FootColumn: Why a live "Hurricane" project needs to happen

Hello friends! Welcome to the first FootColumn of 2011. It's been awhile since my last one, and I kind of miss doing this. Here's to making FootColumns more common in 2011? Yay or nay?

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Anyhow, I'd like to take this time now to talk about something that's been on my mind in regards to Switchfoot. That is, the concept of the live album.

This is something that has been missing from the Switchfoot official canon. We've had a few live DVD's, but never a proper live CD. "Live In San Diego," "Live at the Ventura Theatre," and "The Best Yet: Live" are all wonderful commemorations of the Switchfoot live show in DVD form. iTunes also distributes an EP called "Switchfoot: Live," which features cuts from the "Live In San Diego" DVD, but that hardly qualifies. Aside from a few technical problems that have plagued every one of these releases, from poor mixing to editing glitches, there's nothing to gripe about with these concert films.

But where are the live albums? Now, Switchfoot fans are no strangers to recordings of the band's live performances. For the entire "Oh! Gravity." tour, the band released bootleg recordings from each night's shows. The first few songs of each show were recorded directly from the soundboard and committed to CD's, which were then sold after the performances. The band ok'd the online distribution of these tracks as well, and the bootlegs circulated across the Switchfoot fanscape. This practice continued for the Appetite for Construction Tour, where the band shifted to hosting the bootlegs online to allow for more variety in the song selections.

After this tour, they came together with Philemon Thomas to sort through and compile the cream of the crop for a live album compilation called "Best of Bootlegs Vol. 1." This can be considered the band's first proper live album, but it saw limited release as a Friends of the Foot fan club exclusive. That was in 2008.

Now, we've arrived at the beginning of a new year. Late 2009 through to late 2010 saw the band play some of their most inspired, powerful shows to date behind the cathartic "Hello Hurricane." (Anaheim show review) These shows were worth recording, especially those from the 2009 Fall leg of the tour. Here, we saw the band play their entire new record front-to-back. These shows need to be remembered. After all, the band was coming off the most creative period of their career and were clearly at the top of their game on the live stage.

So, we got news that the Atlanta show had been recorded with the intentions of a possible live album release. Later, we heard that the record was in the mixing stages, while a friend of mine claimed to have met Switchfoot's live recording producer, who was working on a DVD. But after that, we've gotten nothing. And, it's 2011 now.

If the band took the trouble to mix the recordings from this show, perhaps there is still a chance that we hear a proper recording from this tour. I feel like this is something that really needs to happen. Their track record would suggest that a "Hello Hurricane" tour recording is plausible.

"The Beautiful Letdown" was captured through "Live in San Diego," and the "Switchfoot: Live - EP."

"Nothing Is Sound" had nothing, though that could be owed to the tumultuous time period they were in with Columbia/SonyBMG.

"Oh! Gravity." got the "Live at the Ventura Theatre" recording, while the Appetite for Construction Tour got the "Best of Bootlegs Vol. 1."

Switchfoot is by all accounts on excellent terms with their new label, Atlantic, so there could very well be a Live Hurricane album in our future. Maybe even a DVD perhaps? Who knows?

Here's hoping!

FootColumn: "The Sound" music video analysis

"The Sound" music video: it is powerful, abrasive, and most importantly, needed. From a Switchfoot fan's standpoint, this is definitely a welcome change from all the live montages the past few times around. But as a true concept video, "The Sound" portrays Jon Foreman's vision for the song perfectly, interspersed with black-and-white clips from the civil rights movement, as well as footage of John M. Perkins himself.

I feel like I always knew Mr. Perkins would sound like that; a wise, frail-yet-strong voice. It exudes a quiet confidence, one that is laced with experience yet covered in humility. I was afraid at first that they would cram too much spoken word into the video and take away from the music, but the balance is just right. In fact, it leaves one wanting to hear more about his story. Perhaps that was the intended purpose.

I must also say that I love the clip of Mr. Perkins actually saying the words, "Love is the final fight" during the song. It is an excellent way to tie the video and song all the more to him.

There is also a perfect moment during the quiet interlude before Drew Shirley's explosive guitar solo, where Perkins quotes the timeless scripture, "Though I speak in the tongues of men and of angels but have not love, it profits me nothing." It is perfect, correlating the band and the social activist's deep and personal faiths with the weighty themes they are trying to convey.

Switchfoot delivers a spirited performance in the band footage, and we can see some of that slow-motion half-time footage they shot sped into action here. The song itself is chaotic, and the video is edited in a way that lends itself to that chaos, making for a frustrating, but nonetheless appropriate view. The bead beads of sweat pouring down Jon's face and Tim Foreman's bass guitar are intriguing; it is as if they are sweating out the fight right alongside the John Perkinses and Martin Luther King Jr.'s of the world. The water that seems to pervade the scene throughout the band footage might be symbolizing the hoses that were used to beat back the protesters in the vintage shots, or they might represent the contrast to the flames we can see burning down the buildings -- the sound of love can douse the fires of hatred? Perhaps.

Whatever the interpretation, this is an important video. It might not be the kind of feel-good video that sells records, but it conveys exactly what Switchfoot wants to convey, and that may very well be it's strength. Jon Forman holding up the cardboard at the beginning of the video is a nice tough and appears to pay homage to another legend: Bob Dylan.

The thrust of the video might feel a bit vague and confusing for the casual viewer, but upon repeat views, the point of it all becomes clear: Love is the loudest sound.

John Perkins said it right...

FootColumn: What may have gone wrong with "The Beautiful Letdown"??

Hey friends! Today's FootColumn will focus on the recent news about the next two singles off of "Hello Hurricane." Some of you have been excited that "The Sound" will be the next single, while others are not so thrilled. So, here's a humble attempt at straightening things out and hopefully offering a new perspective on the radio strategy for "Hello Hurricane" moving forward.

First off, as many of you know, I was a huge proponent of "Needle and Haystack Life" becoming the next single. I still would've preferred it, but "The Sound" is also a great choice (and probably the beter choice at this point) for a couple of reasons. If we look at what happened to Switchfoot during "The Beautiful Letdown" days, we can see that the Switchfoot guys may have learned some valuable lessons from those days.

Exhibit A: "The Beautiful Letdown"

In hindsight, I think that Sony rushed Switchfoot off to Top 40 way too quickly. "Meant to Live" and "Dare You to Move" both got successful alternative/modern rock chart runs before crossing over into Top 40/Pop radio. While this in and of itself isn't bad at all, it may have done some damage along the way, because what began to happen was that the industry-wide perception of the band became "radio-friendly," "adult pop," "soft rock," and "pop rock."

In reality, Switchfoot really aren't a Top 40-sounding band. With the singles the band has put out to this point, things haven't really been done to really change that perception. I do think one more rockish/upbeat single from “The Beautiful Letdown” (like "Ammunition" or even "Adding to the Noise") before or after "Dare You to Move" would've been the best choice. Instead, Sony went with "This Is Your Life" to try to build on the soft-pop reputation of Switchfoot; but we all know they're a rock band at heart.

Exhibit B: "Nothing Is Sound"

This is probably why "Stars" tanked. It was a rock song that didn't quite appeal to Top 40 crowd that was used to the likes of "Meant" and "Dare.” However, modern rock radio didn't support “Stars” much either because of the overall perception in the music industry that Switchfoot is a "pop band." Granted, the copy protection fiasco with NIS didn't help either, but you get the picture.

Sony then, trying to save "Nothing Is Sound," put out the most poppy song on the album: "We Are One Tonight." In what is decidedly a rock-and-roll, melancholy album, they chose the happiest, brightest, lightest second single to represent the album. Can you begin to see the flaws in Sony's approach? People who rushed out to buy the album after hearing "Stars" or "We Are One Tonight" were probably highly disappointed by the "depressing" themes on the album. What would have represented "Nothing Is Sound" better as aw hole? Probably anything from the following list: "Lonely Nation," "Stars," "Politicians," "Easier Than Love," "The Blues," and/or "Happy Is a Yuppie Word." Sony could've really changed their approach after “Stars,” focusing instead on modern rock radio again and putting down Switchfoot back to their rock roots. But seeing as how Top 40 is far more lucrative than rock radio, Sony tried to make the money grab, and go for the pop charts with "One Tonight." Pure business; nothing wrong with that, but the move probably wasn't the wisest decision in the grand scheme of things.

