Words by Bella Pinkstone, Storm Leith & Christian Serginson
Pix by Ali Williams
When we heard FOO FIGHTERS were doing a 2026/2027 Australian Tour, I was absolutely ecstatic. A core memory in my family was my mum taking my younger brother to one of their concerts back in 2018, after he had heard Sky is a Neighbourhood, he was content with leaving early. That song was the fifth played. Mum (who is cowriting this review with me) was pissed and we had strict instructions not to mention leaving early or else.
The night started with Mini Skirt, admittedly a band we hadn’t heard of until the TAKE COVER tour announced its openers. The sun was starting to set when they came onto the stage at 5:29pm, audience members murmuring as they slowly started piling into Suncorp Stadium. Their unabashed noise harkened back to garage rock of old, with lead singer Jacob Boylan headbanging across the stage. The driving guitars and hard hitting drums set exactly the kind of tone you’d come to expect as an opener for the Fooies.
The next performance was delivered by Full Flower Moon Band, with earsplitting whistles and cheers heard across the entire stadium. It was a pleasant surprise that, with any FFMB merchandise purchase, there was an exclusive QR scan for preview of their upcoming album AFTER DARK. I’d keep a look out for their upcoming performance in Townsville where they are continuing to support the Foo Fighters for their Queensland leg of the tour.
“I feel like a lot of memories are gonna be made tonight. The heat, the excitement, the air, the location, the city, the goddamn city…” lead singer, Kate ‘Babyshakes’ Dillion, spoke to the crowd. “Hey guys, guess what… We met Dave Grohl.” And just like that, the crowd goes wild, jittery with excitement about the upcoming main performance. Dillion, alongside band members; Marli Smales, Luke Hanson, Christian Driscoll and Caleb Widener, were an absolute joy to watch perform. Dillion parading up and down the catwalk, engaging with the audience to make her presence on the stage known. We found ourselves unable to look away from awe.
My first exposure to Foo Fighters was my mum jamming out in the car with my younger brothers and I strapped into our carseats, attempting to headbang, something she continues to do now with her grandchildren. Starting the TAKE COVER tour at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium, it was pleasing to see the audience of all generations and they did not disappoint in their excitement.
Opening with All My Life from their One by One album, the crowd was pumped from the get-go. With 30 songs to be played, the band wasted no time getting into their three hour performance. Songs were played from across almost all albums; Times Like These, My Hero and This is the Call pulling some nostalgia from the crowd. “Welcome to the first night of our Australian tour,” lead singer, Dave Grohl, welcomed the audience. “I’m so fucking grateful and lucky that we are here 30 years later. It takes a lot to say ‘No’ to coming to Australia.”
The empty seats scattered across the stadium against the packed tin of sardines that was GA section, encapsulates the kind of relationship fans have with the band, all or nothing. During the latter part of the show, Grohl chatted with the crowd, saying that they were going to do something special. Each member of Foo Fighters was going to play a song of their choice, as a homage to the band they were in before joining Foo Fighters. Each member played snippets from their prior band, with personal photos of those years alongside. When Ilam Rubin’s turn came, there was an unexpected twist, he didn’t pick a song from his old band. Instead, exchanged his drumsticks for Grohl’s guitar.
The audience was in chaos. Cheers, whistles and clapping were all heard – everyone beaming with excitement. Seeing Dave Grohl sitting back down in the drummer’s seat was nostalgic to the days in Nirvana. This swap was not to take the spotlight off himself however but to show the magnitudes of difference between him and his contemporaries. Unsurprisingly dominating the solo of Tap Dancing in a Minefield. Until this point the accompanying visuals were different live feeds of the band. Moving into the track Aurora, the change to a lone green synth wave among a black void made for a stark contrast. Specifically since the song is played exclusively as a tribute to their late drummer Taylor Hawkins, to me the absent visuals still represent Taylors’ perspective, just in a different plain altogether.
Finishing the night’s performance with an encore featuring Baker Street by Gerry Rafferty, Hey, Johnny Park! and Everlong, no one was eager to leave their seats. “Thank you for coming out tonight. It’s such a fucking beautiful night tonight. So many good memories here,” Grohl purred to the roaring crowd concluding the first Australian show of the Take Cover tour.
With Townsville’s show tonight, November 7, at the Queensland Country Bank Stadium, there are five other shows through to next year. Sydney will be getting their visit on November 10th, followed by Newcastle on November 12th, Melbourne on November 14th and Adelaide on November 17th. The TAKE COVER tour will wrap up at Perth on 25th January, 2027.
Get your tickets now at www.axs.com
