2016 live release from Dave Grohl and his Foo friends. Recorded at its namesake the Saint Cecilia Hotel in the midst of the band's two headline sets at this year's Austin City Limits festival, Foo Fighters' five-song Saint Cecilia EP is both a scrapbook of nearly forgotten moments in the band's 20-year odyssey and a heartfelt thank you to the legions of FF faithful who have made that journey possible. Returning to the city where the Sonic Highways' album and HBO documentary series concept was born, Foo Fighters instantly transformed the intimate, secluded retreat into a makeshift studio: Within a day, the office became a control room, the bar was littered with mics and cable, the kitchen packed with amps and the fireplace obstructed by a drum kit. Decades of music no one outside the band had heard, fragments and long forgotten riffs from every album - closing cut "The Neverending Sigh" is 20 years old! - were exhumed or pieced together for the first time, all without the usual pressures and expectations that come with making an album. Dave Grohl, Taylor Hawkins, Nate Mendel, Chris Shiflett, Pat Smear, Rami Jaffee-and old friend Ben Kweller, who happened by one night and ended up adding backing vocals to the title track, sound as happy and relaxed as only a musical family reunion can.
Upon wrapping the supporting tour for 2014's Sonic Highways, Foo Fighters holed up in the Hotel Saint Cecilia off of South Congress in Austin, Texas and cut the five songs that became 2015's Saint Cecilia EP. Effectively, this breakneck 18-minute EP acts as a retort to the widescreen vistas of Sonic Highways. Where that record stretched out, sometimes upwards of seven minutes, this EP happily rushes through its tunes; even the slower "Iron Rooster" -- featuring a cameo from Gary Clark, Jr. -- doesn't feel fussy. This song alone is proof that Saint Cecilia isn't a "punk" EP but it's something better: it's Foo Fighters shaking off the big concepts that they deliberately shouldered on Sonic Highways, winding up with a fun, infectious little record that offers a reminder of all the ways they're an excellent rock band. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine
- Format: Vinyl
- Genre: Rock
- Released: 02/19/2016
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Tracklist
| A1 | Saint Cecilia |
| A2 | Sean |
| A3 | Savior Breath |
| B1 | Iron Rooster |
| B2 | The Neverending Sigh |
