This week’s show is all about Dave Grohl’s new Sonic Highways documentary series, the first two of which aired last week. The first one was all about the early Chicago punk scene and the second covered the Washington DC DIY Hardcore scene. They are well worth two hours of your TV time and if you don’t believe me now, you will by the end of this show.
Things of course kick off with a bit of Nirvana, before we dive head first into the Chicago documentary for Naked Raygun and The Jesus Lizard. Then it’s a Albini triple header because he came off sounding like the soundest sound guy to ever sit in a sound room. So its Shellac, Big Black and Rapeman. Next its a bit of Grohl’s best stick work with some Queens of the Stone age. No documentary on Chicago music would be complete without a bit of the blues, so Muddy Waters is next before we dive back into early Chicago hardcore with Articles of Faith.
At the half hour mark it’s time to move to the documentary on Washington DC and to aid in the crossover its Chicago’s Al Jourgensen and DC’s Ian McKaye’s short lived project Pailhead. Next its a bit of Grohl-less Scream. Then its on to a McKaye triple-header with Teen Idles, Minor Threat and Fugazi. Sneaking in a bit of local music its Stomach doing a cover of Government Issue who are then played next. Black Market Baby, Bad Brains and Henry Rollins finish up the DC segment with a bang. The last song has a pretty spurious connection to Dave Grohl, but it highlights the fact that he seems like a dude that loves music and likes to have a bit of a laugh, so it’s a bit of The Eagles of Death Metal.
Check out the documentaries, some great interviews, footage, etc. and not much mention of the Foo Fighters. The rest of the series should be great as well.
As always, bands are linked and the show is designed to be played extremely loud while accompanied by cold beverages of the fermented variety. Tune in, rock out!!