# Wasting Light
**Wasting Light** is the seventh studio album by the American rock band [Foo Fighters](https://www.edgepedia.org/foo-fighters), released on April 12, 2011 in the United States through Roswell/RCA and recorded entirely to analog tape in [Dave Grohl](https://www.edgepedia.org/dave-grohl)'s two-car garage at his home in Encino, California.[1](https://www.soundonsound.com/people/foo-fighters-recording-wasting-light) • [2](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/foo-fighters-reveal-wasting-light-album-title-tracklist-473036/) Produced by [Butch Vig](https://www.edgepedia.org/butch-vig), the album reunited Grohl with the producer of Nirvana's *Nevermind* and with his former Nirvana bandmate, bassist Krist Novoselic.[1](https://www.soundonsound.com/people/foo-fighters-recording-wasting-light) • [10](https://www.mmusicmag.com/features/V2-02/Foo-Fighters-M-Mar-Apr-2011.pdf) It gave the band its first No. 1 album on the US Billboard 200 and earned six Grammy nominations.[3](https://www.guitarworld.com/news/foo-fighters-score-first-no-1-album-wasting-light) • [4](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/music/music-news/grammys-foo-fighters-wasting-light-analog-268366/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | April 12, 2011, US, through Roswell/RCA; the band's seventh full-length album, following 2007's *Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace*[2](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/foo-fighters-reveal-wasting-light-album-title-tracklist-473036/) |
| Recording | Entirely to analog tape in Grohl's two-car garage in Encino, using two Studer A-80 tape machines and an API console, the same gear used for 1999's *There Is Nothing Left to Lose*[1](https://www.soundonsound.com/people/foo-fighters-recording-wasting-light) • [5](https://www.guitarworld.com/features/interview-foo-fighters-discuss-their-heavy-2011-album-wasting-light) |
| Production | Butch Vig, the first full studio album he and Grohl had worked on together since *Nevermind* roughly 20 years earlier; mixed by Alan Moulder[5](https://www.guitarworld.com/features/interview-foo-fighters-discuss-their-heavy-2011-album-wasting-light) • [2](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/foo-fighters-reveal-wasting-light-album-title-tracklist-473036/) |
| Guests | Bob Mould on "Dear Rosemary"; Krist Novoselic on bass and accordion on "I Should Have Known"[3](https://www.guitarworld.com/news/foo-fighters-score-first-no-1-album-wasting-light) • [5](https://www.guitarworld.com/features/interview-foo-fighters-discuss-their-heavy-2011-album-wasting-light) |
| Commercial peak | The band's first No. 1 album on the US Billboard 200[3](https://www.guitarworld.com/news/foo-fighters-score-first-no-1-album-wasting-light) |
| Accolades | Six Grammy nominations, which drew industry attention to analog recording[4](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/music/music-news/grammys-foo-fighters-wasting-light-analog-268366/) |
| First single | "Rope", issued March 1 online and as a free download with the iTunes pre-order[2](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/foo-fighters-reveal-wasting-light-album-title-tracklist-473036/) |
## Background and conception
The album followed 2007's *[Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace](https://www.edgepedia.org/echoes-silence-patience-and-grace)*, and Grohl set two strict conditions for its making: it had to be recorded entirely to tape, and entirely in his two-car garage at his home in Encino.[2](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/foo-fighters-reveal-wasting-light-album-title-tracklist-473036/) • [1](https://www.soundonsound.com/people/foo-fighters-recording-wasting-light) Grohl said that recording at his house, combined with the analog equipment, was intended to make the album an experience rather than just another record.[5](https://www.guitarworld.com/features/interview-foo-fighters-discuss-their-heavy-2011-album-wasting-light) Working with Vig the previous year had reminded the band of the *Nevermind* sessions, and Vig was installed as producer while guitarist [Pat Smear](https://www.edgepedia.org/pat-smear) was reinducted as a full-time member.[6](https://www.kerrang.com/weve-all-survived-and-we-still-love-making-music-the-inside-story-of-foo-fighters-wasting-light) *Wasting Light* was the first full-on studio album that Grohl and Vig had worked on together since *Nevermind*, some 20 years earlier.[5](https://www.guitarworld.com/features/interview-foo-fighters-discuss-their-heavy-2011-album-wasting-light)
## Recording and production
A mobile studio with analog tape rather than digital recording kit was moved into Grohl's California home for the sessions.[6](https://www.kerrang.com/weve-all-survived-and-we-still-love-making-music-the-inside-story-of-foo-fighters-wasting-light) The setup used two Studer A-80 analog tape machines and an API console, the exact same gear employed to track the band's third album, 1999's *There Is Nothing Left to Lose*; the tape machines sat in a storage closet, with a control room above the garage.[5](https://www.guitarworld.com/features/interview-foo-fighters-discuss-their-heavy-2011-album-wasting-light) Grohl told fans the band used no computers and recorded straight to tape with family and friends present.[7](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-foo-fighters-20111012-story.html)
Vig's role included stitching together the best takes of the album's 11 songs.[4](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/music/music-news/grammys-foo-fighters-wasting-light-analog-268366/) Alan Moulder mixed the album.[5](https://www.guitarworld.com/features/interview-foo-fighters-discuss-their-heavy-2011-album-wasting-light) Guest musicians included [Bob Mould](https://www.edgepedia.org/bob-mould), of Hüsker Dü and later Sugar, and one of Grohl's idols, on "Dear Rosemary", and [Krist Novoselic](https://www.edgepedia.org/krist-novoselic), who came down to play bass and accordion on "I Should Have Known".[3](https://www.guitarworld.com/news/foo-fighters-score-first-no-1-album-wasting-light) • [4](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/music/music-news/grammys-foo-fighters-wasting-light-analog-268366/) • [5](https://www.guitarworld.com/features/interview-foo-fighters-discuss-their-heavy-2011-album-wasting-light) AllMusic's personnel listing also credits Vig on percussion, engineer [James Brown](https://www.edgepedia.org/james-brown), and Jessy Greene on violin.[8](https://www.allmusic.com/album/wasting-light-mw0002115022)
