2009: The Year of the Hurricane; a Retrospective

(banner credit: Bryant! Thanks!)

Year in Review

2009. Gone too soon? Perhaps. What isn't going away anytime soon is Switchfoot. One of the most eventful years in Switchfoot's recent history, 2009 saw the arrival of "Hello Hurricane," a triumphant declaration by a band in transition and a record that marked Switchfoot's spirited return to the music industry.

But it's also important to remember that 2009 saw the release of Jon Foreman's side project with Sean Watkins called Fiction Family. Their debut record, also titled "Fiction Family," wowed casual fans and diehards alike by showcasing Foreman's lyrical and musical versatility - it's not often you see a singer of a multi-platinum rock and roll band put down the electric guitar and pluck through some folksy, bluegrass-tinged soul tunes. And yet, here it was.

2009 also saw Switchfoot return to mainstream rock radio with "Mess of Me," which on the very last day of the year, entered the Top 20 of Billboard's Modern Rock/Alternative Songs chart. A harbinger of things to come? A forecast of an even brighter future for the band in 2010? Only time will tell, but before we move forward into 2010 (which I will call "The Year of the Foot," a borrowed reference), here is a retrospective look into what's happened in the past year. And boy, it was a great one!



January

7th:
*Switchfoot first tweets on Twitter

20th:
*Fiction Family releases their debut album “Fiction Family.”

February

*Fiction Family’s record debuts at No. 71 on the Billboard 200, and charts well on several other charts. 1

7th:
*Fiction Family tour ends in West Hollywood.

13th:
*Switchfoot plays a show in Guatemala for the first time.

27th:
*Switchfoot launches new, temporary website. 2

March

5th:
*Switchfoot reports they are “rounding 3rd base” on the new record. 3

30th:
*Switchfoot heads to Los Angeles to begin mixing the new record. 4

April

7th:
*Switchfoot mixes first song, “Hello Hurricane.” 5

23rd:
*Switchfoot announces that they had actually been recording 4 studio albums in their time in the studio. 6

24th:
*Switchfoot releases the album names for their next two studio records: “Hello Hurricane” in 2009. “Vice Verses” in 2010. 7

25th:
*Switchfoot plays Kansas City and participates in The Invisible Children Rescue there. 8

27th:
*It is released on LOBH that Switchfoot plans on releasing an EP of unreleased material, titled “Eastern Hymns for Western Shores.” 9

28th:
*Jon Foreman plays the new Switchfoot song, “Yet” for the first time while at UCSD

May

4th and 5th:
*Switchfoot and Andy Barron go into the desert in Niland County for “Hello Hurricane” photo shoot. 10 11

8th:
*Switchfoot debut the song “Hello Hurricane” over the PA system after a concert in Visalia, California 12

26th:
*Switchfoot announces tour with Blue Ocobter

28th:
*Switchfoot/Blue October “Crazy Making Tour” dates are announced

June

16th:
*Switchfoot announces the official tracklisting for “Hello Hurricane” on their Twitter account 13

18th:
*Switchfoot debuts “Mess of Me” live at the Big Ticket Festival in Michigan. “Hello Hurricane” also makes its live performance debut, with Jon Foreman playing it solo acoustic on his Mandolin. 14 15

21st:
“Bullet Soul” is debuted live in Lancaster, PA at the American Music Theater 16

July

9th:
* “Needle and Haystack Life” is debuted live at Spirit Song in King’s Land, Ohio. 17

13th:
* “Mess of Me” is announced officially as the lead single for “Hello Hurricane.”

16th:
* Switchfoot plays “The Sound” live for the first time in Memphis, Tennessee. 18

26th:
* Switchfoot embarks on the Crazy Making Tour with Blue October, Ours, and Longwave in Council Bluffs, IA

August

7th:
* Switchfoot announces that lowercase people records have decided to partner with Atlantic Records and EMI CMG for the world-wide release of “Hello Hurricane” 19

26th:
* “Mess of Me” debuts on the radio, playing on Atlanta’s 99x Modern Rock/Alternative station. 20

29th:
* The Crazy Making Tour concludes at Hampton Beach, NH.

September

1st:
*Switchfoot commences the “Mess of Me” hunt, a worldwide “scavenger hunt” in which the band and fans hid copies of the single in locations across the globe.

