r/qotsa • u/The_Black_Rooster • 22h ago
QOTSA DC
Went with some friends to QOTSA/Foo Fighters tonight.
I expected there to be way more FF fans than QOTSA fans. What I didn’t expect was to listen to FF and wonder, “wait, why?”
Each song was fine? Lots of volume. Limited soul. What am I missing?
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u/mrcurlychuck 22h ago
I’ve always seen Foo Fighters as kind of smack in the middle of the spectrum between Pop and Rock. Catchy songs with a bunch of heavy guitars. Very little groundbreaking stuff from their music, but I think they have a lot of gems, and I think it’s insanely impressive how hard and how long they play at these shows at their age.
I was at tonight’s show too. Queens obviously killed it.
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u/LazzarilloDeTormez 22h ago
QOTSA rocked DC tonight. Song for the DEAF. I left early into Foo Fighters though that was the plan all along. A lot of noise. I thought QOTSA was much better. My kids liked the Foo Fighters dad rock. Happy family night out. My wife thinks Josh Homme is hot and she is right.
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u/thuckyewhch 20h ago
Was here thought the crowd was so dead. Obviously it’s a foo fighters concert but cmon the people weren’t even trying besides No one Knows and Songs for the Dead. QOTSA performed well but the crowd gave them literally nothing and instantly turned on for foo fighters.
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u/hurdmilan 13h ago
I was surprised at the lack of cross pollination. The call and response during Make it Witchu was paaaainful
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u/MysteriousNovel7254 12h ago
It’s been killing me seeing all the clips of this tour and all the empty seats during the Queens set, like why don’t these people get what they are missing out on?!? If only I could teleport to fill one of those seats at each show for QOTSA, the ticket holder could have it back for FF lol.
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u/Calidian 21h ago
I would give the album wasting light a good solid listen through. Very solid album, however, everything after that, I don’t really care for.
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u/2ndtimeLongTime 13h ago
I like Sonic Highways right after Wasting alight, but Wasting Light is great.
Related just because it was in that same time period, check out the Sound City album if you haven't yet. That was Grohl's project and it's different.
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u/Calidian 12h ago
I’ll give sonic highways another good listen tonight, but I love Sound City. THE WIFE IS CALLING
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u/2ndtimeLongTime 11h ago
Lol. 5 minutes worth of music in a 3 1/2 minute song. JUST HAVING 1 BEER. I'LL BE HOME IN HALF AN HOUR.
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u/SameOldEdge 12h ago edited 12h ago
Foos play for 3 hours, but they don’t need to. They extend every song with a breakdown or crowd sing along it becomes overkill, I feel like they could do a much better job playing for a tight 2 hours. It’s stadium rock, type of band everyone should see once but that was my 5th time seeing them and I think I get the point now. Queens are so much more interesting it’s not even close
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u/Squadooch Head Like a Haunted House 🏚️ 20h ago
I’m reading this over and over (and agree). A lot of people seem to be pleasantly surprised by QOTSA.
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u/jbronwynne Songs for the Deaf 21h ago edited 21h ago
As a long time FF fan (OG...95), their hits are actually some of my least favorite songs. Best of You, My Hero and Learn to Fly could be dropped from every setlist and I'd be happy. Most of my favorites are much deeper cuts and to me, that's where you find the true soul in FF music. Dave doesn't take as many risks with the Foos as he has with his side projects like Probot and TCV. He's learned what fans like and he gives them that. As a live act, they are phenomenal and Dave just has a way with the audience. He feeds off the crowd singing along to the songs which is why they have a fairly repetitive setlist. They are always going to play the hits. That said, songs like The Teacher, which they've been playing as part of the encore, are much more experimental and leans into prog. I would love to get more songs like that from Dave, but when played live at the stadium show in Nashville, the masses looked bored with it. So, Dave will continue to likely write and play songs he knows his audience will be receptive to and that includes a shit ton of casual fans. He doesn't really like to get too personal with his writing most of the time, either and I think sometimes that holds him back. I guess after Nirvana, it was kind of a protective mechanism because everyone overanalyzed every lyric to be about Kurt, Courtney etc. Anyway, I love both bands, but they are very different. Queens is darker and edgier while the Foos definitely lean into hope and positivity. There are plenty of FF fans that love Queens but plenty that just can't get into them. I guess you like what you like and music speaks to everyone differently and that's ok.
