Our Rating

User Rating

(No Ratings Yet)

Loading...

It was 1994, The lead singer of one of the greatest bands ever, Kurt Cobain, had committed suicide, and in his wake the fans mourned, the industry stood stagnant, a myriad of questions were left unanswered, what was going to happen next, is Nirvana done? For all of us who watched from the outside we wished for more of the same, but for one man who was their from beginning to end and closest to the situation, he had to move on.On November 1st 1994, Nirvana: Unplugged in New York was released to the masses, the first Nirvana release since the death of Kurt Cobain in April earlier in the year. The album immediately went Platinum across the world, eventually going 5x platinum in the US. As part of MTV’s live acoustic show with the same name recorded on November 18th 1993, Nirvana transcended music and became legend. On the television show, the music and Kurt Cobain appeared as if they were living off the same energy, it was almost a religious experience watching Cobains emotions and suffering ooze from his mortal body and land on the area carpet beneath him as the sweat of an immortal. After Unplugged people who had been writing them off as a fad had to take notice, the group rose above their grunge label and became one of the greatest bands of all time. Heralded as one of the records you must hear before you die by music journalists and fans alike, the record still receives impressive sales numbers to this day, 12 years later. Every other acoustic record released by any artist since has not even been in the same league as Unplugged in New York and don’t expect one to any time soon. Unplugged, acoustic, whatever you want to call it was made for Nirvana.

“Dave Grohl, the former drummer of Nirvana had been quietly creating his own songs in the midst of Nirvana, not letting them become public, for trepidation of \messing up some “internal chemistry” in the group, so he held onto them and locked em away. After Kurts death, Dave headed into a studio in Seattle and recorded a demo, playing every instrument, singing every lyric. The demo was picked up by Capitol Records, and it was the beginning of the Foo Fighters. Since the initial record was release Dave has managed to put together an incredible band that has exceeded the test of time. Throughout their career, The Foo Fighters have managed to put together some of the best modern rock masterpieces of all time such as, Everlong (My favorite song of all time) Learn to Fly, My Hero, and a ton of others, all the while releasing chart topping albums such as “The Colour and the Shape” and the more recent “In Your Honor.” The Foo Fighters have beyond doubt secured themselves a spot among the modern rock elite.

So after Twelve years since the release of Unplugged, Dave Grohl returns to the format that made himself, Kurt Cobain, and Krist Novoselic legend, with the release of “Skin and Bones”. Releasing an acoustic record after being apart of the greatest one ever made, it turns out, doesn’t bode well for trying to let the album stand on its on. Rock writers everywhere began writing reviews and articles not based on the quality of the record itself but on comparing it to Unplugged.

“Taking a look at the album itself, Skin and Bones, features the familiar anthems from the past, all the songs you wished you could hear in acoustic, and some new tunes to get acquainted to. Among the songs of old it features acoustic versions of some of the aforementioned best modern rock songs of all time, Everlong, My Hero and many more including, The Best of You, Big Me, and Times Like These, just to mention a few. The album could in actuality be billed as a, “The Best of The Foo Fighters” album, with the enormous collection of classic Foo tracks.

The album and DVD recorded live at the Pantages Theater in Los Angelas features Dave Grohl; surrounded by an extended rendition of the Foo Fighters including former “unofficial” Nirvana and Unplugged co-star, Pat Smear, and keyboardist Rami Jaffee as well as violinist Petra Haden. The additions fit in beautifully to the scheme that the Fighters devised, pure splendor in an unmatched acoustic setting. This is one of the greatest releases of the year, allowing fans to finally hear and visually witness acoustic renditions of their favorite Foo Fighters songs on a dual disc cd/dvd format. Seeing Grohl in an acoustic setting again is worth the price of purchase alone. However, as previously stated, “Skin and Bones” could have worked better billed as a Best of album instead.

The Bottom Line: The bottom line is this, an absolute must have for any Foo Fighters fan, and a perfect holiday gift for the upcoming occasions. While the Foo Fighters continue to produce new music and to do new projects, they take a second to step back and let free with the first half of their successful careers in an intimate personal setting that only an acoustic show can convey. Though it draws constant comparisons to Nirvana: Unplugged in New York, it isn’t even in the same atmosphere, and couldn’t hold a candle to its legacy. On the other hand, This album has been on repeat on my computer, Ipod, and car cd player since I got it. Do yourself a favor and enjoy it for what it is, not what it could have been. One of the best albums of 2006 for sure! Buy this album now!

Tracklisting

1. Razor
2. Over And Out
3. Walking After You
4. Marigold
5. My Hero
6. Next Year
7. Another Round
8. Big Me
9. Cold Day In The Sun
10. Skin And Bones
11. February Stars
12. Times Like These
13. Friend Of A Friend
14. Best Of You
15. Everlong

Websites

FooFighters.com
MySpace.com/FooFighters

Record Label:

• Interscope Records

Release Date:

• 12/19/2006

Reviewer:

• Kevin Dank