8th:
*Switchfoot unleashes the first music video for “Mess of Me,” a live montage-styled offering set to clips from the Crazy Making Tour

12th:
*First of two shows in which Switchfoot opens for Dave Matthews Band in Chula Vista, CA

13th:
*Second show Switchfoot plays opening for Dave Matthews Band in Irvine, CA

16th:
*Pre-sale for “Hello Hurricane” begins.

23rd:
*Switchfoot announces dates for the Fall 2009 leg of the Hello Hurricane Tour. 21

November

3rd:
*The official "Mess of Me" video releases on Youtube, garnering multiple honors



8th:
*Switchfoot’s “Hello Hurricane” tour begins in El Cajon, CA.


photo credit: RCamWhite

photo credit: Max Roper

photo credit: Andy Barron





10th:
*“Hello Hurricane” releases; the #hellohurricane hashtag reaches the No. 6 slot in Twitter’s Trending Topics





12th:
*Switchfoot performs on Jimmy Kimmel Live



19th:
*“Hello Hurricane” debuts at No. 13 on the Billboard 200, selling 39,000 copies in its first week.

*“Your Love Is a Song” features prominently at the end of an episode of “One Tree Hill.” The song lasts almost six minutes during that segment 23

December

2nd:
*Switchfoot performs on The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien



31st:
*"Mess of Me" hits the Top 20 on Billboard's Alternative Songs Chart

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We're Awakening's Hello Hurricane collaborative review with LOBH

The arrival of "Hello Hurricane" was obviously the highlight of 2009. My friend Jeanna from LOBH and I got our copies two weeks in advance, and we were so thrilled that we decided to share our thoughts with you all. Here is the review collab.

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Charts Summary

Albums
“Hello Hurricane”

Billboard 200: 13
Billboard Alternative Albums: 3
Billboard Christian Albums: 2
Billboard Rock Albums: 4

Singles
"Mess of Me"

Billboard Alternative Songs: 20
Billboard Rock Songs: 37
Billboard Christian Songs: 42

"Always"
Billboard Christian Songs: 20

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Switchfoot's 2010 Tour Dates

04/25/09
Kansas City, MS

05/08/09
Visalia, CA Fox Theatre

05/09/09
Santa Clara, CA Great America

06/18/09 Gaylord, MI The Big Ticket Festival

06/19/09
North Lawrence Ohio Clay's Park Resort

06/20/09
Toronto, ON
Phoenix Concert Theatre

06/21/09
Lancaster, PA
American Music Theatre

06/26/09
Del Mar, Ca Del Mar Fairgrounds

06/27/09
San Diego, CA Switchfoot Bro-Am

07/09/09
Kings Island, OH Kings Island: Timberwolf

07/10/09
Doswell, VA
King's Dominion

07/11/09
Kent, WA ShoWare Center (CANCELLED)

07/15/09
Willmar, MN Willmar Civic Center

07/16/09
Memphis, TN Minglewood Hall

07/17/09
Little Rock, AR Riverfest Amphitheater

07/18/09
Baton Rouge, LA Blue Bayou Water Park

07/24/09
Valparaiso, IN Porter County Fair

07/25/09
Des Moines, IA

08/07/09
Midland, TX Rock the Desert

08/12/09
Amarillo, TX John Stiff Memorial Park

Crazy Making Tour (W/ Blue October)











07/26/09
Council Bluffs, IA Stir Cove

07/27/09
Denver, CO Fillmore Auditorium

07/28/09
Salt Lake City, UT The Salt Air

07/31/09
Portland, OR The Crystal Ballroom

08/01/09
San Jose, CA San Jose Civic Auditorium

08/05/09
Los Angeles, CA The Wiltern

08/06/09
Las Vegas, NV House of Blues

08/08/09
Phoenix, AZ Marquee Theater

08/09/09
El Paso, TX Abraham Chavez Theater

08/13/09
Charles, LA L’Auberge Casino Lake

08/14/09
Houston, TX Verizon Theater

08/15/09
Dallas, TX House of Blues

08/16/09
Dallas, TX House of Blues

08/20/09
Louisville, KY 4th St. Live

08/21/09
Atlanta, GA The Masquerade

08/22/09
Myrtle Beach, SC House of Blues

08/23/09
Baltimore, MD Rams Head Live

08/27/09
Atlantic City, NJ House of Blues

08/28/09
New York, NY Terminal 5

08/29/09
Hampton Beach, NH Hampton Beach Casino

Other Tour Dates


09/04/09
Syracuse, NY New York State Fair

09/05/09
French Town, NJ RevGen Festival

09/10/09
Florida

09/11/09
Orlando, FL Universal Studios

Dave Matthews' Tour

09/12/09
Chula Vista, CA Cricket Wireless w/Dave Matthews Band


09/13/09
Irvine, CA Verizon Wireless w/Dave Matthews Band

Other Tour Dates

09/18/09
Son Fest Mount Vernon, OH Mount Vernon Nazarene University

10/30/09
St. Petersburg, FL Tropicana Field-UFL Game


Hello Hurricane Tour












11.8.09 El Cajon, CA - East County Performing Arts Center
11.11.09 West Hollywood, CA – The Roxy Theatre
11.13.09 Scottsdale, AZ – Martini Ranch
11.14.09 Tucson, AZ – The Rock
11.16.09 Oklahoma City, OK – Diamond Ballroom
11.17.09 Dallas, TX – House of Blues - Dallas
11.18.09 Austin, TX – The Parish
11.20.09 Houston, TX – Warehouse Live
11.21.09 New Orleans, LA – Parish @ House of Blues
11.22.09 Nashville, TN – Exit In
11.23.09 Nashville, TN – Exit In
11.24.09 Atlanta, GA – The Loft @ Center Stage
11.27.09 Anaheim, CA – House of Blues - Anaheim
11.28.09 Ventura, CA – Majestic Ventura Theater
12.03.09 Charlotte, NC - Amos' Southend
12.05.09 Richmond, VA - WDYL Snowball @ The National
12.07.09 Baltimore, MD - Rams Head Live
12.08.09 New York, NY - The Fillmore Irving Plaza
12.09.09 Boston, MA - Paradise Rock Club
12.19.09 Providence, RI Lupo's (WBRU Presents) [Non-HH Tour date]
12.11.09 Philadelphia, PA TLA (WRFF Presents) [Non-HH Tour date]
12.12.09 Hartford, CT Webster Theatre
12.13.09 Washington, DC 930 Club
12.14.09 Burlington, VT Higher Ground (WBTZ Presents) [Non-HH Tour date]

Other Tour Dates

2009-12-19
San Bernardino, CA X103.9's Very Merry Christmas Party @ Cal State
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So that's just about everything! Thanks for reading... this year saw us complete 2 full years of We're Awakening. And i've enjoyed just about every step of the way. Hope you've all enjoyed reading along as much as I've enjoyed writing. Here's to 2010!

Be sure to check out LOBH's far superior recap of 2009. :)

BREAKING: SWITCHFOOT KICKS OFF 2010 WITH PERFORMANCES ON "THE LATE LATE SHOW WITH CRAIG FERGUSON" AND AT ESPN'S NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP TAILGATE

PRESS RELEASE courtesy of Big Hassle Media

BAND EXTENDS NORTH AMERICAN TOUR AND CONTINUES FOOD DRIVE BENEFITING LOCAL FOOD BANKS

SONGS FROM SWITCHFOOT'S NEW ALBUM, HELLO HURRICANE, LICENSED BY VERIZON, "ONE TREE HILL," "VAMPIRE DIARIES" THE FILM "TO SAVE A LIFE," OPENING JANUARY 22nd


NEWS SOURCE: Big Hassle Media
December 16, 2009

SWITCHFOOT will kick off 2010 with a performance on "The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson" on Monday, January 4th. Later that week, the band will be one of two groups playing the ESPN National Championship Tailgate, which will take place at the Rose Bowl Stadium just before the Alabama Crimson Tide face the Texas Longhorns in the Citi BCS National Championship Game on January 7th.

The band has been playing sold-out shows since November, coinciding with the release of its latest album, Hello Hurricane, which debuted in the Top 15 of The Billboard 200. The North American tour, which has been extended through January, features SWITCHFOOT playing Hello Hurricane in its entirety, followed by an assortment of fan favorites from its previous albums. SWITCHFOOT will continue to collect donations for local food banks along the way, so fans are encouraged to bring non-perishable items to the shows. (See below for the itinerary and a list of food banks that will receive donations.)

