You know, you start to catch up on this week’s The People v. O.J. Simpson and you’ve been led to believe Foo Fighters are breaking up, if not at the very least, going on some sort of hiatus. But then by the time the episode is over and you’re bummed because David Schwimmer didn’t say “juice” once, you catch wind of this video the band has put out, addressing these rumors, seemingly squashing them, and you think to yourself that you can rest easy, everything is good.
But is it, though?
As entertaining as that video was, did it answer or address any of the rumors that had been making their way around the Internet these past few days? Correct me if I’m wrong, but I read this picture…
…as them saying that they’re not breaking up. But it doesn’t really say anything about the rumored hiatus. You could read between the lines with the “nobody’s going f*cking solo” line and infer that a hiatus is off the table. But a hiatus doesn’t mean a solo career is happening. If you ask me, they left themselves some wiggle room there and could very well be peacing out for a bit, taking a well-deserved break.
Now, if this break is indeed happening, we need to address a very pressing issue — who is going to replace Foo Fighters? Over the past year or so, the band has further cemented their role as America’s Rock Band. They are the one American rock band who can easily fill a stadium, play halftime of the Super Bowl if that was something we’d be cool with rock bands doing anymore, or release a rock album that might actually make a dent in the Billboard charts past the first week of sales. If they are taking a step back, that role is up for grabs and, as a measure of preparation, we should start compiling some names.
The way I see it, the bands who could be considered for this role fall into two categories. There are the bands who are established, able to come close to filling the kind of sheds Foo Fighters do and for all intents and purposes, could act as a suitable replacement for them at one of these summer music festivals if the Foos had been slated to play one and now needed to be replaced. The second category is more for up and coming bands, bands that still have the ability to capture our imagination and take the world by storm. They wouldn’t necessarily be a note for note replacement like a band in the first category would be, but in terms of capturing the energy and power of Foo Fighters’ sound, they are a closer fit and, as a result, deserve to be considered.
Alabama Shakes
I’m considering them the front-runner because their profile couldn’t be any higher right now, especially after the noise they made at this year’s Grammy awards. They’ve also graduated to festival headliner status this year, topping bills for Panorama, Sasquatch! Music Festival, Hangout Festival, and Lollapalooza stops in South America. They don’t have the rock tendencies of the Foos — they’re more bluesy soul — but I’d argue that the Black Keys weren’t a traditional rock band, and they had the American Rock Band title belt before the Foo Fighters did. So, it’s possible.
Pearl Jam
Who better to fill the void left by the Foo Fighters than a band thought to be their closest contemporaries? Pearl Jam has kept a relatively low profile over these past couple months (well, except for Eddie Vedder during the Chicago Cubs’ playoff run), but are poised to re-enter our lives this summer with a handful of high-profile dates (co-headlining this year’s Bonnaroo and playing shows at Fenway Park in Boston and Wrigley Field in Chicago) and there’s rumors and chatter about a new album in the works. If indeed Foo Fighters are going on a hiatus and it’s just the long weekend version of a hiatus, Pearl Jam seem like a good bet to step in and fill their shoes.
Gary Clark Jr.
It may be a little bit of a stretch including Clark in this first category, but hey, man, rock ‘n roll is about taking chances. This is essentially still about the Foo Fighters who are as rock ‘n roll as they come, so in the spirit of that, I’m taking a chance here. And it’s not as if thinking Clark can’t make some kind of leap in these next few months is taking that much of chance. He’s been scratching at the surface for a while now and America loves a dude ripping out some blues guitar. My only question is whether or not he can be considered for America’s Rock Band if he A) isn’t a band and B) is in the running for America’s Blues man. Tough call. I’d still say he’s eligible.
Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats
They are not traditional rock, but they are traditional awesome and that counts for something, if not everything. They have the swagger of a rock band, something else that goes in their favor. The hullabaloo created by their song “S.O.B.” has now settled some, becoming more of a constant buzz and I think after a summer of playing nearly every major music festival in the states, they are going to be a house-hold name, if they aren’t already. I also think they might be the first neo-soul band to really have some extended success, something I don’t necessarily see with my man Leon Bridges or my band of 2014 St. Paul & The Broken Bones. No disrespect to either of those two great acts; I just see more staying power with Rateliff and his crew.
The Record Company
A relatively new band, it’s hard to listen to Satellite Radio and not hear their song “Off the Ground,” which is on their recently released album Give It Back to You. They have a Led Zeppelin style stomp their music, a tougher version of the sound Ben Harper came out with when he first got started. I admit that it might be a stretch to include them in this conversation this early in the game, but crazier things have happened, and with summer coming, the time of year when all of sudden a band gets super popular is nearly upon us. If they don’t get the America’s Rock Band title, they could steal America’s Band of the Summer, which wouldn’t be a band consolation prize.
Cage the Elephant
Cage the Elephant have been kicking around our stereos since 2008. I honestly did not think it had been that long, but it has — their debut album, Cage the Elephant, featuring the song “Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked,” was released in the spring of that year. So, they’ve been around for a while, long enough to build a decent fan base, a solid following. With their new album out, Tell Me I’m Pretty, this could be their time to really bust out and make a leap of sorts. Side stage to main stage, boys! It could happen.
The London Souls
Don’t let the name fool you here, these guys are from New York City. The London Souls are just two dudes, but like our friends The Record Company, they have some of that wonderful Zeppelin stomp to their music. Power trios are old news; now we have power duos, which this band is. And with them making stops at some of the big summer music festivals this summer, they could definitely see a jump in their profile, which would help because as of now, I’d say they are also a little bit of a long shot, but hey, you never know.
Highly Suspect
Hey, a power trio! They do still exist. Bass players around the world can sleep a little easier knowing they still have a place in rock music. Highly Suspect are another New York band, yet they formed up I-95 on Cape Cod. Their sound is located in the middle of an intersection of Queens of the Stone Age, Kings of Leon, and the Black Keys.
In the end, though, we hope this is a conversation we can forget about in a day or two and instead of viewing these bands as possible replacements for Foo Fighters, view them as possible openers or co-headliners. We don’t want the Foo Fighters to go anywhere, frankly, they’re too much fun. The world needs fun rock ‘n roll bands just like we need fair and balanced democratic elections, John Oliver and The Bachelor. They provide balance; they provide an escape. Without them, things can get too heavy and nothing good comes from being weighed down.
If the Foos do want to go on a hiatus, though, that’s fine. I support that, you support that, we support that. Take a little break, dudes. Recharge the batteries, the creative juices. The band has earned some time off. We have some bands to keep us going while you’re gone, so we’ll be fine and we’ll make it through.
I for one am going to go on with my life, pretending nothing happened, listening to this mix of Sonic Highways and Saint Cecilia I made. Because we’re certain the band hasn’t broken up and there will be no solo careers. It’s just a hiatus, maybe…We think…Are pretty sure.
Whatever, the video was funny.
