In my mind, for some strange reason, the Foo Fighters are still the same band they were when they came out in 1995 : a brave venture by the unknown quantity that was Dave Grohl, doggedly fighting after he could've folded and spent the rest of his life being known only as Nirvana's former drummer, making a brave stab at a new direction.
In fact, I would go so far as to say that Kurt Cobain wasn't even the best songwriter in Nirvana. Dave Grohl is, over time, becoming at least the equal of his former bandmate, if not more so, and with each record he makes, is proving ever more his talent, his skill. The Foo Fighters are proof incarnate that neither age nor fame need dull the fire, nor prosperity make one fat and useless, and "Live at Wembley Stadium" is a rare thing : a bunch of guys who'd play this music wether it meant dossing on fans floors or Learjetting around the world, who do it for love - and it pays well - rather than seeing it as a way of getting rich or getting laid.
Two hours taken over two nights, "Live At Wembley Stadium" shows the odd dichotomy of the lineage : whilst Kurt Cobain fretted over ticket sold, every record sold, without seemingly knowing that form the moment you charge at the door or for a demo tape, you've already sold out - the Foo Fighters just get on with it. Think of it as an education : making the world better with good music, and the more people hear it, the better our lives will be.
Filmed with gorgeous style (as evidenced by a cinema-broadcast at the time), the show is captured with no shortage of style. Visually, it simply works. The style captures the feeling of being there in the way that few filmed shows do, and it's refreshing to see a show released as is quickly and with little post-production, redubbing and fancy fixing after the event. It's a euphoric celebration, seeing The Foo Fighters playing a football stadium, and holding it in the palm of their hands, and effortlessly taking 86,000 people on a thrilling rollercoaster ride of not-rubbish Stadium Rock.
The set is not a `best of' Foo Fighters, nor a complete collection of the shows over the two nights (6 songs are missing), and only three songs from the most recent album are present. But its never mere nostalgia, it's a simple and straightforward recording of a great band, firing their way through some - but not all - of their best songs, and in the way, managing to play a couple of old rock classics with half of Led Zeppelin (Jones and Page making their first new live recording in 28 years, in fact) : and the Zep covers sound immense. No wonder Grohl said this was The Greatest Moment Of His Life. Watching this, you can believe it.