Sonic Highways

Lore & Background

After the success of Grohl's 2013 documentary film Sound City, he told Billboard he wanted to do something similar. He explained, "After making Sound City, I realized that the pairing of music and documentary works well because the stories give substance and depth to the song, which makes for a stronger emotional connection. So I thought, 'I want to do this again, but instead of just walking into a studio and telling its story, I want to travel across America and tell its story.'" On May 15, 2014, it was announced that the Foo Fighters' eighth album would be released in fall 2014, and that the band would commemorate the album and their 20th anniversary with the TV series. Each song on the new album was recorded in a different city, featuring "local legends" on each song and lyrics inspired by the "experiences, interviews and personalities that became part of the process."

Reader's Guide

The series aired in the UK on BBC Four starting October 26, 2014. It also aired in Australia on GO! hours after its US broadcast, and was repeated on Channel [V] from February 16, 2015. Surprise concerts accompanied the recording: on May 5, 2014, Foo Fighters gave a surprise two-hour concert at 9:30 Club in Washington D.C. On May 7, 2014, Grohl performed a surprise hour-long solo set at The Bluebird Cafe in Nashville to a crowd of approximately 100 people. On May 17, 2014, after a week of recording at Preservation Hall, the band played a surprise show for 90-minutes, which proceeded to shut down an entire block of St. Peter Street in New Orleans.

Did You Know?

• Each of the eight episodes ends with a music video featuring animated lyrics in the background.
• The band collaborated with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band in New Orleans, leading to a live performance with Trombone Shorty.
• The series debuted on HBO on October 17, 2014.