BRIDGEPORT — The history between the Foo Fighters and the state of Connecticut is a lengthy one.
The energy inside of the arena was palpable as fans packed into the 10,000-seat venue — which itself holds an unknown future following news of the departure of the Bridgeport Islanders hockey team. Though performing at an arena this size is a rarity nowadays for the rockers, it’s a step up from the group’s recent pop-up, club run last year, which is how the Foo Fighters ended up performing in the 1,000 capacity Toad’s Place in New Haven.
Before the Foo Fighters took the stage, the audience was treated to a blistering 30-minute set from Los Angeles-based psychedelic rock outfit Frankie and the Witch Fingers. Reminiscent of the likes of the Osees and King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, the band offered up a fun set led by driving guitar riffs that dripped in fuzz and reverb.
When the clock struck 9:05 p.m., the lights went down and the crowd noise instantly rose as Dave Grohl and the rest of the group graced the stage and immediately jumped into the staple “All My Life” off of 2002’s “One by One.”
The group scorched through the first couple of tunes in the setlist, including “Times Like These” and “Stacked Actors” as well as “Of All People” and “Caught in the Echo” from the band’s latest studio album, “Your Favorite Toy” — which released on Friday.
“We’ve got a lot of (expletive) songs to play,” Grohl told the crowd before heading into “The Pretender.” “I feel we have some catching up to do.”
The chemistry between Grohl and drummer Ilan Rubin, who joined the group last year after performing with industrial rockers Nine Inch Nails, was immediately noticeable. Grohl could be seen approaching the drum kit throughout the evening — always working within Rubin’s pocket.
The first true Connecticut mention came after the band performed “Walk,” in which Grohl began talking about last year’s Toad’s Place show.
“Who saw us at Toad’s?” Grohl asked the crowd with a few in the crowd cheering. “That was a good show.”
Aside from celebrating the kickoff of a tour and a release of a new album, the Tuesday show also marked the return of longtime guitarist Pat Smear, who had to sit out of the band’s tour dates at the beginning of the year after breaking his foot during a “bizarre gardening accident.”
“I felt obligated to sing Pat a little love song,” Grohl said before delving into “Big Me,” which he said was not on the setlist. Smear went up to Grohl as the song was finishing and gave him a hug from behind.
The setlist mixed songs from all eras of the Foo Fighters, including tunes off the ban’s new album. “Spit Shine” made its live debut in Bridgeport while the band also brought out songs like “Your Favorite Toy,” “Unconditional” and “Child Actor.” The band also played its biggest songs, including “Monkey Wrench,” “My Hero,” “Learn to Fly” and “This Is a Call.”
By the time the 2½-hour mark was rolling around, the band wrapped up its main set with the crowd-pleasing sing-along “Best of You.”
Grohl pointed out the band rarely plays “A320,” a deep cut off of the 1998 “Godzilla” soundtrack, as they opened the encore with it. Just as they closed out the Toad’s Place show, the Foo Fighters wrapped up the nearly three-hour show with a the one-two punch of “Exhausted” and “Everlong.”