grain Set List - Feb. 24, 2017
1. "Learn to Fly"
2. "Sean"
3. "White Limo"
4. "Arlandria"
5. "Something From Nothing"
6. "The Pretender"
7. "Walk"
8. "My Hero"
9. "Cold Day in the Sun"
10. "Congregation"
11. "These Days"
12. "Wheels"
13. "Times Like These"
14. "All My Life"
15. "Skin and Bones"
16. "This Is a Call"
17. "Hey, Johnny Park"
18. "Monkey Wrench"
19. "Best of You"
20. "Wattershed"
21. "Big Me"
22. "For All the Cows"
23. "Enough Space"
24. "Everlong"
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