Dave Grohl Says That, For 10 Years, He Compared Every Foo Fighters Album To This One Sepultura Album

Andreas Lawen, Fotandi, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
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Over 28 years, we have been gifted with a plethora of great Foo Fighter albums. From the band’s 1995 self-titled debut to their most recent “Dream Widow” album, the Foo Fighters have been a powerhouse of musical creativity.

For Foo Fighters singer Dave Grohl – along with being a talented musician – there has been something else driving him in creating each of these records; a goal involving him trying to live up to some big heavy metal heroes of his.

Via a past interview with Mojo (as transcribed by NME), Dave Grohl shared that, for 10 years, he compared every Foo Fighters album to that of the Sepultura album Roots. Roots, which celebrates its 26th anniversary this year, is one of the most beloved Sepultura albums (among fans and critics alike). Speaking about the impact that this record had on him, Dave shared the following:

“That record became the gauge for every studio album Foo Fighters did for ten years. That sounds pretty good, but see how it stands up to that Sepultura record…’ There’s no way we ever got anywhere close.

But it gave you perspective – this is heavy. What you’re doing? It’s okay, but this is heavy.”

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Grohl went on to share that Roots is “sonically the most powerful album I had ever heard,” and that it “made everything else sound like a flea fart.” Dave is a HUGE Sepultura fan, and during that same conversation, he also spoke about how he got into the band:

“The first time they played Seattle, they were just ferocious. It wasn’t that groomed heavy metal aesthetic; there were dreadlocks everywhere and the guitars were tuned down to Z.

[Krist] Novoselic started getting into them too, and at one point we entertained the idea of having them open up for Nirvana. It never happened.”

That’s wild to hear that Dave spent 10 years comparing Foo Fighters albums to that of Sepultura’s Roots! That is one hell of a musical standard to live up to! What are your feelings about the Sepultura album Roots?

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