Stop Foo-ing about!

I'd like to think that if I became uber famous and mega rich writing and/or playing music for a living then, at least after the initial shock ("who'd have thought, with Grade 3 Clarinet, woohoo!!"), I'd enjoy the freedom of being able to do anything. I'm not talking groupies and trout (file under Drunken Led Zep Escapades), I mean creatively. Say, for example, that I went stellar with my magnificent blend of Kraftwerkian synth and old school reggae - the last thing I'd want is to think, "god, that sold millions, I'm stuck now. I can't go and produce heavy metal renditions of Austrian folk or I'll lose it all". Surely the point is that you'd probably be alright if you're world renowned and massively popular.

Which brings me to Dave Grohl, modern rock's era-spanning gold-plated aristo-star. Great stuff Dave, love your work, always have. Even new recipe-for-disaster-because-supergroups-are-always-rubbish supergroup Them Crooked Vultures. You, John Paul Jones of the aforementioned Led Zeppelin and Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme have got enough of a heavy, groovy-but-nuanced thing going on there to (if not silence) then at least distract the doubters for a bit. But what's this I read about you enjoying these side projects because you can kick back and relax with a bit of fun, while the "responsibility" of your own Foo Fighters, "can sometimes be overwhelming" (Mojo, January 2010)? So basically you've got (at least) two bands which you're not driven to engage with artistically.

Hello? The Foo Fighters are your band Dave, remember? If you don't like what it's become then change it. You'd lose a few fans but you're not exactly short of them. If more and more bands keep down this road we won't see too many genuine band progressions anymore. And then where will our Austrian folk-metal fix come from?