So, after the relative failure of "Nothing Is Sound," Sony probably began to jump ship on this band, and that is why "Oh Gravity." got virtually nothing in support.

BUT

Flash forward to present day: new album, new record company. Atlantic and Switchfoot are playing this perfectly, in my opinion.

Exhibit C: "Hello Hurricane"

It would've been easy for Atlantic to see "Mess of Me"'s decent success at modern rock radio as an under performing of expectations (considering the type of promotion it was getting). The label could’ve panicked and released "Your Love Is a Song" or "Needle and Haystack Life" to grab the Top 40 crowd and sell hundreds of thousands of copies.

But, Atlantic is really showing their commitment to Switchfoot and really working on this album, and re-establishing Switchfoot as a rock band at Modern Rock radio before finally crossing over into Top 40. We want there to be loyalty from Modern Rock radio, in the same way Christian radio has and will play new Switchfoot singles like crazy 'til kingdom come. But to get the sort of support single-after-single that Green Day, Linkin Park, and Three Days Grace get from modern rock, we need to ship songs their way!

"The Sound" was always the band's choice for the second single, as Tim Foreman told me last week, so I'm fully stoked to back this next release. So, take heart, my friends, and let's get ready to promote Switchfoot like never before. Who knows; if "The Sound" and (later) "Your Love Is a Song" take off, we might still see "Needle" become a single yet!

FootColumn: "Goodbye Hurricane?" Not so fast…

Hey everyone!

So rumors have been going around that Switchfoot is releasing yet another album after "Hello Hurricane" and before "Vice Verses"? Also, it might be called "Goodbye Hurricane?" Before we address this, and before we begin updating our discographies and Wikipedia articles or what not, let's look at the video we posted yesterday that started it all (fast forward to around 8:50):



So first off, we know that Jon Foreman says they might actually be putting out another record before "Vice Verses." However, it sounds like the band is just tossing ideas around for now.

I know it's micro-analyzing, but when Jon says, " We've been talking about it... we might release some... goodbye hurricane or something along those lines that would kind of end that chapter before we start the next one," it sounds like even the band aren't very sure about their plans, and that the "goodbye" was meant metaphorically, judging by the tone of his voice.

I personally think it's NOT going to be a proper studio release. (The following is just speculation and shouldn't be taken as fact. )

I think this record will either be an EP of some songs that didn't make the cut for "Hello Hurricane," or it will be a U2 "Rattle and Hum" type of thing, with a live album interspersed with some new studio tracks. It would be sort of like a victory lap album, just as "Rattle and Hum" was, coming off the success of "The Joshua Tree." If Switchfoot is really ambitious, they could even release a CD/DVD, which was rumored to be in the works a few months back. That would serve as a proper enough "goodbye" to the hurricane... another studio album would just be kind of an odd mechanism to use as a farewell to previous studio album.

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So basically, we're dealing with rumors so far. Nothing should be taken as hard facts. I'm sure the band aren't even sure what's going on yet. Let's not get worried about questionable album titles, how we want "Vice Verses" rather than "Hurricane" II, how soon it is to be putting out another record, etc.

I mean, the band is still touring on "Hello Hurricane" right now… they're only one single into the album cycle, and I'm sure we can expect at least two more from the album before all is said and done. This record cycle is just beginning!

FootColumn: A Call to Arms from Bleah

Editor's Note: This is a FootColumn/message from Bleah, one of our resident writers. Take some time to read this; her dedication and passion to share and spread the music of Switchfoot is inspiring to me as a fellow fan. I am encouraged as I read this. But conversation can't be one-sided; comment below if you read this! Let's encourage each other, Footsoldiers! Let's do this! So without further ado, here's Bleah.

- Job

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Well this is pretty much my attempt towards some sort of pep talk.

Now I will admit that I have not always been the best at, or faithful in, my advertising of Switchfoot. I'm not proud of it, but I haven't always been very good at it. Sure whenever Job would tell us to, I would go and request the songs a few times, but then I probably wouldn't touch it again for a week or so until he asked us to again. But in the last month or so I have had more time on my hands thanks to the holidays and so I've been doing a little more...I don't know what the correct word would be other then advertising, as I said before. I have been requesting "Mess Of Me" and I put a couple of the "Hello Hurricane" and Switchfoot banners up on my own personal blog.

So a couple weeks ago, I got some major feedback thanks to the banners. People putting them up on their own sites, people saying they would help out in requesting the band and this new album (which is amazing by the way. I finally got my own copy). But I also got people who had either never heard of Switchfoot or had heard of them but just never got into the music, never got far enough to become as obsessed and attached as some of us have become. So I have kinda gotten on this roll per say. I LOVE telling as many people as possible about the band, and the album. I've got it posted on my blog all the time, spreading the music around, giving my friends copies of the album, listening to it all the time, especially when I am around people. I even have Switchfoot information on my e-mail signature.

There are simple and easy things you can do to help promote this band. Things that aren't going to stop your day, cramp your style, or slow you down. And really, when you think about it, who are we as fans if we can't even go the extra mile to make sure this band gets what they need to succeed? We are their lifeline in a sense. What we do for them, to promote them, to in essence, support them, is what will bring them further. They can produce and release music all day long. They can go on tours all over the world 24/7, but without fans to bring friends to concerts, to buy and share CD's, and without our help as the supposedly loyal followers of the foot, then its no good and useless. I'm not trying to make you feel bad, I'm surley not trying to guilt trip you in any way. I'm simply telling you what I feel is true. I would be ashamed to call myself a fan and know that the very band I supposedly was a fan of went under because I wouldn't step up to plate.

Now I'm not saying that the band will go south, will not succeed. What I'm saying is if we want them to keep topping charts, doing amazing, being as successful as they deserve to be, then we have to get, and keep, the ball rolling. And the bigger the ball gets the more people we will need to support it.



Okay, as I slowly step off my soap box I just want to encourage you one more time to go to your local radio stations, go to the main radio stations and request; respectfully text, e-mail, call on the phone. If I'm correct, we're mainly focusing on the Alternative and Active Rock type radio stations. But whatever you can do, I'm sure would be appreciated. Take the banner we have at the top of the page. Put it on your myspace, facebook, twitter, blogs. Whatever. Print it out and stick it on your binder for school. Whatever you have to do to make sure it gets seen. Paste it to your signature on your e-mail. Just do everything you can to get this out there.

They need us, and I don't know about you but I personally need them. Their music has added so much to my life. And I don't know where I would be without this band. I know overly dramatic, whatever. But I mean it. I love Switchfoot and all the guys who put it together and make it possible.



I'm ready to make up for lost time and be the fan I was meant to be. But I can't do this alone. We need your help. They need your help.



-Bleah Briann

Switchfoot show at the House of Blues, Anaheim, CA recap

Note: I had the opportunity to go see Switchfoot during one of their dates on the Hello Hurricane tour. Turns out that would be the single best show I've ever seen them play. Here is a rough recap, written last night right after the show... words can't do it justice, but here's my attempt...

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Red Eyes. That sums up the evening for me in more ways than a thousand words can review. It paints a feeling, a mood, a sketch of a moment in time, that will forever be etched in my memory – or at least for a long time. I've found that when I listen to music, I intentionally search for movement: I want to be moved to tears. Switchfoot did just that on a Black Friday night at the House of Blues in Anaheim, CA.

I can launch into a long-winded, song-by-song review of how things went down tonight in Downtown Disney, but that would be a little redundant. There were highlights of course, like the instrumental outburst at the end of "Free" or the fist-pumping madness that was, "The Sound," or maybe Switchfoot medleying "Shadow" during "Stars" or Jon Foreman singing "Love Is the Movement" before "Meant to Live." But the highlight of the day lay in the more personal realm of things… to me anyways.

The day began at 12 p.m., when my brother, friend Bryant, his brother, and I arrived at the House of Blues in Downtown Disney. We met some pretty sweet people, including Mark, who had been waiting there since 5 a.m. in an attempt to get some front row spots for his family. Amazing guy. The dedication he showed was moving and inspiring… As the day wore on, the circumstances seemed to dictate that he would probably not get anywhere near the front, but amazingly enough, things worked out for him and his family. So glad for them.

