Dave Grohl admits there's pressure in writing sweeping anthemic rock classics, according to Q on CBC. Guitar-World.com transcribed the chat in which Grohl spoke about writing iconic new songs that could sit alongside the likes of “Everlong” and “My Hero”: “The funny thing is, there is pressure, but no obligation. So, there is this consideration for the listener, but no responsibility, really, so it's kind of this funny balance, it's like, 'OK, when I write a song, I want you to sing along with me, I do,' like I'm extending my hand to the listener saying like, 'Come on, let's do this together.'”
He went on to say, “And of course, that applies to the live thing, and let me tell you — when we go out and play a show where there's 20, 30, 40, 50, 100,000 people and everyone joins in unison and sings along to a song like 'My Hero' or 'Best Of You' or whatever it is, that is such a powerful moment that can only be found, it's hard to find in life where so many people with so many differences can join in unison for three minutes or three hours.”
Grohl explained that the connection to his audience is palpable when writing new material: “I take that into consideration when I'm writing songs; if I write a lyric that I think would sort of not only engage but connect with the listener emotionally, I'm gonna keep that because I think that's one of music's most powerful abilities, is just to be able to, like, I'm connecting with people I might not ever meet, and we're singing this song together live, and I can see their faces.”
He added, “We might not touch each other, but we do in this way, like, with this song, and that to me is so powerful, and it really is not only like the miracle of music, it sounds really cheesy, but it's also maybe my life's greatest reward is to be able to do that with the f***ing world.”
Although Dave Grohl is equally at home gigging in a club or an 80,000-seat sports stadium, he told us a while back why he has a soft spot for massive outdoor festivals: “These kind of shows are so much fun, when you open up with a song like 'All My Life' and they hear the (makes guitar sound), the place just kind of goes off. And it's the best feeling in the world to stand there on stage and watch it happen.”