"Mess Of Me," the lead single from Hello Hurricane, is used in the trailer and television commercials for Samuel Goldwyn's Films' "To Save A Life," which will be released on January 22nd. You can check out the trailer at: http://tosavealifemovie.com/index.php

The track has also been tapped for use by NHL Music Nights on Fox Sports Net and by ESPN for college football bumpers. Numerous other tracks from Hello Hurricane have been licensed - "The Sound (John M. Perkins' Blues)" was used in the recent Verizon Wireless ad campaign for the BlackBerry® Storm™ 2 while "Bullet Soul" was selected for WWE's "TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs" pay-per-view. "Yet" was heard in The CW's new hit show, "The Vampire Diaries," while the network's "One Tree Hill" used six minutes of the epic "Your Love Is A Song" to close a recent episode.

Recorded with producer/bassist Mike Elizondo (Dr. Dre, Rilo Kiley, Eminem, and Pink), Hello Hurricane is SWITCHFOOT's seventh full-length and its first on Atlantic Records. The band was featured in a Rolling Stone "In The Studio" piece and on the cover of Relevant Magazine while the new album was a critic's pick in USA Today's Fall Music feature. "On 'Needle and Haystack Life,' singer Jon Foreman works his breathy croon over surging pop-punk guitars; 'This Is the Sound' has a brutish, heavy-metal vibe; 'Enough' rides a percolating art-folk groove; and 'Bullet Soul' could be something by Swedish garage rock band the Hives," said Billboard while Alternative Press hailed the title track as "an uplifting, hope-giving affirmation of resurgence."

Band members Jon Foreman (vocals/guitar), Tim Foreman (bass), Chad Butler (drums), Jerome Fontamillas (keys/guitar) and Drew Shirley (guitar) are continually seeking new ways to convey that message of hope. In that spirit, that they are launching a new website, http://www.theworldyouwant.com, which will spotlight goodness, beauty, and truth in everyday life. Fans are invited to contribute stories about people they know who are making this world a better place. With the holidays quickly approaching, Jon Foreman addressed the timely topic of "Compassion vs. Consumption" in the second of two articles he penned for The Huffington Post:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jon-foreman/compassion-vs-consumption_b_369800.html

Upcoming tour dates are as follows:

Date City/State Venue Food Bank

12/19 San Bernardino, CA The Coussoulis Arena Cal State San Bernardino CAPSBC
1/7 Pasadena, CA Rose Bowl (ESPN show) no food bank attached.
1/8 Reno, NV Knitting Factory Assistance League Reno-Sparks
1/9 San Francisco, CA Regency Ballroom San Francisco Food Bank
1/10 Medford, OR Main 1 Arts Center ACCES Food Services
1/11 Portland, OR Crystal Ballroom Oregon Food Bank
1/12 Seattle, WA Showbox Northwest Harvest Food Bank
1/13 Vancouver, BC Commodore Ballroom Greater Vancouver Food Bank
1/15 Edmonton, AB The Starlite Room Edmonton Food Bank
1/16 Calgary, AB Macewan Hall Calgary Inter-Faith Food Bank
1/17 Saskatoon, SK Louis' Pub Saskatoon Food Bank
1/18 Winnipeg, MB Garrick Centre Winnipeg Harvest
1/21 Kitchener, ON Elements The Foodbank of Waterloo Region
1/22 Toronto, ON Phoenix Theatre Daily Bread Food Bank
1/23 Montreal, QC Studio Jpr Moisson Montreal Food Bank

Switchfoot plays "Evergreen" for the first time last night!

in the land of Philly! Sweet sauce!



Thanks also to our friend Josh, who provided the setlist from last night's show.


Setlist 1
Needle and Haystack
Mess of Me
Your Love Is a Song
The Sound (John M. Perkins)
Enough
Free
Hello Hurricane
Always
Bullet Soul
Yet
Sing It Out
Red Eyes

Setlist 2
Chem6a
Stars
Oh! Gravity.
Let That Be Enough
Evergreen
This Is Your Life
Dare You to Move
Awakening
Love is the movement/Meant to Live


Have a great weekend!