We also met Jake and Lully, who were really great sports along with us as we waited the 9 hours until Switchfoot took the stage. We shared laughs and jokes about being the "TRUE" friends of the foot for waiting out there for hours and hours (no disrespect though, friends. I understand you paid good money for meet and greets, just saying. haha. All jokes…). But those were the great new friends we made, and that's what it's all about… building community…

Which, awesomely enough, included finally meeting a TON of the official boardie folk in person! Once our group finally got into the venue, we ran into a good friend of ours again, Josh, who brought us to join the rest of the boardies at the front of the crowd. Jana, Amy, those were funny, random times. haha. Gabs, thanks for the cookie. :) Amylynne, we did it! We got them to play "Faust!" Josh, you rock so much… I already told you that, but for real… you are amazing. Bryant, Alex, you guys are so fun to hang out with. To my little bro, thanks for coming; you chose the perfect show to come to for your first time. :)

So anyways, the show began, and there was much rejoicing as Switchfoot took the stage and any weariness from our long wait melted away. Playing through a record takes a lot of discipline, and the guys definitely appear now to have mastered the art. From "Needle and Haystack Life" 'til the very end of "Awakening," this was probably one of the tightest shows I have ever seen the band play –– every note and harmony was absolutely NAILED.

Throughout the evening, I was looking for a moment of transcendence… and found it, rather appropriately I suppose, at the end of the set when "Sing It Out" segued seamlessly into "Red Eyes." Something about that moment tore my soul apart, and I burst into shameless tears… caught me by surprise, but that's ok. "Holding on… holding on… with red eyes, what are you looking for?" Singing out those words to that song… unbelievable.

And any words I attempt to use to describe this show would be quite useless… just know that Switchfoot is at the HEIGHT of its game right now. This show was perfect… if you haven't gotten tickets, then what are you waiting for? (song reference whole-heartedly intended). Peace and love,

Job


Setlist

Set 1:

Needle and Haystack Life
Mess of Me
Your Love Is a Song
The Sound
Enough to Let Me Go
Free (Happy Is a Yuppie Word Intro)
Hello Hurricane
Always
Bullet Soul
Yet
Sing It Out
Red Eyes

Set 2:

Faust (by crowd request)
Stars (Shadow Proves the Sunshine medley)
Oh! Gravity.
Dirty Second Hands
Twenty Four
Dare You to Move
Meant to Live (Love Is the Movement intro)

Encore:

This Is Your Live
Awakening

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Here are some videos from the show last night.

Free



Yet



And... Red Eyes...



Dirty Second Hands



^Those two courtesy of Gabby. Thanks!

Stars



Awakening

Foot Column: Drew Shirley on Hello Hurricane Debut

I was in the car last week when I heard that in ten minutes, Drew Shirley of Switchfoot, was going to be doing an interview on my local Christiain radio station. I was so excited. So I made my mom leave me in the car, with it running, while she went shopping so that I would be able to hear it. I pulled out my MP4 and turned it on record and waited. Well, lets just say it didn't come on for exactly twenty three minutes (yes I did pay that much attention). But when it finally came on it was so worth it.

Drew explained the heart of this band in way that was truly inspiring to me. He talked about how they want to give back to each town they go into; to give more than "just a great night of music," but to really give back something that is needed. Like when they come to Houston, they will be supporting a charity that gives blankets to the homeless, and they are encouraging everyone who comes to that show to bring blankets. They've done canned goods, where everyone who comes is asked to bring non-perishables. Everywhere they go they link up with someone, and they help. Not for publicity, but because they want to be who they say they are all the time. But in truth, it doesn't matter if they were this huge (and amazing) band or not. This is their heart and soul. This is who they are. And they have no problem with letting you see the real them.

Then he went on to talk about the album, how it was made, the story, the feeling behind it. He talked about how Tim just randomly said "what about Hello Hurricane?" and they loved it and shaped the entire album around it. He talked about the stuff the band has been through and how the album reflects their victory over that. He talked about economic hurricanes, relational hurricanes, and physical hurricanes. I think Drew gave a huge amount of enlightenment to the entire album.

Now I'm sure that if you were one of those very lucky people who bought the deluxe version of Hello Hurricane, not very much of this is new to you. But for those of you like me (which I'm sure, there have to be more of you out there) who didn't buy it, this will give you a new respect for the album. And even if you've heard it before, I'm sure it doesn't hurt to take another listen.

I've included the manuscript. No need to hold you any longer, here it is:


Jen: So we're gonna talk more about the album, we'll do that in a few minutes. But you guys are comin' to Houston November 19th for some ticket servent street and greet events. Basically what this is, its three locations around houston where you can hang out with the guys from Switchfoot for free. And I love that the first one is at Star of Hope in downtown Houston I feel like everytime you guys come to town that you're doing something good for Houston and helping us collect blankets for the star of hope, for the homeless in Houston.

Drew: Yeah, thanks for bringin' that up. Its something that we really do feel strongly about. When we do a tour, we try to find something in every town that gives back to the community that we're going into. It kinda started with just the thought of, how can we leave more than just the great night of music, with these people? So often we'll come into a city, and we come in on the bus, and we get out and walk around a little bit and see the city, and its like, a lot of the time, we're in the rock and roll clubs where its not the best parts of town and stuff, and you just see things. And I don't know, its just we kinda have a heart for that, as a band. You know, we just find needs and we see things that are going on and we just hear about things, like Habitat for Humanity, and we hear about things from Star of Hope, and we just wanted to be involved, like every time we hear about something, we're just like "Yeah, we want to be apart of that, we want to be doing that stuff." 'Cause you know, its just something that we can do while we're there, that doesn't take away from the music but adds on to what we're doing and it adds to kinda the heart of the band. We really like people to know what we believe in so that they can also join in with that cause.

Jen: Definitely. Well we definitely want everyone to get involved. Find out more about the ticket servant street and greet event at the three loctions around Houston. Check out Ticket Servant.com.
And what it really comes down to is the core of what we're called to do, its basically scriptural right?

Drew: You know, the thing that we try to live by is, you're not just who you are on stage, you want to be the same on and off stage. We're just really honest with the fans and who we are. So we're talking on stage about, you know, helping people, hope, dare you to move, you know, pick yourself up, we have these things ingrained into what we believe and in our songs. And you have to live it. Because actions speak louder then words. So, we just really feel like that's part of our, calling, if you will, as a band. Its just our actions and how we do busniness, and how we organize or tours and everything.

Jen: Absolutely. Drew from Switchfoot today, the album is in stores. Its called Hello Hurricane. And we're not done yet we're gonna talk about the album and Drew's also gonna help us with some lessons on how to be Switchfoot cool. On Ksbj. (Music Plays)

Drew: This is the day we have been waiting for, for so long!!

Jen: I can imagine. We're so excited for you guys. Well the album title is Hello Hurricane and everyone in Houston is so grateful that you've honored us by this song to us, I know thats not really the case but I realize the hurrcane you're talking about is more about, not just this album being a project, but a journey for you for you guys.

Drew: Yeah, and you know, we don't really use the word hurricane lightly. You know, a few of us, Jon and Tim, grew up on the east coast. We've seen, like you said, that what happens in your home town, and we don't take that lightly. And you know the album title, Hello Hurricane, wasn't specifically about just the physical weather system of a hurricane. We really started just looking around and its really just a symbol of something that's massive, and destructive, disorderly, and just confusing. We're suffering an economic hurricane right now, if you will. There are social hurricanes that we've written about in some of the songs on our album. You know, sometimes, relationships can be just completely sending you in different directions and you don't know whats going on, and its confusing and its like a hurricane. Now the name of this album stems from us, seeing the storm and realizing that we want to embrace the storm and basically cope, knowing that we are going to get out the other side. We want that album to carry that message of the lyric in the title song, because actually, in Hello Hurricane it says: "Hello Hurrcane, you can't silence my love." So we came up with it, and put that title even before the album was written. Our bass player Tim actually said "What do you think of this as a contract, you know as a title," and we were like wow, that's amazing. It's powerful, it's the message of that we've been talking about and thinking about and going through. I mean, to be honest, as a band, we went through a really hard two years. In the past two years that this album kind of came through on that journey, and it was very emotional for us as a band because we lived it, we lived this message. And you know, its something that we want to speak at from the experience that we've had. While it might not be as hard as it is for someone who's in the actual hurricane or lost loved ones in that way, but it does carry that same heart.

Jen: Definitely, Drew with Switchfoot joining us this afternoon. So excited, its the album release date. You can pick up your copy in stores now its called Hello Hurricane and be sure to check out ticket servant .com to find about chances for you to meet these guys November 19th. and ticket servent street and greet.

Please feel free to give me your comments/suggestions/questions/criticisms (yes I like those too). Because I like knowing what you guys think.
Thank you for reading!

-Bleah Briann.

FootColumn: My Favorite Song to Date...

I (along with alot of you) have had the privilege to hear three of Switchfoot's new songs off of their new album Hello Hurricane before the CD was released. The first was Mess Of Me, and like I'm sure most of you did, I smiled from ear to ear the entire time. Then I heard The Sound, followed by my most recent listen of Always.

But out of all three of these master pieces I would have to say that The Sound is my absolute favorite. Please don't get me wrong, I relished every moment of each song, and I still love every one. But there was just something about The Sound. Mess Of Me, in my opinion, was great, undeniably fantastic, and unpredictable, but still Switchfoot in every way. Maybe even catchy, it was great, really, really great. I wouldn't have chosen another song to be my first off this alubm. And then there was Always it was honestly like reliving the glory days, I got that same rush as when I first heard Only Hope, 24, and On Fire. But there was just that extra spark in The Sound, you know that one that makes your heart stop. The one that makes you keep it on repeat for the entire day, the entire week? Maybe you don't know that sense of obsession as I do, but I can tell you that song brought it on full throttle. It was just this rush of awe and amazement. Call me crazy, but I just love that song. So for all of you who didn't like it, that's your call. And I won't hold it against you. And please don't think that I didn't like the others because trust me, I loved them. But for some reason The Sound, grabbed my heart and threw it into a tizzy, and it still hasn't let go.

If you haven't heard it, please listen. And if you agree, disagree, or have a comment/ question, about this post. Please leave a comment, trust me I don't hate them. :)

-Bleah Briann

FootColumn: Switchfoot and Expanded rights and 360 Deals?

UPDATE (October 9, 2009, 1:00 AM PST): We got word in from Switchfoot's management saying that Switchfoot INDEED retains the artistic freedom and rights of an independent band for this particular deal with Atlantic, and that the situation is VERY favorable for the band. Rob Cavallo and Co. over at Warner Music Group have a passion for this band and their message, and the deal is great for both parties. Hope that helps you guys out! I'm personally glad to get some confirmation for what I wrote below... Peace.

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Hello there friends! Here is some interesting recent news about Rob Cavallo, the guy who is responsible for finding and signing Switchfoot to their deal with Atlantic.

Marketwire posted this story about his new position as Chief Creative Officer with Warner Music Group.

Cavallo recently completed work on Dave Matthews Band's "Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King" (which he recently brought to WMG for distribution outside of North America). Rob has also just signed the band Switchfoot to an expanded rights deal with Atlantic Records and is providing additional production on several songs for the album's producer, Mike Elizondo.

^Interesting, right? Switchfoot's got what's called an "expanded rights" deal with Atlantic. I did some research but not much in the way of information came up.

But this next story (as posted on LOBH before), is a story from the LA Times about the same thing, essentially, except for one minor (or major) detail. But check this out:

Cavallo has already signed Southern California rock act Switchfoot to a multi-platform "360" deal with Atlantic Records, and is credited with bringing the Dave Matthews Band to Warner Music this year for distribution outside of North America.

^Even more intriguing. We now see that what Switchfoot's got with Atlantic is a "360" deal.



What is a 360 deal you might ask? Well, it's definitely become a recent trend in recent years. It is oftentimes looked on in a negative light, oftentimes viewed as a struggling record label's way to get their hands on a cut of almost everything the band sells and makes. This type of deal has been viewed as their response to faltering record sales in a time when digital downloading and free music continue to increase.

Heather McDonald from About.com says that "with a 360 deal, a label can tap into that the money that [the] band earns from playing shows and selling t-shirts. In exchange, (so the story goes) the label will work with the band on their overall career, trying to drum up opportunities beyond album sales. The labels say that this actually lets them devote more time to developing an artist, because they don't have to go all out chasing big sales front the start to try and recoup their investment. If they have more ways to make their money back, then they can take a slow and steady approach to building a band and give the band more space and time to become a success before getting dropped."

She goes on to say that she feels unconvinced, saying that she feels "these deals aren't about selling music – they're about selling anything - literally anything."

Elsewhere on About.com, one can read that a 360 deal makes the record company more of a "pseudo-manager," looking after the artist's entire career, as opposed to only focusing on record sales.

So what does this all mean for Switchfoot? Well, in this November 2008 report from Techcrunch.com, Warner Music Group CEO Edgar Bronfman declared that all new artists to the label are now required to sign on to 360 deals.

This could begin to explain why the Switchfoot deal with Atlantic Records is a 360 deal – it certainly fits into that mold, as Atlantic is a Warner-owned label.

Executives will argue that 360 deals make sense for both parties, with Bronfman arguing that without other ways to make money from an artist other than cd sales, labels wouldn't be able to continue to provide promotion for its artists.

The NY Times reports that what happens in deals like these is that "in return for... bigger share, labels might give artists more money up front and in many cases touring subsidies that otherwise would not be offered. More important, perhaps, artists might be allowed more time to develop the chops needed to build a long career. And the label’s ability to crossmarket items like CDs, ring tones, V.I.P. concert packages and merchandise might make for a bigger overall pie."

Paramore, which obviously isn't doing so bad in its own right, is one of these major artists signed to Atlantic under a 360 deal. They've done well, and can be considered a success under this model.



Now, again, we come back to Switchfoot, freshly independent from the Major Label industry. Some of us may be wondering what in the world they're doing signing back on with a major label to put out "Hello Hurricane." Others will argue that this is the best possible move to make. The Switchfoot boys poured their heart and soul into these tunes – why not put it out to as many people as possible?

I suppose without knowing all the details, there can be no real resolution in the minds of us fans. But judging by the way the Switchfoot is talking about this deal, I'm sure they found the perfect deal.

Going back to the first announcement back in early August, the guys called it a "partnership" with Atlantic. In Jon Foreman's CallIn interview with Positive Media the other day, Jon called it a partnership:

"So, we were planning on putting it out ourselves. Then, the folks at Atlantic chased us down, [because they] really loved what they had heard; Rob Cavallo and a couple of the other guys, Greg Common. And so, after thinking about it, we decided to partner up with them, so we could get the music out to everybody. Because we really feel like this record, and it is one that we want to be heard around the world, and they're the folks that can get it out there, internationally. So, we're amped."

Also, it's important to realize that Switchfoot's lowercase people imprint still owns the rights to the songs. lowercase people serves as Switchfoot's company, which is being distributed through Atlantic.

This is a great deal, folks. Not only does the band get to retain it's independent identity artistically, they keep the rights to their songs, and keep the rights to everything else as well. A 360 deal puts a commission of tour and merch sales into the pockets of Atlantic/Warner, but that doesn't mean that Switchfoot loses those rights. They keep them.

Also at the same time, Atlantic is going to be pushing Switchfoot hard and heavy all across the globe. We have already begun to see it, with "Hello Hurricane" songs getting played during major College Football games on ESPN. "Mess of Me" is getting steadily more airplay on radio stations. There is more mainstream excitement surrounding the release of a Switchfoot record than there has been since "Nothing Is Sound." Be very stoked.

And seeing as how the band has already seen huge success in the past and stayed the same humble, awkward, funny surfer dudes from So. Cali. that they are, I'm sure there's nothing to worry about with them. They've been around long enough to know whether they're doing the right thing or not. They've got their heads on straight.

FootColumn: Fiction Family is worthy

by Bleah

Back in '07, Jon Foreman of Switchfoot, and his long time friend in the music business, Sean Watkins of Nickle Creek joined forces and decided they would go out on a limb. They had three things in common: the love of singing, writing music, and a great love for coffee. So off and on they would meet in between tours and write and record music. A year and a half later Family Fiction was born. January 20, 2009 a twelve-track hit was released by ATO records starring our very own Jon and Sean. They took turns with lead vocals and created an amazing collaboration of songs. A twist of bluegrass/modern rock/mainstream kinda feel. Everything from a 60's era vibe in one song to a "marching band coda" in another. "We figured it'd never come out" says Jon, but they were wrong. Family Fiction is loved and accepted by Switchfoot and Nickle Creek fans alike.

This is one CD worthy to be placed right next to my Switchfoot albums. I find this to be an interesting sound with a whole rang of songs and lyrics. Its almost a mix of The Fray, and yet you still feel the love and passion of Switchfoot, with the vibes of Relient K and Hawk Nelson. I mean I know that sounds insane, but its there, I'm tellin' you. And I've found at least three songs on this Album completely repeat worthy. So if you have yet to hear this masterpiece, then taste and see my friend. I promise it won't let you down.

FootColumn: Hype or Reality?

There has been such a stir in the music world lately over one band...anyone care to guess who that band could be or why there such a stir? Well its Switchfoot of course and the cause: Mess of Me.

Switchfoot has used some of the most creative tactics to get their song out there, giving it alot of media attention. People everywhere know about the song and the band. But how long will this last? In my opinion...this is alot more then just "hype" as stated by sceptics (even though I must say sceptics still love the song so I think their basis of opinion is flawed in the first place).

I think this is something that will last, something that will last for a very long time. Never before has such an album been released by Switchfoot, its a feel that's never been displayed by them before and will surely never be forgotten. Many will appreciate this and many well have something negative to say, but its our job as Switchfoot fans to support them for what they do.

Now, anyone who knows anything about Switchfoot has got to realise that despite the difference in music style, the lyrics are classic. Almost every song I have ever heard come out from this band has been about redemption or the fulfillment of your destiny, making the most of your time here on earth as does MOM. I personally find that uplifting, and enlightening. But you can't please everyone. So even though this song, this album, has definitely broken records, and reached some of the highest standers ever placed on a song, there are still going to be people saying bad stuff about it. But just know that we as fans have already achieved greatness in spreading this thing world wide, and I believe that this is more then hype, this is something that people will remember. And I'm sure that Jon Foreman and then whole crew are proud of you all! So keep spreading the word, and supporting this band. They deserve it.

FootColumn: *Be generous with Compliments and Stingy with Critisism*

Hey all you fellow Switchfoot fans. I would like to introduce myself. My name is Bleah Briann and I am the newest author for...well this blog. :)

I've been blogging since January first of this year but just recently did I get a spot to be a columnist on this blog. So anywho, I will be giving you my personal opinion on anything Switchfoot related, and since its only appropriate for whats been going around lately, I'll give you my report on the new single, Mess of Me.


When I heard "Mess of Me," I was taken back, but I shouldn't have been surprised. Switchfoot is different from any other band I've been able to find, by that I mean, their lyrics. They're certainly not scared to tell people what they really think, how they really feel, or their opinion on the condition of the world today. I find that completely refreshing. And MOM spoke so true to me. Yeah its different, maybe a little bit more on the rock side of Switchfoot, something we don't see all too often. But that's who they are. Are we really going to ask them to put themselves in a box because we don't want them to change? I think that would be selfish of us, and I personally want to see every angle of that band. So back to what I think of the song...I think its phenomenal, and I think that anyone who says otherwise needs to go listen to it again.

The heart of these people are so sincere. Here's what I'm going to leave you with today. Just take a look on how Jon Foremans heart was touched by the suffering of others:

We arrived home in San Diego early this morning, back from a run of shows up the coast with Switchfoot. The sun is setting over the pacific and my hair is still wet from an evening surf. In the distance I can hear the whistle of the Amtrak from LA heading south. I'm grateful to be home, grateful to have a place to live, grateful to have been given another breath alive on this planet. But today my thoughts are divided, split between two worlds. As the sun sets over California it begins to rise over Darfur. The same sun. The same planet. Can it be possible that right now, two and a half million people are waking up in camps and refugee camps having been driven from their homes by violent means? Under the same sun, could it be true that almost half a million people have died of starvation, violence, and disease over the past six years in Darfur? Is this true?! And if this is true, why has the media remained almost completely silent on the issue? Why has our government maintained it's current stance of inaction? When presidential hopeful Obama was running for office he stated that "We can't ignore the genocide in Darfur. The international community can't turn a blind eye when children are being slaughtered and women are being raped. We have to do everything in our power to make it stop. We have to act. Now." Nothing has happened. And yet the sun is still rising over Darfur. And the sun still rises over me. And the sun still rises over capital hill... the same sun. Today we celebrate mother's day with our moms and grandmothers. My thoughts drift overseas to the mother who is just now waking up, wondering whether she'll be able to give her children anything to eat. Tomorrow I begin a three day fast for Darfur. Why fast? Because quite frankly, I can't think of a better idea. I reckon the best way to enter into the suffering of a group of people halfway around the world is to start with the basics. These folks are fasting without alternative, for three days I will fast with them.

Isn't that amazing? Like I said these people aren't just singers, they aren't just a great band. They're people, people like you and me. People with hearts...

Foot Column: Atlantic Records and “Pseudo-Christian bands” + more info on Hello Hurricane release

Atlantic Records is known for its many mainstream rock and pop acts, such as Metallica, Shinedown, and Jason Mraz. But this record label is also home to a different breed of bands, which includes two “PseudoChristian” groups. Most people know what I’m talking about here. These are bands that reject the “Christian” label, afraid it will lose them listeners, but are still known as “Christian bands”, and/or have a large Christian audience. The two groups that come to mind here are Skillet and Needtobreathe. Skillet is primarily known as a harder rock band, with a sound slightly like that of fellow label-mates Shinedown, and also similar to Three Days Grace and Breaking Benjamin. Needtobreathe is more of a pop/rock group that sometimes even dabbles in a southern gospel sound. Both are very popular with Christian audiences, with Needtobreathe’s single “Washed by the Water” becoming a number one christian hit a couple of years ago. Skillet reaches out to a larger audience, with singles, “Whispers in the Dark” and “Savior” reaching #34 and #26 on the Mainstream Rock charts respectively. Skillet also reaches Christian audiences as well, with their current single “Hero” hitting #32 on the Hot Christian Singles charts. While Needtobreathe regularly uses Word to release their albums (Warner Bros, which owns Atlantic Records, Christian imprint with acts like Remedy Drive)

Skillet stays with Atlantic directly. So essentially Skillet tries to reach out to a larger audience, while Needtobreathe stays with what’s working for them, which is the Christian audience. So what’s the point of all this? Well it’s important because Switchfoot to many, is a “Christian” band. Now whether or not they actually are depends on how you define Christian band; which is a point of discussion for another post and is not really the main point anyways, because, Switchfoot’s goal is to make music for people of all religions. The main point/question here is, “How are these bands treated by Atlantic Records? Are they sidestepped because of the Christian label, or are they appreciated for their musical talent? The answer in the situation would have to be the latter.

While Needtobreathe is mainly marketed to the Christian audience, Skillet continues to reach larger areas despite the fact that they explicitly allude to a higher power in many of their songs (Savior for instance). Skillet also tours with mainstream acts such as Three Days Grace, and is widely known to a large audience. Needtobreathe is clearly also marketed well, with several of their singles doing very well. So what essentially does it mean for Switchfoot? Well, most likely (in fact most certainly) not much. “Hello Hurricane” will certainly be released directly from Atlantic, although there is probably a small chance it will come out on Word as well. Also, Switchfoot will probably be treated very well by Atlantic, as pretty much everyone has seen what this band is capable of (Singles “Dare You to Move” and “Meant to Live”). So essentially, we can count on good reception from Atlantic Records, and know that most likely Switchfoot will be supported as much, if not more than Skillet. In all likelihood then, the fact that many consider Switchfoot to be a “Christian band” should have nothing to do with the way their singles are marketed, since we see that the other pseudo-Christian acts are marketed very well by Atlantic. So don’t expect Switchfoot to be marketed poorly as they may have been in the past, and instead look forward to a great record that should be marketed well, and if the fans call in to radio enough, some great singles.

