NME
Foo Fighters might be on hiatus, but Dave Grohl has got a hell of a lot to talk about. He sits down with NME for his most candid interview in years.
God damn, it's bright in here." Dave Grohl
winces and draws the curtains out of respect
for his burgeoning hangover. It's midday and
he thinks he got to bed maybe four hours ago.
He's making the most of his time in London.
Last night he swung by his favourite Soho rock
hangout The Crobar before attempting to pay
a visit to burlesque club The Box, which turned out to
be closed. That didn't stop the party, but one hanger-on
nearly did. "There was this English singer with us who
was completely wasted. We almost had to throw him
out," he explains. Which of our hard-living rockers is he
referring to? "Have you heard of this band ... Blue?"
Yes, the greatest drummer of his generation spent last
night being tailed by conspiracy-spouting pop crackpot
Lee Ryan. "The guy kept telling us how many million
records he's sold:' Grohl shrugs. "I was like, 'Really? You."
The mind recoils at the idea of the pair propping up a
bar, but then Grohl does have a reputation for being "the
nicest guy in rock" and he's no stranger to surrounding
himself with a weird and varied cast of characters. Last
night he played a show with his Sound City Players,
a band that included various members of Foo Fighters
as well as Grohl's former Nirvana bandmate Krist
Novoselic, Cheap Trick guitarist Rick Nielson and '80S
heartthrob Rick Springfield. They're in town for the
premiere of his documentary, Sound City, which tells the
story of the legendary LA recording studio where Neil
Young, Fleetwood Mac, Rage Against The Machine,
Arctic Monkeys and more all laid down classic albums.
The place holds a special significance for Grohl, because
it was where Nirvana recorded 'Nevermind' in 1991.
As he sits down for a
revitalising breakfast of
sausage and eggs, Grohl
opens up in an in-depth NME
interview for the first time
since he was named Godlike
Genius at the 2011 NME
Awards. There's a lot to talk
about, from his plans for the
next Foo Fighters record to
how his idol Paul McCartney came to front a reunited
Nirvana line-up. Oh, and why he still wants to throttle
the charlatans who produce manufactured pop...
NME: Your film starts with Nirvana in a beat-up van
going to Sound City to record 'Nevermind'. When did
you realise how big that record would get?
"When I joined Nirvana they had demoed
'In Bloom' and 'Lithium' with the original drummer,
Chad, so there was already this buzz about the band.
We signed to the David Geffen Company and they gave
us money to go to Los Angeles to record 'Nevermind'.
I don't know why we picked Sound City. I think it
was because of the board, which was an old Neve, and
because it was cheap. It was like $600 a day. Our budget
wasn't much because nobody
thought anything was going to
happen with the record. When
we got there we were surprised
that it was such a shithole, but
we weren't accustomed to the
finer things in life anyway. It
was such a quick session and
nobody thought anything was
going to come of it. We only
took three pictures while we were making the record.
That's all there is to document the making of that
record, other than the record itself It was so far outside
Hollywood that none of the fucking posh A&R people
would ever come out. I asked our manager if I should
worry, and he said, 'No, consider yourself lucky! You
don't want those assholes there.' We recorded in April
and the record came out in September and then we were
just touring in the van as we'd usually do. Things
started to change by Christmas. I knew things were
going well because our per diem went from $7 to $10
a day. It was a sweet gig! Audiences started getting
bigger and by the end of the tour the album was gold."
What was It like to Go back into that room at Sound
City where it all started?
"The first time I went back after we recorded 'Nevermind'
I went in and right as you walk in the front door there's
a huge Nirvana plaque. It was an incredibly emotional
experience for me because when I first walked into
Sound City I thought, 'Oh my god, what a shithole.'
Then I looked at the wall and saw Fleetwood Mac,
Tom Petty and Neil Young. I couldn't believe that these
legendary records had been made in such a dump. It
was good to think that another kid would say the same
thing when he walked in the front door: 'I can't believe
'Nevermind' was made here, it's a shithole.'''