A how-to on Switchfoot crossover success...? ; more tour videos

Well, looks like the $5 deal on Amazon for "Hello Hurricane" has been extended even further. So, ff you haven't gotten any copy of "Hello Hurricane" yet, or if you want to help support the band with some extra change, or if you want to buy it for a friend, go grab it here now!

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BeliefNet posted an interesting analysis of Christian music and crossover success. They highlight how Switchfoot did it, and I find their ideas interesting:

The first story I was assigned on the topic of Christian music, back in the early '90s, was an investigation into whether Christian bands used religious talk shows the way mainstream bands boosted their records on the "Tonight" show or Letterman.

The answer? Not really. But it occurred to me while watching Switchfoot perform "Mess of Me" on the "Tonight" show this week--above, I embedded their "Kimmel" appearance from two weeks ago; it was hotter--that when Christian record producers first dreamed of bands that could play both on mainstream TV and at Christian festivals, Switchfoot was what they pictured. How did they do it? Some lessons of Switchfoot's crossover success:


Build a Christian audience first. Though bands hate to be restricted to Christian CD racks, gospel Grammys and CCM radio--one group of rocking believers sued their mainstream label when they were shunted to the Christian subsidiary--church basements and Christian festivals give a band a safe place to tighten their sound and find their voice. Think Beatles in Hamburg.

Get riffy with it. The crossover rock bands of the '90s tried to translate their Christian numbers into mainstream success without getting a grip on what drives the secular market: aural hooks to fight through the bigger, noisier crowd. From "Dare You to Move" to "Hello Hurricane," Switchfoot has stripped down from alt-jangle to a sound centered on gritty riffs.

Stay Christian. While they adapted to mainstream sound, Switchfoot has never stopped writing songs that make sense to both its audiences, unlike bands that tried to smuggle themselves across the Christian divide with secular pop. Even when they hit, they soon died because they had stopped doing what made them good. Witness "Mess of Me," which screeches about drugs and misspent days, but is ultimately about redemption.

^I like how the writer likened "church basements and Christian festivals" to The Beatle's time slogging and laboring in Hamburg before dominating the world. I do think this isn't something bands can look at as an end-all formula for crossover success. The situations are slightly different.

I'm not sure if the band was intentionally looking to crossover into the mainstream by toiling in the Christian scene, but they never wanted to start out in the CCM scene in the first place; rather, it was forced on them when Re:Think got bought out by Sparrow. Either way, whatever it was, it worked for the band... but to any upstart acts out there, i wouldn't recommend this method as a do-or-die.

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The Lords of Pain, a wrestling news site, posted a recap of the weeks events and mentioned "Bullet Soul":



^I still find it quite hilarious that "Bullet Soul" is associated with WWE. I expected it to be snatched up by some form of extreme sport, like BMX or skating or something... not... er... wrestling! But that's ok.

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The popular alternative band Cartel, who I used to listen to A TON, is opening for Switchfoot tonight in Atlanta. Check out what Cartel had to say about Switchfoot:



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Here is the "To Save a Life" movie trailer that features "Mess of Me," now on Youtube for easier streaming. Rate, comment, and share it with your friends!



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Now for some Tour Videos from the show in Asheville

Free



Red Eyes



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Have a good weekend friends! Be sure to check back on Monday for something kinda special... depends on whether you think it is or not! Anyways, I digress. Peace out!

Switchfoot Contest

Hey everybody, did you miss out on your chance to get a collector's edition of Hello Hurricane? Well, fortunately for you (and me) Jesusfreakhideout.com (JFH) has a great Switchfoot contest going on right now, and the winner will be the lucky owner of a collector's edition of Hello Hurricane. Just go to http://www.jesusfreakhideout.com/contests/contest3.aspx to enter for free.


-TJ

BREAKING: TV, TV, TV! Switchfoot taking over the television airwaves

First, we got news that Switchfoot taped a performance for Craig Ferguson's show. We'll have details on that as things come along.

But we also have word from management, freshly confirmed, that Switchfoot will be playing The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien TOMORROW.

Tune into The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien on Wednesday December 2nd to see Switchfoot perform live.
11:35 pm EST / 10:35 pm CST on NBC.
http://www.tonightshowwithconanobrien.com/

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Check out the TV spot of "Bullet Soul" as the theme song on the WWE.