(Single chart positions taken from Wikipedia)

Note: this post is certainly not meant to say that Switchfoot is only for Christians, because nothing could be farther from the truth. Jon Foreman clearly stated that their music is for everybody, and that they do not consider themselves to be a Christian band.

Also, Switchfoot added the following on their website......

8.22.09: Details on new album "Hello Hurricane" The time has come: Hello Hurricane is scheduled for release on November 10th, with a pre-order starting soon. Also, our first single "Mess of Me" will be heading to radio soon...stay tuned

FootColumn: The Atlantic Signing and what it could mean for lowercase people and Switchfoot

Atlantic Records -- the home to many a major rock star today. Many of music's major acts, like Jason Mraz, Carolina Liar, Ryan Cabrera, and Shinedown make their home with Atlantic Records. Also interesting to note is the fact that the "Christian" rock act, Skillet, is also signed on to Atlantic in a deal similar to the one Switchfoot just announced yesterday.

One thing that is important to note right off the bat is that Switchfoot is STILL independent. Sure, they have signed on with Atlantic (which is a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Records), but if the deal is done accordingly, lowercase people records/Switchfoot still own the rights to their own material. The only difference here is that the band has a MAJOR partner on their team, who will now be in charge of working the record and singles to the huge radio and retail outlets that would have otherwise been inaccessible if they had gone truly independent.

This is one thing that I love about how the Switchfoot boys are handling this whole situation. They retain that artistic freedom that an independent band should have. They are also most likely retaining the rights to the songs they write and record. However, they aren't just going to sit back and fall into musical oblivion, releasing songs that will only be sold to the faithful on their website or at their shows. No, they want these songs that they've poured their heart and soul into to be heard all across the globe, while being "respectful to the people that listen to our music." THAT'S our band, right there; they know that what they have in this record is special, and they want anyone and everyone to hear it and share in the experience, as the "musical co-conspirators." We already saw it when Switchfoot wrote "This Is Home" for Disney that they aren't afraid of being major players in the music industry again. They have managed to regain and retain their musical and artistic independence, all while finding the right deal that will present their music (on the business side of things) in a way that THEY, not some record executive, feel has the most integrity.

So, I thought a good step for those who care and are interested in this kind of thing (I know I am), would be to do a quick overview of what Atlantic Records is and what it represents.

An overview of Atlantic Records

Atlantic Records is a label subsidiary of Warner Music Group, which hosts such acts as Mute Math, Linkin Park, Green Day, Taking Back Sunday, Timbaland, Paramore, and The All-American Rejects.

Atlantic distributed by Atlantic Records Group in the U.S. and WEA internationally. It's acts are seeing big-time international success, so it is insured that Atlantic can distribute records globally pretty well. What more can be said? Switchfoot have signed on to one of the elite record labels in the industry, and one that is respected for giving their artists proper representation.

What about Youtube? (since Atlantic is an Warner-owned company)

Funny what the space of seven months will do, but remember back in January when we discussed Warner Music Group's spat with Youtube?? For a refresher, go here.

The basic gist of the story was that Warner had pulled all its videos off of Youtube because Youtube was refusing to pay their asking price in ads and pay-per-clicks. It felt like a sticky mess.

Yet, here we are, seven months later, and Switchfoot has signed up with a Warner-owned record company. Switchfoot, as we know, is on the brink of conducting a robust Youtube campaign surrounding "Hello Hurricane," thanks to Corey Vidal. I do hope that signing with Atlantic/Warner Music Group doesn't derail those plans one bit. It'll be quite a letdown, after all the progress that has been made.

However, I did notice that Warner Music Group did permit the uploading of one of their own artist's official music videos, the Transformers-inspired "New Divide" by Linkin Park (featured below... bonus coverage. haha)



It has since racked up 10 million plus views. Perhaps, Switchfoot and Atlantic worked out a deal where Switchfoot still owns the right to upload their own videos? In fact, I'm pretty sure that's what they did. A truly independent band like Switchfoot or Radiohead is smart enough to make sure they own their own songs and video content; the only difference is that they license their songs to the major labels to distribute, but the labels don't earn the rights to the actual songs themselves. Greatly handled and executed by Switchfoot right there!

What about ATO Records?

ATO Records... long thought to be the distributing partner for lowercase people records is no longer in the equation. It is a bit sad to see them go, but there's no doubt that Atlantic packs a MUCH bigger punch than ATO does. ATO Records does well for the bands like Fiction Family that aren't looking to dominate the worldwide markets, but are rather trying to hit home with the true music listeners who still go out to the record shop to buy a CD.

Switchfoot's messages and music just cry out for a wider audience; the universal themes of hope, love, and tragedy all melded together into an amalgam of sonic goodness should be given to the entire world to hear, if they are willing. This is probably (not positively), the reasoning that went into Switchfoot's decision to sign with Atlantic over ATO Records.

So THAT'S what Jon Foreman meant when he was working with Rob C.?

And one last little tidbit I'd like to talk about (sorry this ran a bit long): remember when Jon Foreman tweeted this on August 5?:

Just got finished working with rob c. rocking up the prechorus of mess o me. Heading to the wiltern with tim now...

^Well, we were all inclined to believe that he was working with producer Rob Cavallo, and now it all makes sense! (begin speculation) Rob Cavallo is a producer for many of Warner Music Group artists' finest works: Green Day's "Dookie" and "American Idiot"; Goo Goo Dolls' "Dizzy Up the Girl"; Paramore's upcoming "brand new eyes"; and Shinedown's "The Sound of Madness." Since Switchfoot just recently signed their deal with Atlantic/Warner Music Group, Jon and Rob were working on a radio edit of "Mess of Me," so they were beefing up the pre-chorus of the song before shipping it off to Atlantic to begin packaging and prepping the singles for consumption at radio! Ah! Epiphanies! (end speculation)

Exciting, exciting times a head, ladies and gents! Hope you're as stoked and amped as I am.

The End. Thanks for reading.

FootColumn: "The Sound" or "Mess of Me"? Switchfoot deciding on lead single.

Well, this sort of counts as a FootColumn, although it is also a bit of a news post. Up to you to decide. ;)

Following on the heels of news that "Hello Hurricane" has been pushed back to early November, we have received word that the lead single is now somewhat undecided. Jeanna from LOBH says that she has been in contact with Jon Foreman and Tim Foreman, who seem to be saying that "Mess of Me" and "The Sound" are the two singles currently in contention.

When Tim and I talked about the this subject a few days ago, he said they were thinking of The Sound as the second single but nothing was concrete yet. Then yesterday, Jon said that they were going between The Sound and Mess of Me, but it was PROBABLY going to be Mess of Me

(SOURCE)

This complicates things, slightly. Switchfoot.com has an updated splash page, based on all the new information Tim gave us in his official message boards post. However, it still does say "Mess of Me" will be the lead single.

In the end, "Mess of Me" will probably win out as the lead single anyways, since it's already been decided in advance. "The Sound" would make an excellent second single, as it has the ability to really capture the rock crowd with its Radiohead-esque opening riff and fist-pumping chorus.

My question is whether the impact radio date for "Mess of Me" will be pushed back because of this, and whether or not it will affect distribution of the single to radio stations. As of right now, "Mess of Me" is scheduled to go to radio on August 5th, which is tomorrow, with rumors that pre-orders for "Hello Hurricane" begin August 7th, but none of that is concrete or certain at this point.

Also, Tim mentioned that they are still looking at several different record distribution companies to get the album out to as large a platform as possible, so they're probably choosing very carefully what to do with that.

So, thoughts?

FootColumn: How will "Mess of Me" do on the radio?

Switchfoot's lead single, as we all know now, is going to be "Mess of Me," a hard-charging, anthemic rock song that will be targeted specifically to Mainstream Rock and Active Rock formats.



I did some research, and currently, as of June 15, 2009, the Top 10 on Mainstream rock is:

1. "New Divide" - Linkin Park
2. "Sound of Madness" - Shinedown
3. "Drowning (Face Down)" - Saving Abel
4. "Oh Yeah" - Chickenfoot
5. "Burn It to the Ground" - Nickelback
6. "Know Your Enemy" - Green Day
7. "Whiskey Hangover" - Godsmack
8. "Lifeline" - Papa Roach
9. "Second Chance" - Shinedown
10. "Champagne" - Cavo

The Top 10 on Active Rock is:

1. "New Divide" - Linkin Park
2. "Sound of Madness" - Shinedown
3. "Champagne" - Cavo
4. "Whiskey Hangover" - Godsmack
5. "Burn It to the Ground" - Nickelback
6. "Drowning (Face Down)" - Saving Abel
7. "I Get Off" - Halestorm
8. "Scarlet Letters" - Mudvayne
9. "All Nightmare Long" - Metallica
10. "Ain't No Rest For the Wicket - Cage the Elephant

(It's interesting to note how similar the Top 10 is for those two charts. )


Listening to what the top songs on these formats sound like, it is very easy to envision Switchfoot cracking back into the secular radio limelight by first targeting these two formats and crossing over afterward. Very rock-oriented in nature, a song like "Mess of Me" could very well become a staple on these formats, fitting in comfortably with the Cavo's and Chevelle's of the world.

Active Rock is the much bigger of the two formats, which is odd, considering the name "Mainstream Rock" would entail a wide audience. However, the numbers don't lie: Active Rock's audience is much larger than "Mainstream Rock."

However, under Billboard's charting system, both formats feed into the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart. So if it's a hit on both formats, it will definitely get a Billboard chart position, which is good news.

One fact that I think is conspicuously missing in yesterday's announcement is that "Mess of Me" is reportedly not going to Modern Rock (or Alternative) radio. This is the most lucrative of the rock formats, as it is the most respected and most-listened to format. I do hope that Switchfoot and ATO work that format as well.

"Mess of Me" definitely has the hard edge that people look for when listening to rock radio, and I think the strength of this song will be the bridge/pre-chorus, where Jon Foreman belts out the line, "There aint no DRUUG! There aint no DRUUG! There aint no DRUUG! No drug can make me well..." etc. etc. Another factor to consider is that this song really does sound nothing like anything Switchfoot has released to radio before. It's harder, it's faster, and Jon's vocals soar to heights as yet unseen in a Switchfoot radio single.


Prediction: So, my prediction for "Mess of Me" is that it becomes a Top 15 hit at Mainstream and Active Rock radio, while it charts in at least the Top 30 on Modern Rock. Not going to put my expectations too high on this one, and I doubt it is going to be a crossover, Top 40 hit. But if I'm proven wrong, I will be quite happy.

Thanks for reading. :)

- Job

FootColumn: Part 5 in an analysis of past singles and what that could mean for this new album

DISCLAIMER: In no way do my opinions reflect those of ATO Records, lowercase people records, Red Light Management, or the band Switchfoot itself, nor any other managing partner thereof. This is merely a fan-written, speculative piece on the marketing of the album. It is NOT to be quoted, used as a hard piece of evidence in any debate or argument. It is only a blog post. Thanks for understanding



Ok. This marks a bit of a departure in these singles articles. It’s also the last one (for now). But in this segment, I will put on the label executive hat for a moment. The one difference, however, is that I’m a COOL label executive. ;) So have a seat, grab a sweet, relaxing drink, and hopefully enjoy. This got a bit long... sorry...

-------------------

~puts on hypothetical label executive hat~

So, ladies and gentlemen, the new Switchfoot album “Hello Hurricane” is still a few months away from dropping. But we’ve been busy and have chosen the first single, and I believe that it’s going to be the title track, “Hello Hurricane.” The reasoning behind this is that it’s a highly popular song already amongst the Switchfoot message boardies, the Switchfoot faithful, if you will. They all will be pumped to help push this song in any way they can. If we’ve got the fan-base pumped to deliver the single to their friends, family, school friends, and co-workers, half the battle is already won.

So this song, (judging by what we’ve heard of it so far) is incredibly accessible and catchy, with lyrics that can relate to every day life. It’s a song about movement, about daring to stare down the storms of life. “Hello hurricane, you can’t silence my love.” Reminds one of “Meant to Live” and “Dare You to Move” lyrically. Seeing how those two songs did at radio and MTV, I think it wouldn’t be a bad idea to go back in that direction, marketing-wise. It’s a song of hope. And especially in these times, Hope is attractive.

Our marketing plan then is going to be laid out as follows.

*Late June, 2009:

-Deliver the single to radio and iTunes. Make an effort to create great cover art. Andy Barron will be put in charge of this.

*Late June through late August:

- Throughout the summer, we will work the song to radio stations, delivering cd singles to various DJ’s at key radio outlets across the nation (KROQ comes to mind). This will cost some money and won’t guarantee big-time success at radio, but will guarantee that all the key stations will at least have the song at their disposal.
The radio campaign will be widespread, but we will hire key promoters to work the key stations across three formats: Hot AC, Top 40 Mainstream, and Alternative/Modern Rock.

Here is a list of the stations we will be targeting heavily:

WDVD Detroit Hot AC
WPLJ New York Hot AC
KHMX Houston Hot AC

KISS Los Angeles Top 40
WHTZ New York Top 40
WXKS Boston Top 40
WKSC Chicago Top 40

KYSR Los Angeles Alternative
KITS San Francisco Alternative
WWDC Washington Alternative
KNDD Seattle Alternative

Getting these key stations will go a long way in achieving success, because these are the stations with the largest listener bases in their markets (stats according to Allaccess.com). Generally, if a station like KROQ picks up a certain song, a slew of other Alternative/Modern Rock stations will take notice and gobble the song up. That is our goal at radio – to grab the big fishes that influence the rest of the pond.

It is also important to communicate to the various promoters to slowly work the song. We’re going for a slow-burning, steady build at radio instead of a gigantic assault. Long-term success is better than a bullet single (meaning, a song that explodes to the top of the charts and is gone a few weeks later). We want the song to be steadily played all summer, much like “Dare You to Move” was back in 2004.

- We will also launch an online marketing campaign for the fans. Communicate to the street team (Footsoldiers) that every effort, every person, every chance for a listen is an important opportunity to spread the word about new music.
Twitter plan: On the day the single is launched, have a “re-tweet” mission. Make sure the fans re-post two key pieces of information on that day: “@switchfoot” and “Hello Hurricane.” The goal is to turn the song into a top trending topic, and the more times twitter users include those two key words, the higher up it will go on the trending topic list.

EXAMPLE A:

Banner plan: Much like the Fiction Family street team campaign earlier, fans will be given banners to post on message boards, myspace, facebook, xanga, etc. The banners will be coded to keep track of how many unique impressions they accumulate. The top three fans will win prizes

EXAMPLE B:


Radio calling plan: We will keep a list of stations spinning the single. It will be updated daily, with markings on “priority” stations, “hot” stations, etc. Fans will be encouraged to target stations and call to request the song. Online request pages and phone numbers will be provided.

EXAMPLE C:


Note: Because the fan base is not as large as it used to be, we will have to be careful to help give the fans a hand. It is ESSENTIAL that the label ensures that the fans efforts won’t be in vain. Long-term commitment from the fans is definitely helped by success.

*Mid-August, 2009

- shoot a music video with the band and package it together quickly to prep for a VH1, MTV, and FUSE TV campaign.

-The video will be premiered the Saturday before the week of the album release on Vh1 (we will make that happen), and shortly after on the band’s Youtube account.

- The video will then be pushed for adds onto Vh1’s Top 20 Countdown voting list. Once that is secured, fans will be encouraged to vote like mad for the “Hello Hurricane” music video.

- Fans will also be commissioned (via a new Street Team mission) to spread the video across the web, much like the aforementioned Banner plan.

- FUSE and MTV rotation will be worked for as well, but the focus will be on Vh1.

- late-night TV spots will be worked for too.


