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“It’s gonna be a long night, motherfuckers!” – we’ve heard this tale before from Dave Grohl. Gargantuan, three-hour shows have been Foo Fighters’ bread and butter for a number of years, justifying what would normally be an obscenely early stage time of 7.30pm in Manchester tonight – there’s a lot to pack in.
Sixteen years after the UK granted them their first shot at a stadium, their return marks the country’s second biggest tour all summer, topped only by Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour. The common theme, it appears, is the marathon approach – packing ten albums’ worth of material into one giant spectacle.
‘Monkey Wrench’ unexpectedly opens the set, helping invigorate a modest crowd who, to be fair, have been drenched in the Manchester rain all afternoon. Windswept and scruffy, Grohl screams through his trademark long hair, joking how a haircut might be imminent: “I’m gonna look like fucking Gandalf in three years.”
New drummer Josh Freese appears comfortably settled, keeping a relatively low profile to let Grohl’s masterful showmanship take centre stage. Putting his own spin on things rather than trying to emulate the late, great Taylor Hawkins, the fast and furious bridge in ‘All My Life’ is wickedly fresh, considering the track is on its umpteenth time around the block. The set is refreshingly slick, with less story time from Grohl than usual – though the temptation to drag ‘The Pretender’ out is too hard to resist.
Front-loading the set with greatest hits, the deep cut selection is exquisite. ‘Generator’ and ‘Arlandria’ prove a raspier Grohl hasn’t lost a smidge of his emotional edge, while ‘Under You’ receives an acoustic rendition on the runway. We’re treated to an unreleased number titled ‘Unconditional’, an old demo dragged out from the vaults which slots courteously into the show, albeit difficult to unpick amidst the majestic wall of sound.
Quite possibly their defining stadium-rock number, ‘Best Of You’ continues to be world-class, lifting Old Trafford into another stratosphere. Its chant outlasts the encore and continues into the tram station and beyond – its power to unite thousands more prevalent than ever. During closer ‘Everlong’, Grohl’s broken guitar gives him a chance to momentarily morph into Bono and frolic around the stage – mic in hand – just another charming trait to add to the CV of the nicest man in rock.
Approaching thirty years as a band, Foo Fighters have adapted in the face of any adversity, ensuring their stadium show remains cohesive, exemplary and simply untouchable. While others from their time might begin to creep towards legacy act territory, Foo Fighters remain as relevant and imperious as ever – they’re only going to need even more stadiums to fill.
Foo Fighters played:
‘Monkey Wrench’
‘Learn To Fly’
‘No Son Of Mine’
‘Rescued’
‘The Pretender’
‘Times Like These’
‘Generator’
‘Stacked Actors’
‘Medicine At Midnight’
‘Walk’
‘Statues’
‘Under You’
‘My Hero’
‘This Is A Call’
‘The Sky Is A Neighbourhood’
‘Arlandria’
‘These Days’
‘All My Life’
‘Unconditional’
‘Aurora’
‘Best Of You’
‘The Teacher’
‘Everlong’
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“I received plenty of comments saying it was far too soon to ‘go solo’,” Geese frontman Cameron Winter told NME last year while reflecting on how people initially reacted to his decision to branch out on his own. “Most likely because a lot of folks assume that ‘solo albums’ only happen once a band has passed its peak and that they usually feel like uninspired cash grabs.”
Honestly, everyone is trying to earn a living however they can these days, yet no one expected a Geese side project to generate any real financial payoff in 2024. “Just so you know,” he went on, “my solo album is different: because barely anyone knows my band, I am young and comfortable living with my parents and I have the freedom to follow any ideas that interest me.”
Brooklyn indie followers and former NME cover stars Geese were gaining real momentum when their second album ‘3D Country’ mixed cowboy psychedelia with a jazzy, art-punk energy that had already captured the attention of many UK 6 Music dads back in 2023, but who could have predicted what came next? Geese have become one of the most talked-about bands of 2025 and are expected to dominate multiple end-of-year lists with the ambitious and full-range rock of ‘Getting Killed’. Yet the moment that set the stage for this rise was Winter’s Lou Reed-inspired debut solo record ‘Heavy Metal’.
A handful of late-night US television appearances and a spot on Jools Holland acted as a welcoming doorway for the world to see what this 23-year-old can do far beyond what many twice or three times his age are capable of. Now the sold-out Roundhouse audience made up of indie teens, art school regulars, fans who traveled across Europe and seasoned listeners reacts with a collective breath as a slight opening in the stage curtain reveals the silhouette of Winter seated at a piano. First comes a spark of excitement, then a sudden hush.
There is no flashy social media moment, no chatter overriding the music and almost no sea of raised phones. There is a sincerity to how the night unfolds. The Geese singer barely turns toward the audience. “Turn around!” someone calls out from the balcony at one stage. “Is this not enough for you all?” Winter teases back. For some, maybe it was more than enough. At least four people appear to faint around the warm and crowded Roundhouse while the room stands in absolute focus as Winter moves through the dreamlike storytelling of ‘Try As I May’, the emotional swirl of ‘The Rolling Stones’, the bright lift of ‘Love Takes Miles’ and the sermon-like stomp of ‘Nausicaä (Love Will Be Revealed)’. When he reaches the intense and spiritually charged ‘$0’, even the most skeptical hipster might be convinced that “I’m not kidding, God is actually real”. In that moment, it feels as though we all understand.
The entire performance can be summed up in how ‘Drinking Age’ unfolds. It starts softly with a gentle touch on the keys before erupting into a thunderous attack on the Steinway that could echo into next year, followed by a long, open cry aimed toward the sky. Winter somehow manages to blend something minimal with something enormous, something grounded with something cosmic, a delicate approach that hits with staggering force as he reaches toward ideas of existence, heaven, hell and everything surrounding them.
Winter could recite the phone book and still leave a crowd stunned. He carries the spirit of a post-punk Rufus Wainwright you can play alongside The Strokes and Arctic Monkeys, a Gen Z Tom Waits for listeners exhausted by TikTok overload, a new Nick Cave who arrives at exactly the moment he is needed. His voice feels older than his years yet perfectly suited to express the concerns and emotions of his own generation.
We will continue praising Geese endlessly because they deserve it. They are an extraordinary burst of musical creativity that goes far beyond what their lineup would ever imply, and along with Fontaines D.C., they are poised to become one of the decade’s essential bands. Still, tonight offers something quieter and more intimate. Cameron Winter stands completely on his own power, talent and magnetism, proving himself a rising force who can hold an entire room with only his voice, a piano and an entire future waiting for him.
‘Try as I May’
‘Emperor XIII in Shades’
‘The Rolling Stones’
‘Love Takes Miles’
‘Drinking Age’
‘Serious World’
‘Nausicaä (Love Will Be Revealed)’
‘If You Turn Back Now’
‘Vines’
‘Nina + Field of Cops’
‘$0’
‘Take It With You’
‘Cancer of the Skull’
