Alright, folks. Tim just posted to let us know the low-down on this upcoming release. Here's the real, no-longer-tentative tracklisting and details, as told by the bassist himself:
"Hey all, here's the real details, hot off the press:
Switchfoot - the best yet
release date (tent): Nov 4, 2008
1. Dare You To Move 2. Meant To Live 3. Stars 4. Oh! Gravity 5. This is Home (full band version, not soundtrack version) 6. Learning to Breathe 7. Awakening 8. This Is Your Life 9. On Fire 10. Only Hope 11. Dirty Second Hands 12. Love is the Movement 13. Company Car 14. Lonely Nation 15. The Shadow Proves The Sunshine 16. Concrete Girl 17. Twenty-Four 18. Beautiful Letdown
What is it?
It's a 'best of' CD that Sony is releasing this fall, a typical move for a major label when one of their artists parts ways. Our first 6 albums were recorded with RE:think/EMI (the first 3) and Sony (albums 4-6), so they are working together on this.
Do we like it?
Ha, well first of all, it doesn't really matter as far as the business is concerned. Sony and EMI own the masters to these albums, so they don't need to ask us. Record companies do this sort of thing all the time (Radiohead's greatest hits album for example). It's the music business, and this is how they make money. This isn't good or bad, it just is.
However, we don't hate it at all, and here's why. We chose the songs. These are songs that we would like to play for someone who has never heard of switchfoot. After-all, isn't that the whole purpose of a 'best of' cd? It's not for the die-hard fan, it's for the guy that missed the boat the first time, but wants to still get on. I've been that guy before, so I'm not anti. If these songs are able to reach a few more pairs of ears, cool. It's definitely not something that was a part of our plan for this year as a band, but in the grand scheme of things, I think it's pretty minor. If it sounds cool to you, get it. If not, don't.
Are we proud of it?
These are some of the songs that we are most proud of, for various reasons. Of course, there's lots of others that we are also really proud of, but they might not be songs we would pick for a first listening experience. 18 songs is already a lot of songs all at once. There is quite a wide musical journey expressed in that list, and we're very proud of that part of our history as a band. We also were able to talk Sony into letting our very-own Andy Barron do all the artwork, and we're really proud of him. Go Andy! Beyond that, we've been digging into the vault to find rare video content for the deluxe edition, so that the hard-core fan that does decide to buy it won't be disappointed.
I guess I'm saying all of this because I know that these songs mean just as much to many of you as they do to us, and that's really important to us. It means a lot to us that so many of you care so much about these songs, and the way that they are presented. That's precisely why we have chosen to be an independent band moving forward, and why we're so excited about releasing a brand new record next year, and the future after that. I also know that times are tough, and you work really hard for your money, which is why we've always tried to keep our costs down at shows and stuff. And I guess I just don't want anyone within our family to feel like a major label is squeezing them dry. You're in charge here. If you don't think it's worth it, then please pass, save your hard-earned money for a 1/4 tank of gas. Or, if it sounds exciting to you, then get it for that reason, and not because you're the victim of some well-crafted corporate scheme. Be empowered and be free to make your own choice. We love you guys, and we've been trying to navigate this final farewell from Sony very carefully, so that no one is taken advantage of, and we're happy with how it has played out so far. More importantly, we're excited to put this behind us and finish making what we already believe to be our best record yet. Hope to see you all on the road this fall,
Well the Music Builds Tour has been kicked off, and apparently is rolling (and rocking) quite nicely so far. On the first night, the guys felt ambitious enough to try a cover of Weezer's song "Buddy Holly" :
I guess the audience didn't quite get it, so we likely won't see a repeat of that one... But another cover you can see on this tour, which IS happening every night, involves all of the bands - Jars Of Clay, Robert Randolph, Third Day, and Switchfoot. The song is U2's "When Love Came To Town" :
Also from the first few shows of the MBT, a guy named Steve Mitchell shared his photos from the Indianapolis show with us:
Speaking of tracklistings (not really), word on the street is that the songs for Switchfoot's "The Best Yet" album (due out October 28th) have been chosen as such:
1. “This Is Home” 2. “Dare You To Move” 3. “Meant To Live” 4. “This Is Your Life” 5. “The Beautiful Letdown” 6. “On Fire” 7. “Stars” 8. “The Shadow Proves the Sunshine” 9. “Awakening” 10. “Oh! Gravity” 11. “Learning To Breathe” 12. “Only Hope” 13. “Love is the Movement” 14. “Company Car” 15. “Concrete Girl”
P.S. also concerning compilation CD's, if you've heard Jon's 4 EP's, you should go to his website and vote for which songs you think should make it onto his upcoming compilation, "Limbs and Branches." And while you're there, you should check out his brand new Vinyl Tee...
