Dave Grohl - Photo by Steve Cohen

Somehow, I had almost forgotten what it was like to go to an actual rock show. When the Foo Fighters started their set Wednesday night at the Target Center, I was amazed at how hardcore everything suddenly felt—had I really been going to that many indie rock shows lately? The Foo cranked into “Let it Die” from their latest album, Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, and the whole room jumped to their feet with the type of aggression that is only felt in an arena full of mostly twentysomething beer-slinging men.

Right away, I spotted two things that I hadn't seen in a long time: a drunk male leaping onto the backs of his friends from inside the pit, attempting to start crowd surfing mere seconds into the first song; and two men near the edge of the pit who emerged shirtless, cheering and swaying amidst the masses. Apparently, it was one of those kind of rock shows, and the whole room was ready to party.

“Who has to go to work tomorrow morning?” Dave Grohl taunted between songs, and the arena roared in response. “You're all fucked!” Grohl yelled, and you could practically see his playful sneer from the other end of the arena. Though I had seen the Foo before—at First Avenue in 2002—Grohl was far more energetic and outgoing than I had remembered him. At points, he came across as downright giddy, and his excitement only mounted as the set wore on.

Those who had come to see Mineapolitan violinist Jessy Greene perform got a glimpse of her at the beginning of the set when she joined the band for the first two songs, but the band was pared down to its core group of four members for the remainder of the first part of the show. With just guitars, drums and Grohl's frenetic energy to fuel them, the Foo powered through a handful of their biggest hits and Grohl ran up and down a catwalk that stretched over the middle of the floor.

The “rock” portion of the set came to a climax with “Stacked Actors,” which was played traditionally at first, and was then broken down into a lengthy and awe-inspiring drum solo by Taylor Hawkins and a bluesy guitar solo by Grohl. When the song ended, all eyes turned toward the center of the room, where a smaller stage was being lowered from the ceiling complete with another drum set and a grand piano. Grohl half-walked, half-skipped down the runway toward the new stage, beckoning those on the floor to follow him as his band made a pilgrimage for the center of the room.

Jessy Greene - Photo by Steve Cohen

The whole room erupted in cheers and chants of “Jessy, Jessy” as Greene blushed and bowed. Goosebumps ran up both of my arms as she grinned and played a barn-burning solo for the arena—after watching her play so many gigs with so many different bands, from small bars to big stages, it was amazing to see her being received so warmly by such a large room of people.

“This is for Jessy,” Grohl announced as the rest of the band filed off stage and he began a solo version of “Everlong.” I had always really liked that song, and it gave it even more impact to hear it played solo. Though I didn't expect it going in, by the end of the night I realized that the Foo Fighters have the versatility and range to put on one of the better rock shows I had seen in a long time. By the end of their three-song encore, the Foo had been playing for over two hours—but judging from the glow of the audience as they filed out of the arena, they could have played all night.

Set List:

Let It Die

The Pretender

Times Like These

Breakout

Learn to Fly

Cheer Up Boys (Your Makeup Is Running)

This Is a Call

Stacked Actors (w/ drum solo by Taylor Hawkins)

**move to acoustic stage

Skin and Bones

Marigold

My Hero

Cold Day in the Sun (w/ Taylor Hawkins on vocals)

But, Honestly

Everlong

**back to main stage during Everlong

Monkey Wrench

All My Life

Encore:

Big Me

Long Road to Ruin

Best of You

Gallery by Steve Cohen, click for larger images: