Featured Artist: Switchfoot
With every release from American Christian band Switchfoot comes this enormous sense of excitement, and this forthcoming new album is no different. Switchfoot are from San Diego, California and are made up of Jon Foreman (Vocals and Guitar), brother Tim Foreman (Bass), Chad Butler (Drums), Jerome Fontamillas (keyboard and guitar) and Drew Shirley (Guitar). But the lineup hasn't been this way from the start.
Switchfoot was founded in 1996 but known then as Chin Up, at that time the band consisted of Jon Foreman and his brother Tim, along with Chad Butler on drums. After playing only a few shows the band were signed to indie label Re:think Records and they renamed the band Switchfoot. During that time on Re:think they went on to release the first three Switchfoot albums, The Legend of Chin, New Way To Be Human and Learning To Breath.
Of the first three Switchfoot albums, Learning To Breath was the bands most successful. It was certified gold by RIAA and received a Grammy Nomination for Best Rock Gospel Album. Later on in 2002 Switchfoot's music was featured in the Mandy Moore film A Walk To Remember.
The exposure from the film attracted a lot of attention from multiple record labels wanting to sign them. The band settled on joining Columbia Records/SonyBMG with the first album release with this label being the stunning The Beautiful Letdown. This album was the time that keyboardist Jermone Fontamillas joined the band, who had already been touring with Switchfoot since 2000 following the release of previous album Learning to Breath. The Beautiful Letdown went on be certified double platinum, selling more than 2.6 million copies worldwide.
It wasn't long until the band released their pop friendly record Oh Gravity, which peeked at number 18 on the Billboard chart. This album produced the singles Oh Gravity and Awakening with the latter music video receiving over one million hits on YouTube.
What followed this album was the opportunity for frontman Jon Foreman to start working on his solo EP's, four in total, all named after a season of the year. In 2007 the band, who were now independent, decided to tour with Relient K on the Appetite For Construction Tour and then the Up In Arms Tour. After such a long year of touring the band then jumped back into the studio to write and record the next part of the Switchfoot story, Hello Hurricane.
By 2010 after more touring from the band, the successful album Hello Hurricane received a nomination for a Best Rock or Rap Gospel Album at the Grammy Awards. The band went on to win this award when the Grammy's were announced in 2011.
Switchfoot released their highly anticipated album Vice Verses in 2011. The multi-platinum selling band worked with producer Neal Avron (Weezer, Linkin Park) on their eighth studio release.
During the release of the album, in an exclusive interview with LouderThanTheMusic, the band's lead singer Jon Foreman said "Vice Verses is a record about the polarity of the human struggle - the birth and death, the valleys and the peaks, the hope and despair of the post-modern experience. It's a record about the layers of meaning and purpose inherent in every breath. Every blessing comes with a set of curses, we've got vices and vice verses. It's trying to push the boundaries of where we've been."
In early 2014 the band will release their latest studio album titled Fading West.
Also available will be Fading West the film - part rock documentary, part surf film and part travelogue. The film was featured on the band's recent 43-city US tour, and will be released on iTunes on 10th December 2013.
'Fading West' the film offers rare glimpses into the longtime surfers on their boards and in the waves, captures the frenetic energy of their live shows and portrays a journey both epic and intimate.
The new album's first single, 'Love Alone Is Worth The Fight' has been overwhelmingly supported at US radio, with every Billboard Christian Hot AC/CHR reporting station playing the single in its debut week, marking the only time this has happened since the chart launched in 2006.
"We have never worked so hard on a project, nor traveled so far for inspiration, than we did to create this record", said the band about their forthcoming release. "These songs are full of heart, hope, sweat, and saltwater."