## Music and themes
The 11-track album includes "Back and Forth", the anthemic "These Days", and the anguished, raging "I Should Have Known", on which Novoselic provides a thundering bass riff cameo.[4](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/music/music-news/grammys-foo-fighters-wasting-light-analog-268366/) • [7](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-foo-fighters-20111012-story.html) Rolling Stone's review framed the record as Grohl explicitly returning to a broken and still-painful past, for both inspiration and closure, with Vig bringing the same nuanced approach to weight and release that he had brought to Nirvana's 1991 *Nevermind*.[9](https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/wasting-light-127317/)
## Release and promotion
The album was announced with its title and tracklist ahead of an April 12, 2011 US release through Roswell/RCA.[2](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/foo-fighters-reveal-wasting-light-album-title-tracklist-473036/) A "White Limo" video featuring Motörhead's Lemmy Kilmister was released in February 2011, and "Rope", the album's first official single, was issued on March 1 online and as a free download with the iTunes pre-order of the album.[2](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/foo-fighters-reveal-wasting-light-album-title-tracklist-473036/)
## Commercial performance
*Wasting Light* gave Foo Fighters their first No. 1 album on the US Billboard 200.[3](https://www.guitarworld.com/news/foo-fighters-score-first-no-1-album-wasting-light) The Los Angeles Times covered the achievement under the headline "Foo Fighters go No. 1 the old-fashioned way", tying the chart result to the album's tape-and-garage method.[7](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-foo-fighters-20111012-story.html)
## Critical reception and accolades
The album earned six Grammy nominations, and its analog-tape production drew industry attention to analog recording; [The Hollywood Reporter](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-hollywood-reporter) reported the nominations under the headline "Foo Fighters' Six Grammy Nominations Put Analog Recording Back on the Map".[4](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/music/music-news/grammys-foo-fighters-wasting-light-analog-268366/) Rolling Stone's contemporary review read the album as Grohl confronting his past with Vig's *Nevermind*-style handling of weight and release.[9](https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/wasting-light-127317/)
## The analog approach as a statement
The all-tape, garage-made production was positioned against the polished sound of contemporary records. Vig said, "People say it sounds honest, unlike anything they've heard lately. I think we're just used to hearing everything so tight and perfect and Auto-Tuned these days. That sounds great, but this sounds real somehow."[1](https://www.soundonsound.com/people/foo-fighters-recording-wasting-light) Grohl framed the choice in similar terms, saying that recording at his house with analog equipment, switching from [Pro Tools](https://www.edgepedia.org/pro-tools), would make the album an experience rather than just another record.[5](https://www.guitarworld.com/features/interview-foo-fighters-discuss-their-heavy-2011-album-wasting-light) The commercial result, a first Billboard 200 No. 1 achieved with a tape-recorded garage album, and the six Grammy nominations that put analog recording back in the industry conversation, gave the method a visible showcase.[3](https://www.guitarworld.com/news/foo-fighters-score-first-no-1-album-wasting-light) • [4](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/music/music-news/grammys-foo-fighters-wasting-light-analog-268366/)
## References
1. [Foo Fighters: Recording Wasting Light, Sound On Sound](https://www.soundonsound.com/people/foo-fighters-recording-wasting-light)
2. [Foo Fighters Reveal 'Wasting Light' Album Title, Tracklist, Billboard](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/foo-fighters-reveal-wasting-light-album-title-tracklist-473036/)
3. [Foo Fighters Score First No. 1 Album with 'Wasting Light', Guitar World](https://www.guitarworld.com/news/foo-fighters-score-first-no-1-album-wasting-light)
4. [Foo Fighters' Six Grammy Nominations Put Analog Recording Back on the Map, The Hollywood Reporter](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/music/music-news/grammys-foo-fighters-wasting-light-analog-268366/)
5. [Interview: Foo Fighters Discuss Their Heavy 2011 Album, 'Wasting Light', Guitar World](https://www.guitarworld.com/features/interview-foo-fighters-discuss-their-heavy-2011-album-wasting-light)
6. ["We've all survived and we still love making music": The inside story of Foo Fighters' Wasting Light, Kerrang!](https://www.kerrang.com/weve-all-survived-and-we-still-love-making-music-the-inside-story-of-foo-fighters-wasting-light)
7. [Foo Fighters go No. 1 the old-fashioned way with 'Wasting Light', Los Angeles Times](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-foo-fighters-20111012-story.html)
8. [Foo Fighters: Wasting Light Tracks & Reviews, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/album/wasting-light-mw0002115022)
9. [Wasting Light (review), Rolling Stone](https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/wasting-light-127317/)
10. [Foo Fighters M Mar Apr 2011.pdf, mmusicmag.com](https://www.mmusicmag.com/features/V2-02/Foo-Fighters-M-Mar-Apr-2011.pdf)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musical practice and theory › Popular music genres › Rock works, labels, discographies, awards, and infrastructure › Rock studio albums › 2000s onward rock albums*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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