The music industry has taken a big hit as far as performers doing live shows, which a whole industry onto itself. Dave Grohl, the drummer of Nirvana and leader of the Foo Fighters, started out making a film about the formative days of former musicians. However, this changed when the pandemic hit and he began to shift focus to build a documentary about the power of live music and how the absence of this industry took a toll.
When it comes to music, Grohl has a passion for those behind-the-scenes stories and wants to bring them to the world in films, such as “Sound City”, a documentary about a legendary California music studio, and the HBO series “Sonic Highways.” His latest documentary “What Drives Us” talks about musicians but centers around rock bands. The common thing they have is hopping in a van and getting to the performance. What started out as swapping van stories got a bit deeper into the need for the van. As the pandemic went on, he started seeing how each musician loved to share the stage. Grohl realized it was the most important part of the conversation because no band wants to stay in the basement.
Even Ringo Starr from the Beatles said that you have to get in a van to make it in this business. The Beatles would stack themselves to keep warm after one instance where their windshield blew out. There were funny stories and ones a bit more heartfelt. Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Flea talks about the music being an escape from an abusive childhood. Lady musician, St. Vincent, says that in a touring van you get to be really close with people in a way that people from a bank wouldn’t understand. Due to Grohl’s extensive music resume, he’s able to build rapport with musicians that your average filmmaker or journalist can’t match. There’s a certain synergy that musicians have and that’s why he’s been able to feed off that vibe even when there were no words exchanged.
He’s been keeping busy with drum-offs, writing with Mick Jagger, even writing a book on some of his past adventures, and making a TV series about rock stars and their mothers. From his young days in Washington D.C. in the underground punk rock scene to his big stage performances, he’s been around for over 3 decades. He appreciates being around people no matter the type of music they play. In music festivals, he recalls having a bottle of whiskey and going to different dressing rooms just to hang out with musicians and build with them in a personal way.
Live music is slowly but surely on the way back. He says it’s great to connect and can sometimes be exciting to do things virtually. However, there’s nothing like the tangible experience you get from a real-life performance.