Foo Fighters Eschew New Songs for Hits-Laden Huntington Bank Field Show

Foo Fighters really aren’t standing behind its new album.

None of the more than two dozen songs the sextet played Monday night at Huntington Bank Field in Cleveland came from April’s“Your Favorite Toy.” Instead, the Dave Grohl-led group delivered a greatest hits set, with a smattering of fan favorites and deep cuts sprinkled in.

With a three-hour show to tinker with, the band had ample opportunity to give the tens of thousands in attendance a chance to see what it was up to as it broke in new drummer Ilan Rubin and Grohl navigated the fallout of his fathering a child out of wedlock. Instead, the Foos chose to play it safe.

That’s not to dismiss the rest of the show, which saw the band entertaining the biggest crowd it’s ever played to in Cleveland with its brand of mainstream hard rock (the band last played in the city at a 2021 show at the House of Blues ahead of its induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, though that was an intimate one-off). Grohl’s a born showman, and it was clear he was working hard from the start — he was drenched in sweat by the second song. Hopefully the Warren-born singer/guitarist/drummer put in extra effort because of the proximity to his hometown.

“We’ve got 31 years of songs to play tonight for one show,” Grohl said early on. “That’s a lot of songs. So we gotta pick something for everyone.”

Well, almost everyone.

Fortunately, there are plenty of good songs from the past. Opener “All My Life” set the tone, with Grohl screaming half the lyrics (he must have a great vocal coach if he’s able to sing-scream that much every couple of days) and the band stretching out on instrumental sections.

Not everything worked, often because the screaming got in the way of good melodies. There were numerous highlights, though, including takes on “This Is a Call” and “Big Me” from its 1995 self-titled debut, a ferocious “No Son of Mine” with a snippet of Motörhead’s “Ace of Spades” and show closer “Everlong,” complete with fireworks during the last chorus. There were also short but entertaining takes on tunes from the bands each member was in before the Foos.

Grohl’s references to Northeast Ohio were also moving, especially when he said he visited the cemetery where his grandparents are buried for the first time in 26 years.

It was only in the encore, when the band played “The Teacher” in honor of Grohl’s late mother, that Foo Fighters took anything remotely resembling a chance. The moody, atmospheric song unfolded over more than 10 minutes, giving the band a chance to lock in and crescendo to a moving finale.

With three hours to play with, the band could’ve trimmed some fat by taking out a “OK, sing along with me” here and a drum solo there to make room for some new songs.

But hey, I guess the hits always sound good in a football stadium.

If the Foos played it safe, openers Queens of the Stone Age did anything but during its 55-minute, 11-song opening set. Taking the stage to Starland Vocal Band’s “Afternoon Delight,” the Josh Homme-led quintet tore through its version of hard rock, complete with herky-jerky rhythms and overdriven psychedelic guitar solos.

The climax was a three-song suite from the band’s best-known album, 2002’s “Songs for the Deaf,” which featured Grohl drumming on most of the tracks. Drummer Jon Theodore ably recreated Grohl’s parts and then some, receiving ample time to shine on a punishing run-through of “A Song for the Deaf.”

First openers Mannequin Pussy also made the most of its 30 minutes. The band, which last played the area in 2024 at the 400-capacity Grog Shop, according to setlist.fm, did its best to translate its sound for a massive stage. Lead singer Marisa Dabice made the most of the space by dancing and traversing the catwalk.

While some of the ’90s alternative rock-inspired music was uneven, the group was at its best when rapidly veering from one punk song to another.

Setlist:
1. All My Life
2. The Pretender
3. Times Like These
4. Rope
5. Stacked Actors
6. My Hero
7. Learn to Fly
8. These Days
9. Walk
10. This Is a Call
11. No Son of Mine (with a snippet of Motörhead’s “Ace of Spades”)
12. Wheels
13. Marigold
14. Big Me
15. Under You
16. La Dee Da
17. Run
18. Band Introductions, with snippets of No Use for a Name’s “Invincible,” Sunny Day Real Estate’s “Seven,” The Wallflowers’ “One Headlight,” Germs’ “Manimal” and The New Regime’s “Tap Dancing in a Minefield”
19. Monkey Wrench
20. Breakout
21. The Sky Is a Neighborhood
22. Aurora
23. Best of You
Encore:
24. The Teacher
25. Everlong