And once the album is released, we can revel in the success it will get in terms of the first week. ~takes off hypothetical label executive hat~

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Well friends, that’s my dream marketing strategy for the upcoming Switchfoot “Hello Hurricane” record. Hey, if anyone out there has connections to ATO Records or Red Light Management reads this, why not suggest a few of these ideas? And if this is pure madness, don’t hesitate to let me know in the comments section either. It’d be appreciated. :)

FootColumn: Part 4 in an analysis of past singles and what that could mean for this new album

“This Is Home”

“It’s a new day, it’s a new time.” Switchfoot had now become independent, and had also formed their own record label called lowercase people records. Jon Foreman was releasing solo EP’s and working with Credential Recordings to put them out mainly to, but not exclusively, the Christian scene.

But there was one thing that came along, rather unexpectedly, as the band was getting ready to spread its wings and fly into uncharted indie territory. Disney came calling, looking for a song to lead the soundtrack to their latest Narnia movie. Switchfoot submitted several songs, and what resulted was the pop rock anthem, “This Is Home,” which was chosen to be the lead single for the soundtrack of the movie.

At the time, it was said that Switchfoot’s management company, Red Light Management would be partnering with Disney’s Hollywood Records to promote the single to Triple-A radio formats. Hollywood Records had recently produced a monster mainstream smash hit, the Plain White T’s “Hey There Delilah.” They were also the label that were in charge of the Jonas Brothers’ record releases. They were no strangers to the mainstream radio biz.

But what happened next was utterly disappointing. The single flopped miserably, with very few stations even remotely showing interest in the single. Again, Switchfoot’s “foundation format” (as I like to call it), Modern Rock, showed absolutely no interest, and only three stations on the Hot AC format span it for any period of time. Top 40 didn’t even acknowledge its existence. This simply terrible effort from one of today’s largest, most successful record labels, is almost inexcusable. Disney did a terrible promotional job across the board for their Narnia film, and the movie itself flopped miserably both domestically and internationally. The single got another impact to radio later in the year, with Sony releasing it to Triple-A in anticipation of Switchfoot’s greatest hits record, The Best Yet. But we’ve all seen how pointless that all was.

In my opinion, this band deserves to be one of the biggest bands in the world. They have written some remarkable songs that would’ve propelled them to superstar status, or at least a recognizable name across the industry. Instead, poor label decisions and laziness have left them as a smaller, independent band – and it couldn’t have turned out better. The band is happier than ever in making music, and they’re able to do whatever they want, including releasing FOUR ALBUMS of material, one after the other. These are great times for the band, and I think they are entering a new period of even greater success than they have even achieved up to this point.

In the next segment, we’ll discuss what I personally hope happens with the next single and the album Hello Hurricane as a whole. Or maybe I should re-phrase that. We’ll discuss what I WOULD do if I was in charge at ATO Records/Red Light Management. Should be fun. ;)

FootColumn #4: Part 3 in an analysis of past singles and what that could mean for this new album

“Oh! Gravity.” It was the 10th year Switchfoot had been together, and was the sixth studio recording they had done. Little did they know that it would also be the last time they would be releasing a full-length studio album under a major label. Now, the band had been touring in support of nothing is sound “Nothing Is Sound,” from the end of 2005 to the beginning of 2006, and had begun writing for a follow-up to the record.

The band spent the summer in the studio tracking the new record, which eventually would be called “Oh! Gravity.,” a triumph of a record in terms of musical exploration, creativity, and freedom. By September, the album was completed, and Switchfoot was ready to release a brand new single to the world. The premise behind the singles choices was great, in my book. “Dirty Second Hands” was deployed at the tail-end of the month, and prompted mostly positive reviews by long-time fans, as well as ushering in a new a group of fans who dug the “new” Swtichfoot: eclectic, artistic new rock.

Curiously though, this wasn’t going to be promoted as the lead radio single for the record. Instead, Switchfoot released the title track, “Oh! Gravity.” to Modern Rock radio in October. Great move by the label and the band, choosing yet another song to showcase the new side of Switchfoot. It was also a great move to promote the single directly to Modern Rock radio first, just as in days past, and the single got a lukewarm reception, peaking at No. 36 on that format.

Now, whether the label knew this wasn’t going to be an accessible, radio-airwave-grabbing hit or not is a mystery. What we do know is that once again, MTV and Vh1 failed to pick up the video, and there was little, if any, crossover into the mainstream formats for this single. Whatever the reason, there was little to worry about because there were other potential radio-explosive singles on the record. There was still the sure-fire hit that was “Awakening” just waiting to explode onto radio – or so we thought.

In March of 2007, “Awakening” was apparently “impacted” to radio, mainly the Hot AC and Modern Rock formats. What quickly became clear however, despite the music video’s viral success on Youtube, was that the label had committed no effort behind this single. It saw virtually no play on any radio stations on any format but for two Hot AC stations that span it heavily for a couple of months. It became arguably the lowest charting single by far that the band has released up until that time. The label again failed to work hard at the “foundation format” for the band, Modern Rock, and the single flopped majestically (or... not so majestically).

In retrospect then, it is not that big of a surprise that the band just a few months later decided to sever ties with Columbia record and go at it independently. Ultimately, this would turn out to be the best move, as we’ve seen countless projects from Jon Foreman, from his solo work to Fiction Family, to now Switchfoot’s looming, and upcoming seventh studio album, "Hello Hurricane."

Read:

Part 1
Part 2

FootColumn #3: Part 2 in an analysis of past singles and what that could mean for this new album

In the last segment, we explored the success of “The Beautiful Letdown” in-depth, analyzing the multi-format chart runs of Switchfoot’s biggest singles to date, “Meant to Live” and “Dare You to Move.” In this section, we’ll analyze what went right and wrong for the follow-up record, “Nothing Is Sound.”

“Nothing Is Sound” was a brilliant album (and in my opinion, Switchfoot’s greatest work), that was tragically marred by two main factors:

The Copy Protection fiasco
Lack of proper singles decisions

Initially, Switchfoot had shot a music video for their possible lead single, “Happy Is a Yuppie Word.” It was beautifully shot, and the haunting images provide delicious eye-candy for the beholder. But for whatever reason, the video failed to inspire label executives enough to release the song as a single. I suppose the somewhat depressing mood of the lyrics, as well as the song’s overall downbeat nature wasn’t going to hit well at radio, nor would it attract the kind of first-week sales Sony would want to cop after the double-platinum success of “The Beautiful Letdown.” So instead, a new video was shot for the incredibly accessible “Stars,” which became the new lead single for the album.

"Stars" first began charting during the week of July 15, 2005, which put it just about two months before "Nothing Is Sound" came out. The reception at first was solid, with the single peaking at No. 16 on Modern Rock, No. 37 on Top 40, and No. 68 on the Hot 100, but it dropped off soon after that, adding to a wave of bad publicity brought on by the Sony-mandated copy protection discs the album was printed on. At this point, the general public’s view of Switchfoot had probably soured, not only because they couldn’t get the songs onto their iPod, but also because the album overall was significantly darker than “The Beautiful Letdown” and the teenybopper fans had begun to move on to the next “flavor of the week.”

In an attempt to “rescue” the album, Columbia released the pop anthem “We Are One Tonight,” the most “un-rock” song on the album, as a single. This can be seen as an attempt to win back the Top 40 crowd with an infectious sing-along, but whatever the reason, Modern Rock rejected “We Are One Tonight” and so did the video channels. This can be attributed to the lack of real motivation on the part of the label, but there are some other factors involved here.

As we have seen up to this point, Switchfoot’s primary calling-card is that they are a rock band. Columbia/Sony failed to at least build a rock “foundation” for the single. And as we will see when we examine the next few singles, this method simply doesn’t work. Switchfoot isn’t a Top 40-sounding band. Marketing them specifically as such is NOT going to work; it didn’t work in the case of “We Are One Tonight,” and it won’t work for future releases unless Switchfoot goes hip-hop on us. And that, we have been assured, will not be the case.

Despite selling 100,000+ copies in its first week, and being certified Gold within a month of shelf time, “Nothing Is Sound’s” further success was marred by a promotional nightmare on the part of the same label, Columbia/Sony, that brought Switchfoot into double-platinum success, just one album before. In the next segment, we’ll examine the situation that surrounded “Oh! Gravity.” and Switchfoot’s decision to go leave the major label scene and strike out on their own as an independent band.