SUNDAY

Filter

Filter was one of the most gracious and grateful bands of the weekend. The first “major” interview this writer was granted back in 2006 frontman Richard Patrick talked about growing up in Ohio and how much he loves it here. There was a moment when he said that he was even moving back to Ohio! While it was a daytime and shorter set, the audience was PACKED. The stage was in the beating sun and still, everyone was there to rock and sing along. The band sounded great and tight and played a lot of newer songs that I wasn’t as familiar with, yet made me want to check out. What I was SUPER excited to hear was “Trip Like I Do.” This song came out on the Spawn Soundtrack way back in my younger years in collaboration with The Crystal Method. Catching this song live is super rare and a special treat.

AWOLNATION

My favorite surprise was the incredible performance by AWOLNATION. I spent part of the set scarfing down a slice of pizza and watching on a monitor before running like a bat out of hell to catch the rest of their st! They had a much different sound than the majority of the bands at the festival. They were a lot more classic rock-sounding at times, adding diversity to the festival. I heard a lot of people saying that they had not seen them live before but that they would check them out. That’s part of the beauty of festivals!

DEFTONES

Deftones had a pretty different setup with their stage that included a multilayered screen set across the whole width of the stage. Frontman. Chino Mareno was on point with his vocals. From what I experienced they had the largest number of crowd surfers than any time during the festival. I dont’ know what it is about their music, but people love to surf to it! (Side note, what is with people filming themselves while surfing?! Is it not hard enough to not land on your head that you have to be on your phone at the same time? Kids these days!) After having two nights of Maynard James Keenen, I was hoping he would make an appearance and perform with Deftones on “Passenger.” To hear a collaboration like that live would have been a really rare occurrence but unfortunately, that wasn’t in the cards. Fans were treated to “Change,” and “My Own Summer.” For those keeping track at home, I’m gravitating to songs from the early 2000s. Deftones were an amazing pallet cleanse for the evening. Not that I wanted to get rid of their taste but the rest of the night that included Subline with Rome and Foo Fighters!

Sublime with Rome

Sublime with Rome is the world’s best Sublime cover band! (If you don’t know what I mean, take a quick look out on the interwebs!) Rome told the Columbus audience that being able to be able to play music with “these guys” saved his life. Rome started with Bud Gaugh of Sublime and then later with Eric Wilson of Sublime. Bud is now a former member of the group, but speaking of former members, drummer Josh Freese was also a former member for a hot minute. Freese was only minutes from reprising his role as a Sonic Temple performer! (Stay tuned!) Sublime with Rme played everything that any well-versed fan would want to hear! “What I Got,” and “Wrong Way” were among the highlights. It was their performance of “Badfish” that they dedicated to both the late great Taylor Hawkins and the dearly departed Bradley Nowell.

FOO FIGHTERS

Foo Fighters went radio silent with their plans on how to move on after the devastating loss of drummer Taylor Hawkins. Their focus was on the release of their new album and some clever TikToks. When it was announced that Josh Freese was coming to sit upon the drum throne, the choice was a no-brainer. Josh Freese is a famous sessions drummer and is on a shocking number of recordings. Frontman Dave Grohl even pointed this out to the audience. The jumped into a few popular songs Josh was part of. Devo’s “Whip It”, Nine Inch Nails “March of the Pigs”, and Puddle of Mudds’ “Blurry”. It was hilarious because Grohl looked complete lost during these moments!

Foo Fighters had the whole night well planned. They played a good balance of classic and some new songs. When Foos played “My Hero” they dedicated it to Matt Pinfield, who I haven’t seen or heard from since his MTV days, but it was his birthday and Grohl wanted everyone to know. We can only assume that Pinfield is one of Dave’s heroes. There was not so much mention of the loss of Hawkins as there was talk about the addition of Freese. While it’s unclear yet if Freese is a touring member or a permanent solution, they did a nice job of having him fit right in. The biggest moment and mention of Taylor Hawkins was when they played “Cold Day in the Sun.” This song was written and sung by him on the album and often was a great excuse for Hawkins to come out from behind the drums and for Grohl to return to the kit. While this is now only a memory, the dedication meant a lot to so many.

Foo Fighters played a full two-hour set. They didn’t hold back and gave Freese a run for his money. (I take that back, he gave them a run for their money!) This was the second time the band performed since the loss of Hawkins, This was also a kick-off of their new album, ‘But Here We Are.’ Lastly, this was them introducing a new member to the world. It showed everyone that they aren’t skipping a beat (pun damn well intended). This was a chance to bring everyone together. I couldn’t think of a better band and a better way to end the four days of Sonic Temple.

We’ll just have to see what they have in store for us in 2024!