The Foo Fighters’ music has always been stadium worthy, so it’s only fitting that their live show now has all the trappings of rock excess: intricate lighting, auxiliary musicians, guest stars, a second stage and, best of all, ego ramps. Though at times their two-plus hour set dissolved into the Dave Grohl music-and-comedy revue, with the frontman devoting ample time chatting with the ACC crowd like they had just met for coffee, it has to be said that this guy is one of the most personable rock stars out there. Besides, by amplifying that kind of sincerity to arena-rock proportions I doubt that the Foo Fighters ever disappoint.

After the middling punk-pop of Against Me!, the ever-gratifying Grohl was a welcome relief. While I can appreciate their triumphant melodies and excitable demeanour, seeing Against Me! assuages any fear that the world’s supply of inoffensive and mildly engaging stadium punk will ever run dry. The band’s workmanlike resolve carried tunes like “Stop” (from their major label breakthrough New Wave), as well as topical ditties like “Sink, Florida, Sink” from their indie-label past over the audience’s minimal head-nodding. It’s always disconcerting to watch such a spirited performance so mildly received, but I’m sure the black-clad quartet is taking copious notes on cultivating mass-audience appeal during their time on this tour because there’s a lot to be learned from even one Foo Fighters set.

Make no mistake, Dave Grohl is in fact strutting down a narrow runway stretching from the main stage all the way out into the audience and saluting the Toronto crowd with a raised guitar (although in this case I think it’s appropriate to refer to it as an axe). And yes, the regular Fighters four (including drummer Taylor Hawkins, bassist Nate Mendel, and guitarist Chris Schifflett) has expanded to a healthy eight-piece band (featuring violin, auxiliary percussion, keyboards and original Foos guitarist Pat Smear) for openers “Let it Die” and “The Pretender” from last year’s Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace. But it’s not until midway though first-album favourite “This Is a Call” — when the band eases into a blues-rock groove and Grohl returns to the ego ramp for some Clapton-esque lead guitar work — that it’s clear we have gone over to the satisfyingly campy dark side of the Big Production rock show.

Where do you go from a guitar solo? Why, into a drum solo of course. But even with the kind of flawless bashing that landed him a gig with Alanis Morrissette oh so many moons ago, Hawkins endears himself to the Toronto crowd by living out his own Trailer Park Boys fantasy sharing the stage with Alex Lifeson and Geddy Lee for a jammed-out version of “YYZ." As if the majesty of rock couldn’t get any more elaborate, a second stage descended from the ceiling into the back-half of the floor where the full eight members brought a fully rocking acoustic set a few hundred metres closer to the nosebleeds and corporate boxes. Of course, the irony here is that establishing a connection with more of the audience requires a massively engineered gesture; but I’m not about to suggest that they didn’t pull it off.

Just as the band-of-the-people shtick starts wearing thin, a three-song dose of gratification (“Everlong,” “Monkeywrench” and “All My Life”) marks the band’s return to full-volume and the main stage. Sadly, the rockburst also marked the end of their set. But it wasn’t long before Grohl’s gum-chomping mug graced the video screens from a live backstage feed, effectively dissolving the faux-suspense of the inevitable encore as he and the band clowned around for the crowd. From a sluggish version of “Big Me” to the anthemic “Best of You,” the encore proved a bit of a letdown. Short of a revolving drum kit or an animatronic mascot (see Mötley Crüe or Iron Maiden circa 1988, or last Sunday, respectively), all the Foo Fighters had left were the hits they hadn’t yet played. Maybe there is nothing more to the Foo Fighters rock spectacle than good music after all.

    
   
 

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