What's the wildest thing you got up to at Sound City?
"Once I was producing a band called Verbena and it
was the singer's birthday so I bought him this mini
motorcycle that went at fucking 45mph. We spent an
entire afternoon jumping the ramp that goes up to the
parking lot like Evel KnieveL It was the stupidest, most
dangerous thing I've ever done in my entire life. There
were countless nights where we'd just abandon the
session and start drinking. It's not like you were going
to mess anything up in there. It was fun."
When Sound City closed you bought the sound board.
Now you've got it in your studio are you desperate to
record the next Foo Fighters record on it?
"Yeah, but it's funny because I've just made the biggest
infomercial for my studio. We're getting calls from
really popular bands who want to come and record on
the Sound City board. I'm fucked
because it's my studio and I don't
have anywhere to go! I think the
reason they sold the board to me
was because they knew I wasn't
going to chop it up and sell it for
parts. I wanted to use it the way it's
supposed to be used. That thing
hasn't been turned off - other
than, like, power outages and
earthquakes - for 40 years."
You've said you'll start working
on the next Foo Fighters record
as soon as you get home. When
can we expect to hear it?
"Eventually! We have a lot of music,
we just need to turn it into a record.
You know, I think we do best
when we step away from things
and regroup. One of the reasons
we've been a band so long is that
we eventually learned how to
say no to things. I mean, we're
on hiatus now and we're busier
than we've ever been in our lives:
We can't spend that much time
away from each other because
we've been friends for a really
long time. Whenever we get
back together just to do something
as silly as the Sound City project
it's always fun. The next record
is going to be good. I'm looking
forward to it."
When will you next be going
onstage as Foo Fighters in the UK?
"I don't know. Not any time soon."
Say... within five years?
"I can't wait that long! God damn,
if I waited five years I'd almost be
50 years old! I've got to come back
before then. You'd have to fucking
wheel me onstage ... "
Well, if it was Reading it wouldn't
be the first time someone was
pushed onstage in a wheelchair...
"(Laughs) Exactly! You don't want
to go through all that again."
Last year at
Reading there were
rumours you'd
cover Nirvana. Is
that something
you'd ever consider?
"Every once in a while we talk
about it. For the Sound City gig
here in London we were thinking
about musicians that we could
invite because Stevie Nicks and
John Fogerty couldn't make it.
Someone came up with the idea
of doing a Nirvana song with PJ
Harvey. Kurt loved her and we love
her and we thought, 'Yeah, what
would we do?' I said: 'God, what
if we were to do 'Milk It' from 'In
Utero' with Polly singing?' We all looked at each other,
like, 'Woah, that would be amazing .. .' and then she
couldn't do it! The thing is, it's sacred ground. If we were
ever to do something like that it would have to be right
because you want to pay tribute. There's a reason Foo
Fighters don't do Nirvana songs, and it's a good reason."
At the Hurricane Sandy benefit show people thought
you were reforming Nirvana with Paul McCartney...
"When he came to our studio to record with us that
day we didn't know what to expect. Some musicians
need to know what they're going to do before they get
in the studio, others are just willing to get weird and
experiment and jam. Paul likes to just walk in and
see what happens, which I have so much respect for
because he's fearless. He has a confidence
that you don't find in a lot of musicians
because he's really good! I knew that we weren't going
to do a Beatles song and I was pretty sure we weren't
going to do a Nirvana song, so when I talked to him
he said, 'Well, why don't we just write something?'
I said, 'Oh great, that takes the pressure off!' Then
with the Hurricane Sandy benefit he called and said,
'Hey, um, I'm doing this benefit, would you like to play?'
I said, 'Of course.' He said, 'Maybe you could play a bit
of drums. Hey, why don't we do the Sound City song?'
I would never have suggested that! I wouldn't have been
like, 'Hey Paul, let's do one of my songs,' you know? So
I asked Krist and Pat and it just happened. Of course,
there was a lot of speculation. People didn't
know what our intentions were, but I was
really happy that we were the one band that
went out there and did a song that no-one had
ever heard. A song that no-one knew existed
at that point! We'd kept it a real secret."
What was the most surreal moment?
"We were in the studio and he says, 'Go in
there and double my vocal,' and I said, 'OK,
you mean put a harmony on it?' 'No, no
just sing what I sang. Me and Lennon
used to do it all the time.' Like, what?!
What's going on here? This is crazy!
I had to pinch myself. Even had we
not filmed or recorded it, that still
would have been the most special
day of my entire life. It was
so awesome to sit with my
absolute hero, my musical hero, the person that
influenced me more than anyone else and
to record on the board that I think
is responsible for me being here.
It was incredible."
Your film emphasises the importance
of bands playing together and sounding
shitty while learning their craft. You've
been quite critical of talent show culture...
"I think people should feel encouraged to
be themselves. That's what bums me out
about those shows where people are judged
so harshly by fucking musicians that hardly
even play an instrument on their own fucking
albums! It makes me really mad. I swear to
God, if my daughter walked up onstage and
sang her heart out and some fucking
billionaire looked at her and said,
'No, I'm sorry you're not any good',
I'd fucking throttle that person,
I swear to God. Who the fuck
are you to say what's good or bad?"
You'd probably do alright if
there was ever a drumming
talent show...
"Well ... If you were to put Keith Moon up onstage
and have him judged - by prolific fusion
drummers they would say, 'Well, your timing's not
great, you're all over the place, you're
hitting rim-shots when you weren't
supposed to, your cymbal work is a little
sloppy.' It's ridiculous.
It homogenises music so that everyone sounds like
Christina Aguilera. I mean, really? In my world
I listen to fucking drummers that sound like they're falling
down the stairs as much as I love listening to
a beautiful disco track where someone's got perfect
time like [Chic sticksman] Tony Thompson. People
need to understand that if you're passionate about
something and you're driven to do it then don't
be fucking scared, do it. The next time someone
says you're not that good a singer, say: 'Fuck you!'
I interviewed Neil Young, and he said in his first
band someone said to him: 'The band's really great,
but honestly you shouldn't be the singer. Please,
don't sing.' If Neil Young had listened to that person,
then we wouldn't have had any Neil Young!"
Foo Fighters are supposed to be on hiatus but you're
working harder than ever. Can you ever imagine retiring?
"Retiring? You should see the house I have to make payments
on! No, look, I've had jobs. I've
had shitty jobs: manual labour,
pizza restaurants, fucking.record
stores, whatever. This is not a job.
I've already retired. I retired the
fucking day that 'Nevermind' went
gold. The thing is, I get all these
amazing opportunities and you'd
be crazy not to take them."
You get called "the nicest guy in
rock", but don't you need to have
an edge to be successful in music?
"Evidently not! I think that it's
important that you try to treat
the people that work with you
with respect and that you try
to take as much time as you can
with the people that come up
to say hello. Sometimes it gets
overwhelming when you just want
to sit down and have a fucking
drink and you can't, but it could
be worse. I have this motto in
life: 'It could be worse'. Some
people have an 'It could be better'
mentality, but not me. Even when
it's bad, it could get worse, believe
me. I don't have any complaints."
With that it's time for Dave
Grohl to head off. He's got
to start whipping those
Foo Fighters songs into
shape, not to mention maintaining
his reputation as the world's most
in-demand drumslinger-for-hire
by playing with everyone from
Queens Of The Stone Age to
RDGLDGRN.]udging by
his unstoppable work rate,
don't be surprised to see him
back prowling a UK stage
before too long. It means
too much to him not to.
"You know it's funny,
recording at Sound City
and playing Reading Festival
happened within six months
of each other," he says. "It
was such a crazy year in my life.
I was 22, I was a child. I was
so dumb, but all those huge
experiences happened in a short
period of time so I look back
on that period in a very romantic
light. To be young, and to have
the world in the palm of your
hand... I wouldn't change a thing."
Words: Kevin EG Perry Pics: Amy Brammall