 The album features the Foo Fighters ' first instrumental , " Ballad of the Beaconsfield Miners " . It was written by Grohl after meeting with one of the miners involved in the Beaconsfield mine collapse who requested an iPod with In Your Honor in it during the incident . As Grohl was moved by this action , he decided to " write something just to dedicate to him that night because he definitely seemed like a hero " , and later promised to include the instrumental on the album . The album version features Kaki King , whom Grohl invited to record the song as she was visiting Studio 606 . Grohl later said that " I showed it to her once , and she shredded 10 times better than I ever played it " . Another guest was guitarist Pat Smear , who had been a bandmember from 1995 to 1998 , and a guest musician on the tour for In Your Honor . Smear , who has since been reinstated as a full @-@ on member , described his participation as " the oddest recording experience I had with Foo Fighters " given he had no input in composition and was " going in and playing on a song that was already written " . 
