Dream Widow

Dave Grohl, despite not being on the archives, is generally considered to be one of the most talented musicians in music today. For Dream Widow, a band created for the movie that Foo Fighters has been working on for a while, Grohl handles the drums, bass, guitar, and vocals. And his work is very solid on this album, so much so that you'd never realize he has 30+ years in another genre under his belt.

The themes of this album operate between blackened thrash blitzes and sludgy, methodical metal avalanches that flow seamlessly together. With the use of session synthesizers, there are quite a few melodic hooks as well, probably serving some utility in the context of the movie that accompanies the record. But even with these softer touches, this is still thoroughly a metal record and quite a hard-hitting one at that. The preview to this album came in "March of the Insane," a rather simple but somewhat brutal song that saw Dave Grohl's vocals go deeper and raspier than much of his work in Foo Fighters. It only seems natural that his vocal style could evolve into the destructive force that it is on this album, and as he's at the helm of the songwriting for Dream Widow, he skillfully maneuvers the scale-surfing guitar riffs and smooth bass lines to add power to his voice.

The album opens with "Encino," a rapid-fire track that serves as a nice introduction before "Cold," the album's best highlight, takes over with its doom metal inspiration and clever song structure. Session guitarist James Rota offers wailing guitar leads and emotive solos that complement that dark nature of these tracks well, but not to the point of overdoing it and losing the identity of this record. Grohl's drumming is another highlight, with his garage rock influences and a flurry of cymbal crashes that lend a loose feeling to these songs. Even with him controlling so many aspects of this record, he never loses touch of the drumming style that made his work with Nirvana so great, and remnants of that style are woven into this album well.

Aside from the ten-minute extravaganza that closes out the record, most of these songs are straightforward and don't dabble too much in progressive techniques or worn-out tropes that many modern extreme metal bands have beaten to death. And this works well for Dream Widow, because this is in many ways an old school metal record with a more palatable presentation. Grohl's vocals aren't always a growl, but when they are, it is very nice to hear. He sounds comfortable and in control of this vocal style, and it's sad that many of his vocal performances are buried beneath the mix, like on "Angel With Severed Wings." His vocals truly add a lot to the album, and that is really the only flaw in the production.

Hearing Grohl's transition to metal come into fruition with this much success and fluidity is both inspiring and depressing. He could have been putting out quality metal music for years, had Foo Fighters not been so successful. It makes you wonder, too, if he will stick with this aesthetic, especially following the tragic passing of Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins. Whichever direction Dave chooses to go, it's clear that his innovation is nowhere near its end, and there is still plenty of high-quality tunes to follow.