Collecting six Grammy Awards is definitely a lifetime achievement, but not many bands other than the Foo Fighters can claim that their concerts are as rockin' as an earthquake.
And that's not just hyperbole either. New Zealand earthquake blog GeoNet reports that the Foo Fighters actually caused 50,000 fans to shake the ground so violently, the resulting vibrations compared on the same scale as a volcanic reaction. Considering that Western Springs has played host to musical performances from AC/DC, Kiss, and The Rolling Stones, that's certainly saying something special about the presence and staying power of the band.
Here's the scientific proof of how hard the Foo Fighters rocked this past Tuesday:
"The first vibrations were recorded around 7:30pm, part way through the Tenacious D set, but the biggest shakes started at 8:20pm when the Foo Fighters took the stage, and then it all went quiet at 11pm when the gig ended. The concert vibrations were recorded as a semi continuous harmonic signal with a peak osculation of 3Hz, ie the ground was shaking 3 times per second in a nice rhythmic motion. There are lulls in the signal between the songs and peaks in signal intensity during the songs.
"The sound system, probably contributed as well, especially the bass frequencies coupling in to the earth. The signal is similar to volcanic tremor that is recorded at places like Mt Ruapehu and White Island, however the strong correlation in time with the Foo Fighters concert and the fact it was only recorded on the 2 stations close to Western Springs assured us it was of man-made origin."
Don't expect that feat to repeated anytime soon, either. The Foo Fighters' "Wasting Light" worldwide tour is taking a break from the stage until March next year in Tokyo, Sendai, Nagoya, and Osaka. We're sure that geologists in the area will be marking the calendar.
[GeoNet via Geekosystem / Photo: Wikipedia (CC BY 2.0)]
McKinley Noble is a former GamePro staff editor, current technology nerd and eternal mixed martial arts enthusiast. He also likes Japanese sports dramas and soap operas. Follow him on Twitter or just Google his name.
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