ABOUT THE BAND.
Rarely does a rock band combine explosive guitars with an intense longing for meaning. This intensity is evident in the music fusion Switchfoot bring.
Jon Foreman and Switchfoot yearn for something more than what pop-culture is selling.
"If I'm content as an artist to write a hit song or have a platinum record, then I'll have failed a lot of my fellow human beings," says Foreman. "We have the best jobs in the world because we play music for a living and love doing it, but we didn't get into this to try and sell something. For us, it's about communicating and connecting with people on a different level."
Switchfoot's roots can be traced back to the beaches of San Diego in the mid-‘90s, when the Foremans and Butler connected as surfers (Fontamillas joined Sept 2000). Though they competed in national surf championships on weekends and earned product endorsements, the real bond came from a common love of music.
They decided to form a band, chose the name Switchfoot (a surfing term), put themselves through months of sweaty garage band workouts, and then hit the road.
Musically, Switchfoot draws as much from the Police and James Taylor as from the Beatles and Stevie Wonder to create swirling guitar pop, full of effortlessly arching melodies and textures that shift in continual, sensual motion. "We've never fit in any of the genre boxes," says Foreman. "I think that diversity is our strength."
BAND DETAILS
Jon Foreman
Vocals / Guitar
Tim Foreman
Bass
Chad Butler
Drums
Jerome Fontamillas
Keys / Guitar
Drew Shirley
Guitar
MUSIC STYLE
Fiction Family
MuteMath
Kutless
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW.
Check out what they have to say on music, life and faith.
THE DIRECTOR'S CUT...
How do you guys see your faith being expressed through your band and the songs you write?
Jon: I think that so much of what we do in the post-modern world is filtered into little boxes: Here's who I am when I'm at work. Here's who I am when I go out with friends. Here's who I am with my grandma. Here's who I am with my bros.
I don't think that that's the way it works. I think your actions are directly tied to the way you see the world. So hopefully, everything that we're doing with music, the way we treat people is all tied back to our belief system. And to say, "This is what I believe, but it doesn't affect what I do," is fairly hypocritical.
Tim: I think you write about whatever's on your heart at the time, whether it's the girl you broke up with last week or something. And the more people come to your shows, the more you consider what you actually want to be singing about.
And we've learnt along the way that we have this great opportunity to talk about the things that matter. So I think it makes us more intentional.
Jon, how does an overseas touring schedule affect your family life?
I've always said that anything worth doing is going to be costly. And being in a band is really difficult to try and figure out how to do the band thing but still be married. But so like the few days we have back home between weeks of travelling are crucial.
Tim, which song in yr set list is still yr favourite song?
Tim: Bette Midler - Wind Beneath My Wings (laughs) Just gets me everytime!
Yeah, a favourite song is like choosing a favourite kid, you know. Either you're not supposed to do that or it changes everyday, just like some kids can be better than others on certain days. Last night my favourite was 'Yet' and it end up being really special because the crowd was singing so loud!
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