Now arguably one of the biggest bands on the planet, at the beginning of 1997 the Foo Fighters were still just the solo project of “the drummer from Nirvana”. The Colour and the Shape changed that, marking the transition from what was one man’s vanity project to what had become a fully-fledged band, no longer one-hit wonders but probably the most exciting rock act since, well, Nirvana. As with their eponymous debut, Dave Grohl wrote all the material, but this time recruited Nate Mendel on bass, Pat Smear on guitars and Pixies producer Gil Norton to man the desk, bringing his vision to life with searing results. Whether dispatching a blistering punk thrash on ‘Monkey Wrench’ or exploring erratic, quiet-LOUD dynamics on ‘My Poor Brain’, there was ample opportunity for Grohl to flex his rock muscles. More surprising was the Beatles-esque jangle of ‘See You’ and the tender, unplugged ballad ‘Walking After You’, which unveiled an innate gift for melody that far surpassed the capabilities of his peers and proved the Foos were a much better vehicle for his talent than being confined to the sticks ever was. But it was in the emotive rock of ‘My Hero’ and ‘Everlong’ that “the nicest man in rock” really showed his class, creating epic, stadium-sized monsters of songs that were soon to be sung back at him in fitting surroundings.