Seeing as today is August 15th, we'd like to honor and celebrate a solid bass-player on the day he was born.
So, Tim, on behalf of myself and anyone else who agrees with me, thanks for all the honesty, humility, kindness, wisdom and leadership you've shown as a part of this band. You really have a heart for the people who admire you guys and love your music, and we appreciate all that you do for us. Romey and Drew describe you well:
"Tim - the other side of the stage. I think Tim, in reference to the band, is a rock to it. He holds down the music aspect of the band. Being a bass player myself, I'm always amazed at Tim's bass playing skills, as well - he's awesome. He's also the conscience of the band, a good conscience. He's the heart. As a friend, he's a gracious guy, an encouraging guy. He's like a brother." -Romey
"Tim is the rock, the quality-control, the internet-savvy, the in-control foundation of Switchfoot. Thank you, Tim." -Drew
(picture by Andy the Barron)
Here's to the tech-savvy, great-listener, bass-ninja with the memory of an elephant. You've never let being the youngest, being the little brother, or being a bassist serve as an excuse to let yourself play an insignificant role. Seriously, the other 4 guys would be lost without you ;)
Thanks for giving us and the band your very best. Happy birthday!
For those of you who are itching for some info on the upcoming record, the guys gave webcam-watchers a sneak peek at a whiteboard with song titles on it today. Thanks to some crafty screencappers, I was able to compile a list of 40-some potential song titles...in case you're interested:
Above the Roar Always Yours Anymore As Wide As the Grave Baby, Please Don't Cry Blood Is Soil Bluebird Bullet Soul Contradiction Dirty Streets Of Gold Don'tcha Know (sounds good to me) Fading Flourescent Halfway Hello Hurricane Holding On (this one was crossed out) I Can't Let Go This Time I Dug Myself I Saw Satan Fall (there were more words in parentheses that were cut off) Light & Heavy Meantime Moving Lips Mr. Hyde Needle & Haystack New Streams People, Put Your Hands Up Promise Push (The Human Race) Red Eyes Running From Me Selling The News Sleepwalking Same Day Souvenirs Sun In Your Eyes Sunrise To Sunset The Weight Of The World There's Still Time These Missing Things We Walk Alone Weapon Whatcha Gonna Do For _____ (looked like the word "deal") Wide Open Spaces Wolves Wound Up Yet You Were Made For Love Your Body Follows
To see the 'caps for yourself, click the following links: ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR, FIVE, SIX. (Thanks, AmyLynne and Nikki!)
And speaking of the new album, there have been a few interviews with Jon recently to give us some more clues on when it might be out, what it will sound like, etc. Here's part of one from Billboard.com:
"There are so many different directions we can go in," frontman Jon Foreman tells Billboard.com. "One of the songs has a (Led) Zeppelin feel. One of them has more of a Devo feel. So it's Led Devo, or something along those lines. I feel like the headspace we're in now, the glass ceiling's been shattered. We're excited to see how far we can take this thing."
Foreman says Switchfoot has tried working with several producers, including Failure's Ken Andrews and Charlie Peacock, but ultimately decided to produce the album itself. "I feel like we've got a fairly firm grip on what we want do," Foreman says, "and I feel like we can get there on our own."
And here's another excerpt from an interview by a blogger named Matt Conner:
SSv: What can you tell us about the new Switchfoot?
Foreman: Basically we’re completely free. We have no ties to anyone at this point. That feels really good.
SSv: Is that scary in a way?
Foreman: Absolutely - scary and great. It’s like being in love. ‘It’s amazing. And I’m scared out of my mind.’ No, it’s great though. We just built our own studio and so that makes us even more free. The last few days we’ve been engineering the record ourselves. It’s amazing but at the same time, it can be a little terrifying at times.
SSv: So when you say you want to start a new era, what does that musically mean? Do you approach songwriting differently? Do you reach out to new directions you’ve never tried before?
Foreman: We’re picking songs that are much more adventurous. There are hundreds of songs that we’re trying to choose from, but we’re going with the oddballs first. Also, I feel that our last record was a little bit more of a cityscape with everything in the foreground vying for your attention. I really want this next record to be kind of a desert or ocean where you can see the horizon and that’s the context. You want to see that stretch through all the songs. That’s my intention for this next record that you could pull the lens back a bit and see a bit more of the sky.
That's a really great interview, so you should go read the whole thing HERE.