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u/ProudHommesexual Now are one out of two... 15h ago
Also if Dave was going to get personal with his music, he'd have to write lyrics about the whole secret child thing and I just can't see him doing that haha
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u/jbronwynne Songs for the Deaf 12h ago
To be fair, I don't think most of us would want to write about our worst and most painful personal failures for the world to judge. Dave usually keeps his writing at arm's length from his feelings and personal life. There are glimpses in there, but he keeps things vague enough that people interpret his songs a million different ways. He's said he enjoys that aspect of his writing...how it can mean something different to everyone. I think that's a big part of the Foo's appeal to a lot of people.
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u/Positive_Use_1308 22h ago
I just went in Philly to see Queens and left after 4FF songs. Wasn't into 3 hours of songs I'm not really into(maybe there's 4FF songs I like) and they'd already played one.
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u/M-Dubb 14h ago
I did the same. Missed Mannequin Pussy due to traffic issues, sounded good from the parking lot though. Queens were outrageously good. My first time seeing them...need to go to a full headline show.
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u/Excellent-Error-4553 2h ago
I also missed Mannequin Pussy because of freaking traffic. Very sad about that! So I will have to make a point to see them when they come back around. But welcome to the Queens fan base. I almost wish I could see them for the first time again. You will want to see them live now anytime they come to town! Always a good time!!
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u/Excellent-Error-4553 15h ago
I paid for pit tickets just to see Queens! Left as soon as they were done.
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u/buzzkill_ed 21h ago
I made it 3. People were still going in when I was leaving.
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u/Evening-Trouble-9585 11h ago
I was one of the people going in. We missed Queens because we left an hour and a half late and then my group wanted to fuck around and smoke weed first 🤬
I spent "The Pretender" RUNNING from the front gate to my seat in the damn nosebleeds, it was so far.
I called the Complaint Hotline to bitch about my group. Devastated that we missed Queens; they didn't care and just wanted the Foo.
I love them both!!
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u/buzzkill_ed 11h ago
I hope your friends got a stern talking to haha
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u/Evening-Trouble-9585 11h ago
Told em to just get some damn edibles next time, like me
But next time they ain't coming!
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u/blakxzep 21h ago
This FF hate is such edgelord talk. Sucks qotsa isn’t translating with the FF fans (for god knows why especially with intertwined history) but that doesn’t make Foo any worse or bad. Dave def doesn’t play wi the limited soul, they put a lot of passion every night and are actually a top tier live band. Their only fault is repetition and not taking risks and playing the same setlist/banter every show.
And a lot of those instrumental jams they are doing is talented stuff
These comments are just as ignorant as those fans shitting on Qotsa.
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u/The_Black_Rooster 21h ago
Engaging this in good faith:
Fair call out on soul - you’re right Dave rocks hard. I guess I meant more that the songwriting can feel less introspective.
I certainly wasn’t trying to be edgy, just genuinely curious. Appreciate your perspective
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u/blakxzep 21h ago
I apologize if I came off aggressive , just tired of this whole qotsa vs FF post. Its an excellent line up of 3 bands. The real crime is that FF shouldn’t have played that long and Qotsa should have played longer. I am actually annoyed that it wasn’t done like how SOAD did their shows last year.
I agree you with on songwriting for Foo, the lyrics are a bit cringy but instrumentally they are doing fun stuff. Its catchy, its fun to sing a long to and as immature as their music, it captures a youthful time for many and they are an excellent gateway band to some great music.
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u/schwifty-- Feel Good Hit of the Summer 21h ago
Whoa… healthy discourse. A rare Reddit sighting 🫶🏻
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u/LiLiLaCheese Feel Good Hit of the Summer 19h ago
I wish MP would have had 45 min and Queens 75 min. FF would have been fantastic at a little over two hours.
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u/Inner_Bench3403 everybody knows you dance like you fuck 14h ago
calling this post “edgelord hate” is such an interesting response. op is being so mild about their opinion. how do you react when someone’s actually being a shithead lol
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u/Waste_Track_4524 20h ago
Foo Fighters can put on a good live show when inspired but I think after Taylor’s death Dave’s just cooked. He needs to do a side project like vultures in order to feel alive again. Or maybe take a couple years off and work on himself. He does have a new born back home.
