Album · 15 years old this year
Wasting Light
Wasting Light is Foo Fighters' seventh studio album, released on 12 April 2011 through Roswell and RCA. After the experiments of their previous records, the band wanted something heavier and rawer, so they recorded in Dave Grohl's garage in Encino, California, using only analogue equipment. Butch Vig, who had worked with Grohl on Nirvana's Nevermind, co-produced with the band. With so little room to fix mistakes afterwards, they rehearsed for three weeks, and Vig had to relearn older editing techniques.
It is also the first Foo Fighters album made as a five-piece, with Pat Smear back as an official member for the first time since The Colour and the Shape. Bob Mould and Krist Novoselic guest. "Rope" debuted at number one on Billboard's Rock Songs chart, the album topped charts in eleven countries, and it won four Grammys in 2012, including Best Rock Album.
Wasting Light: tracklist, credits and charts
11 tracks · 47:55Tracklist
- 1Bridge BurningGrohl, Hawkins, Mendel, Shiflett, Smear4:47
- 2RopeGrohl, Hawkins, Mendel, Shiflett, Smear4:19
- 3Dear RosemaryGrohl, Hawkins, Mendel, Shiflett, Smear4:27
- 4White LimoGrohl, Hawkins, Mendel, Shiflett, Smear3:23
- 5ArlandriaGrohl, Hawkins, Mendel, Shiflett, Smear4:28
- 6These DaysGrohl, Hawkins, Mendel, Shiflett, Smear4:59
- 7Back & ForthGrohl, Hawkins, Mendel, Shiflett, Smear3:52
- 8A Matter of TimeGrohl, Hawkins, Mendel, Shiflett, Smear4:36
- 9Miss the MiseryGrohl, Hawkins, Mendel, Shiflett, Smear4:34
- 10I Should Have KnownGrohl, Hawkins, Mendel, Shiflett, Smear4:16
- 11WalkGrohl, Hawkins, Mendel, Shiflett, Smear4:16
- Produced by
- Butch Vig, Foo Fighters
- Recorded at
- Dave Grohl's residence (Encino, Los Angeles)
- Recorded
- 6 September – 21 December 2010
- Mixed by
- Alan Moulder
- Engineered by
- James Brown
- Label
- RCA
- Length
- 47:55
Line-up
- Dave Grohl · guitar, lead vocals
- Taylor Hawkins · drums (drum set)
- Rami Jaffee · keyboard, mellotron, organ
- Nate Mendel · bass guitar
- Chris Shiflett · guitar
- Pat Smear · guitar
- Bob Mould · guitar, vocals · guest
- Drew Hester · percussion · guest
- Butch Vig · percussion · guest
- Fee Waybill · background vocals · guest
- Jessy Greene · violin · guest
- Krist Novoselic · accordion, bass guitar · guest
Singles
- “Rope” · 1 March 2011
- “White Limo” · 28 March 2011
- “Walk” · 17 June 2011
- “Arlandria” · 18 September 2011
- “These Days” · 1 November 2011
- “Bridge Burning” · 5 June 2012
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| UK Albums Chart · 2011 | 1 |
| US Billboard 200 · 2011 | 1 |
| Australian Albums (ARIA) · 2011 | 1 |
| Austrian Albums · 2011 | 1 |
| Belgian Albums (Flanders) · 2011 | 1 |
| Canadian Albums (Billboard) · 2011 | 1 |
| Croatian International Albums (HDU) · 2011 | 1 |
| Finnish Albums · 2011 | 1 |
| German Albums · 2011 | 1 |
| New Zealand Albums · 2011 | 1 |
All 36 charts
| Norwegian Albums · 2011 | 1 |
| Scottish Albums · 2011 | 1 |
| Swedish Albums · 2011 | 1 |
| Swiss Albums · 2011 | 1 |
| UK Rock & Metal Albums · 2011 | 1 |
| US Alternative · 2011 | 1 |
| US Hard Rock · 2011 | 1 |
| US Tastemaker · 2011 | 1 |
| US Top Rock Albums · 2011 | 1 |
| Dutch Albums · 2011 | 2 |
| Swiss Albums (Romandie) · 2011 | 2 |
| US Vinyl Albums · 2011 | 2 |
| Danish Albums · 2011 | 3 |
| Irish Albums · 2011 | 3 |
| Portuguese Albums · 2011 | 3 |
| Belgian Albums (Wallonia) · 2011 | 4 |
| Czech Albums (IFPI) · 2011 | 4 |
| Italian Albums · 2011 | 4 |
| Greek Albums · 2011 | 6 |
| Spanish Albums · 2011 | 7 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon) · 2011 | 9 |
| Polish Albums · 2011 | 12 |
| French Albums · 2011 | 18 |
| Korea Int · 2011 | 34 |
| Mexican Albums · 2011 | 52 |
| Korea · 2011 | 88 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification |
|---|---|
| Australia · 2012 | 2× Platinum |
| Austria | Gold |
| Belgium · 2011 | Gold |
| Brazil · 2011 | Gold |
| Canada · 2011 | Platinum |
| Finland · 2011 | Gold |
