6. Foo Fighters
Dave Grohl, enough said. I feel like Im somewhat cheating with this choice as the Foo Fighters have been around a long time and I wanted to keep this list quite modern. My justification for these older bands is that they still list among the best bands going today, with frequent albums and touring, and they achieved the majority of their success in the 2000s. Foo Fighters are as awesome today as they've ever been. A common misunderstanding is that people think Foo Fighters only came to be because Kurt Cobain died. This isnt the case, by 1994 Nirvana was a sinking ship and Grohl had already written many songs and planted the seeds for his own band. Cobain had also expressed a desire to fire Grohl from Nirvana, although he often said things he didnt really mean. Regardless of what happened with Kurt Cobain, Foo Fighters would have come to be, their level of success however, would be more questionable. That being said I think Foo Fighters are successful and popular because theyre great, not because Grohls status helped them in the beginning. If anything coming from the biggest band in the world could have hindered their chances of success. After several line-up changes and a modest debut album, Foo Fighters ascended to the limelight with their second album: The Colour and the Shape. With hits like Monkey Wrench, Everlong and My Hero, it was extremely clear that they were a force to be reckoned with and one of the best bands around. Jump forward 16 years and theyre still going strong, currently working on their eighth studio album. Foo Fighters have had 20 years worth of great albums and songs, without changing much in the process, meaning their original fans are still with them today. Thats not to say they havent experimented or tried new things, they definitely arent your run of the mill band who constantly play things safe. Fans dont like to be alienated and not drastically changing keeps them on your side. Foo Fighters have maintained their sound, albeit polishing and refining it to generate the great music we hear today, and everyone loves Dave Grohl, so their popularity is not a mystery.
Foo Fighters have a litany of great songs, I could literally just list any album and itd be worth listening to. Nonetheless my favourite Foo songs include Walk, Times Like These, Resolve, Monkey Wrench, The Pretender, Rope, Miracle, Let It Die, Wheels, Big Me, Learn to Fly, But Honestly, Best of You, Word Forward and All My Life. Every time Foo Fighters release a new album it excites the masses, bringing mainstream attention to the genre for a while. With each new album they prove why they deserve a place on this list and help keep rock alive.