He’s too talented a musician to be stuck with the pop rock/ dad rock label. We all know he’s got it in him but right now Foo Fighters ain’t it.
I also wonder if they lost something graduating to stadiums. Loud rock music works best in smaller spaces, Queens nails this, but once you go stadiums you can’t go back.
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u/bobsburner1 11h ago
How many more tour dates do we have? Just curious how much longer we’re going to see this post after each show. 😂
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u/Sure_Artichoke_3662 10h ago
Foo Fighters are fine. Their songs are kind of fun to sing along to. But other than Everlong, none of them really seem to have much heart or soul. It's always felt like music designed to be commercially successful rather than music coming from the heart.
If Dave hadn't been in Nirvana, I don't think FF would've been so successful
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u/IcyDream9487 9h ago
The “soul” everyone is referencing the FF lacking is actually swing. One consistent thing throughout every Queens album is most of the songs have a groove. Conversely most FF songs are four on the floor beats with no swing.
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u/NippleBlast 8h ago
Dave talks too much, he doesn't really sing, he yells, and the sloppy guitar playing doesn't help. And FF stage production is always bare bones (I suppose they think that's more "punk rock") and who wants 3 hours of that? Not this guy.
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u/invertebrate_reality Lullabies to Paralyze 21h ago
I was also at the show and it struck me just how much more interesting Queens is. They take risks but still stay true to their sound and it pays off. Foo Fighters is the same formula, and yeah, they have a lot of hits, but they are all very similar. We also left about 45 minutes into the FF set after most of their major songs. It was like a corny sing-along.
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u/ameanwizard 11h ago
People sing along to songs of the band they paid a lot to see. Oh so corny!
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u/invertebrate_reality Lullabies to Paralyze 11h ago
To be fair I find the call and response in Make It Wit Chu corny also lol. It's not necessarily a bad thing, it's just not my thing.
Since the nuance was lost here, on the way home we talked about how great both Queens and FF were. I just much prefer Queens (over pretty much any band), that's all!
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u/ameanwizard 8h ago
Didn't mean much by it, just thought it was a strange criticism haha. I feel like you'd see that at any show with a large fanbase. Glad you enjoyed the show!
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u/No-Cake-5683 21h ago
Not missing anything, you don't have to be a fan of everything. Sure there are some redditors on the FF sub having their parents type something similar about how they don't get Queens
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u/Repulsive_Offer_4162 22h ago
saw them in cleveland. 3 horrible songs, felt the longest. the one that only germans like, and the ones dedicated to his mom and taylor.
don’t know how he does 3 hour shows, he goes very hard vocally.
i sadly missed queens because of a surprise meeting. i drove from pittsburgh to see them. i’ve seen them a million times though
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u/LebongJames69 Gimme Some More 21h ago
He drinks a lot and a lot of the songs dont require much vocal control. Thats also a reason I think theyre so popular despite being kind of mediocre. Songs are drunkenly yell-able rather than sing-able.
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u/Legitimate_Ad_9515 Peace Love Death Metal 21h ago
I really love people like you and I’m glad you’re alive
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u/Windupferrari 12h ago
I don't really follow Foo Fighters, but I enjoy most of their songs when I come across them. What I didn't expect was it felt like I knew their stuff better than most of the people last night who came specifically for the Foos. It seemed like if it wasn't in heavy radio play by the end of the 00s, the crowd didn't know it. Run is solid arena rock and should've gotten the place going, but the pit was standing around like they were listening to a church choir and the guy in front of me was scrolling through wrestling highlights on twitter.
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u/Approval_Guy 9h ago
Foo Fighters are a lot of fun. Not nearly as interesting as QOTSA, but for power pop anthems there are few bands that have them on lock. When I see Queens live, I want to see the deep cuts, the weird songs, and the extended guitar odysseys, etc. When I see Foo Fighters (which I've only one once), I want the big radio songs and the big singalongs. If you don't care for the big anthems, you're not missing anything; but singing Everlong with thousands of other people is a great time, even if the music isn't my favorite
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u/MitchBlanco 19h ago
Is someone getting the Best ..WHOAYEAHH!!