| Germany · 2021 | Platinum |
| Ireland · 2011 | Gold |
| Italy · 2013 | Gold |
| Netherlands · 2012 | Gold |
| New Zealand · 2018 | 2× Platinum |
| Poland · 2012 | Gold |
| Sweden | Gold |
| Switzerland · 2011 | Gold |
| United Kingdom · 2013 | Platinum |
| United States · 2017 | Platinum |
Awards
- Grammy Award for Best Rock Album · 2012
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
81.4
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
8.0k
ListenBrainz listeners
94k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
80k
Deezer fans (all editions)
Released the same week
Also released on 12 April
Every year →
More from Foo Fighters
Full discography →
Foo Fighters
1995
The Colour and the Shape
1997
There Is Nothing Left to Lose
1999
Next Year
2000
One by One
2002
In Your Honor
2005
Five Songs and a Cover
2005
Skin and Bones
2006
Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace
2007
Let It Die
2008
Live at Wembley Stadium
2008
Greatest Hits
2009
Medium Rare
2011
Sonic Highways
2014
Songs From the Laundry Room
2015
Saint Cecilia EP
2015
Concrete and Gold
2017
00020225
2019
Medicine at Midnight
2021
Hail Satin
2021
The Essential Foo Fighters
2022
But Here We Are
2023
Your Favorite Toy
2026
The best of 2011
All of 2011 →
The King of Limbs
Radiohead · 2011
The Path of Totality
Korn · 2011
Lulu
Metallica · 2011
2011-12-07: The Fillmore, San Francisco, CA, USA
Metallica · 2011
TKOL RMX 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Radiohead · 2011
Beyond Magnetic
Metallica · 2011
Awesome as Fuck
Green Day · 2011
Th1rt3en
Megadeth · 2011
Pearl Jam Twenty
Pearl Jam · 2011
A Foot in the Door: The Best of Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd · 2011
Worship Music
Anthrax · 2011
Medium Rare
Foo Fighters · 2011
More on RCA
The label →There Is Nothing Left to Lose
Foo Fighters · 1999
Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace
Foo Fighters · 2007
One by One
Foo Fighters · 2002
Fear Inoculum
Tool · 2019
Sonic Highways
Foo Fighters · 2014
Concrete and Gold
Foo Fighters · 2017
Medicine at Midnight
Foo Fighters · 2021
Your Favorite Toy
Foo Fighters · 2026
Saint Cecilia EP
Foo Fighters · 2015
Greatest Hits
Foo Fighters · 2009
Skin and Bones
Foo Fighters · 2006
00020225
Foo Fighters · 2019
Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia + wikidata; also seen: 2011-04-08 (musicbrainz)
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 8 April 2011 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 12 April 2011 | |
| Wikidata | 12 April 2011 | |
| Deezer | 8 April 2011 | |
| Apple Music | 12 April 2011 | |
| US release | 8 April 2011 | earliest US date |
| UK / Europe release | 8 April 2011 | earliest UK or European date |
18 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | ZA | RCA | 6007124639936 | other |
| 2011 | MX | RCA | 886978727725 | other |
| 8 April 2011 | XE | RCA | 886978449320 | original |
| 8 April 2011 | US | RCA | 8886978919328 | original |
| 8 April 2011 | XW | RCA | 884977880991 | original |
| 8 April 2011 | GB | RCA | 886978727725 | original |
| 8 April 2011 | US | RCA | 886443004726 | original |
| 8 April 2011 | XE | RCA | 886978449320 | original |
| 11 April 2011 | AU | RCA | 886978449320 | other |
| 11 April 2011 | GB | RCA | 886978449320 | other |
| 12 April 2011 | US | RCA | other | |
| 12 April 2011 | CA | RCA | 886978449320 | other |
| 12 April 2011 | US | RCA | 886978449320 | other |
| 12 April 2011 | US | RCA | 886978449320 | other |
| 12 April 2011 | FR | RCA | 884977923537 | other |
| 12 April 2011 | US | RCA | 0886978449313 | other |
| 20 April 2011 | JP | RCA | 4547366058871 | other |
| 26 July 2017 | JP | RCA | 4547366058871 | other |
Cover art sources
coverartarchive · native: native 1500x1500
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| coverartarchive ✓ | 1500×1500 | native: native 1500x1500 |
| itunes | 3000×3000 | native |
| deezer | 1200×1200 | upscaled |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |