| SWITCHFOOT sing it out in this needle and haystack life. |
| Written by Shahlin Graves |
| Tuesday, 26 January 2010 15:00 |
 SWITCHFOOT's TIM FOREMAN is a lover. Bassist of a fourteen year old band and seven albums (soon to be eight), Foreman is unsurprisingly articulate - but his insights; never pedestrian. The youngest member of Switchfoot at 31 years old, Foreman's open-book sensibilities point to a wisdom far beyond his years, marking him as one of those wondrously rare human beings that make the world a better place simply by existing. The ignorant typecast Switchfoot by their faith - but their fans know better. Returning to New Zealand to headline the annual Parachute Music Festival - armed with new album 'Hello Hurricane' - as track nine 'Bullet Soul' proclaims, Switchfoot just "want to sing one for all the dreamers". Other Foreman brother Jon, Switchfoot's frontman and lead songwriter, leads the song into a chorus-refrain of "we rise and fall together" - just one of twelve new songs whose musings of love and it's varied associations, are so universal - that to judge them solely upon religious affiliations, is akin to denying the very existence of love itself. With Foreman on the line, half an hour after taping a performance in Hollywood for a TV show, Foreman is walking, talking proof, that males can indeed multi-task - on the move during our conversation, but still taking the time to devote his attention - to pouring light over the frank foundations, that Switchfoot have built their songs upon. "Because all of our songs are very honest, personal songs - you can't drum up a feeling that you're not feeling at the time. For instance, happy songs are sometimes really challenging to write - when you turn on the television and all you see is doom and gloom - you have to go looking for those things. I think love songs are the same way. You can't fake something that you're not feeling. There's been moments of love and loneliness, and all these things can find you in a relationship, or be it outside of it. You have to write where you're at." Happily married since 2001, Foreman cannot account for the high divorce rates of modern society... "Well, I can only speak for myself in that - I think marriage is an amazing adventure and mystery. It's a very meaningful, challenging, amazing experience. I do look around and I wonder what it means on a larger scale, to a lot of the people who flippantly marry or decide to call it quits. But not being them and not being in those situations, I can't really speak to that." But of Foreman and his band's love for New Zealand - there is no doubt. "We LOVE New Zealand. It might feel like a short time since the last time we were there, to you - but to me, it feels like ages. We've been trying to get back ever since the last [ time ]. The last time, we had about three days off up at Raglan. We went surfing for three days and had an amazing time. Surfing's still up on our list. We're up for anything. The previous time, we went to one of the hot spring beaches and that was really cool. We digged down into the sand to get to the hot springs - never seen that, anywhere before. Besides the great surf that we had last time, we have a buddy that lives up in Raglan that took us to do a cliff jump into the ocean. That was a good fifty to seventy foot jump - we had a lot of fun. I want to see as much as we can! I think we have another two or three days off this time - I wish it was longer. But we're headed to Japan after that." " ...the storm is coming in life for everyone - and there's really no telling when or how, but how we respond in the path of those storms, that makes all the difference... "
COUP DE MAIN: Being such avid surfers, were you all delighted to be able to start your days while recording your new album, with a surfing session? SWITCHFOOT - TIM FOREMAN: It's a great way to gain perspective - before you push record in the studio - to go out and get wet and remind yourself that there's a lot going on in this planet, and there's a lot of things bigger than rock and roll. It's important to have that perspective, before you dive in. CDM: Why did you decide as a band, that it was time to build your own studio, to record 'Hello Hurricane'? TIM: That goes back to the freedom that we were trying to capture - leaving Columbia [ Records ]. Having our own studio was a part of that freedom. There was no taking clock, working by the hour - you could stay as late as you want and take as long as you want - with no-one looking over your shoulder. There's really no other way we could have made this album. We call it Spot X studios. It's actually named after a surf spot in New Zealand, funnily enough. CDM: That's proof right there! Switchfoot love New Zealand... TIM: EXACTLY. CDM: What inspired you to name your new record 'Hello Hurricane'? TIM: It was a stormy season for us. We felt like we were up against the biggest challenge of our careers, trying to make an album that defined the next ten years of our music at least. Trying to do something really different. At around the same time, we'd had a chance to go down to Louisiana and work on some homes that had been battered from Hurricane Katrina. We had some encounters down there with some survivors from the evacuation - one lady in particular that was having to walk on a prosthetic leg, she had lost her leg in the evacuation process. She said; "I walked out of my own house on my own two feet, I'm going to walk into this one." She had such a hope and fighting spirit about her. She wasn't bitter. She didn't see herself as a victim. She saw herself as someone who was very fortunate to have what she still had - and I really took a lot from that. The idea that - the storm is coming in life for everyone - and there's really no telling when or how, but how we respond in the path of those storms, that makes all the difference. We wanted this album to acknowledge those storms and instead of running from them, actually seeing into the storm. CDM: 'Needle And Haystack Life' - track one from 'Hello Hurricane' - has one of my favourite lines of the album; "you're a needle girl, in a haystack world". I love the imagery of those lyrics. Everyone seems to feel the need to be constantly searching amongst the haystack, but what if we've already unconsciously found what we're looking for simply just by being amongst other needles, all together in the haystack? TIM: I think a big part of that is life itself. That ad-mist all this confusion and chaos and pain and unanswered questions - that the very fact that life exists - that we're here. That we're having this conversation. That we have breath left in our lungs, and today's another day. That, is a needle in the haystack. That is the undiscovered reality and mystery of life - that this is even possible, is a miracle. CDM: Why is a sense of belonging so important? Why can't we just be happy enough merely existing? TIM: I think it's in us. It harkens back to - I'm a believer and I feel like that's a part of what's inside of us - longing to see our creator and to see behind the curtain. Me personally, I feel like this - a lot of the time my everyday life is just scratching the surface of something much bigger. Waking up, eating breakfast, putting my clothes on, going to work - I don't think those thoughts and feelings are unique just to me. Those are conversations and similar feelings that a lot of other people have as well. CDM: What did you draw upon, in writing the lead single from the new album, 'Mess Of Me'? TIM: That song was appropriately titled because it was quite a messy process to make. We recorded over ten different versions of that song - radically different versions. We kept coming back to the guitar riff. It was a guitar riff that we thought was really exciting, and kept trying to write a song that was worthy of the energy that the guitar riff had. What that song became, was an anthemic cry about - I've heard it said that every man dies, but not every man truly lives - and I think the punchline is [ that ] I want to spend the rest of my life alive. I think our society focuses a lot on the quick-fix. Whether it's medication, or there's something you can just quickly take to make something go away, or to fix the problem. I think many times, it's actually taking a hard look at myself and deciding to climb out of the mess that I've made.  CDM: For those that may not be aware, explain the significance of John M. Perkins, to track four 'The Sound (John M. Perkins' Blues)'... TIM: John M. Perkins is an amazing civil rights activist who encountered hatred in every phase of life. A lot of it, based solely on the colour of his skin - as an African American man, growing up in the South. He chose to respond to that hatred with love, and not bitterness. We're always looking for, like I said earlier - it's hard to write a happy song nowadays - we're always looking for heroes and he seemed definitely like a worthy candidate. The big punchline for that song is - there is no sound louder than love - and he was a man who lived it. He was a man that lived by those words. CDM: Does the song's line "this is the sound from the discontented mouths of a haunted nation", point to society having become too jaded to truly believe they can enact change and actually make a difference? TIM: I think we all tend to be jaded at times, myself included. But I think a lot of times, it's just a matter of being overwhelmed. I think a lot of us want to see change and even want to be part of the change, but we don't know where to start. I do believe, that every day you're alive you can change the world. Whether it be in big ways, or small ways. I think it's important to accept that and realise that - well, it might be a small way, but you may be responsible for how we change the world today. Give it some thought. Some days it's easier for me, than others. That's what we're up against. CDM: What are your thoughts on President Barack Obama? Do you think he's been successful in changing anything? TIM: I think he's certainly trying. I have a soft spot for anyone who's trying to shake things up. I think he's encountered a lot of opposition. He's done some things well, and he's done some things, not as well. I'm sure he's learning a lot. But I do appreciate the fact that I do, feel like he is trying to tackle a lot of issues all at once... and I appreciate that. CDM: Do you think he deserves to be awarded 2009's Nobel Peace Prize? TIM: I think he certainly deserves to be in the conversation. I don't know if I'd go so far as to say that - that I would be throwing my hat in the ring. At the same time, I'm definitely not anti. Because I do appreciate that - I really feel like he is trying to exact change - and that's something that I'd like to support. CDM: What was it like working with producer Mike Elizondo on 'Hello Hurricane' - who's best known for his collaborations with the likes of Dr. Dre and Eminem? TIM: He was amazing. We didn't really know what to expect when we first met Mike Elizondo - probably because his track record is really impressive and expansive - it is very diverse. From Fiona Apple to people all over the musical spectrum, but certainly a lot of it weighed in on the urban chart - which I'm kind of a fan of to some extent - but how it would interplay with our music, we weren't quite sure. So we went up there and met with him... His collection of guitars and rock gear, amps - old vintage amps and guitars - was really surprising. We found out that he's really, a well-versed musician all around, and has especially strong rock roots. His instincts for the album and for the songs and his passion, were pretty undeniable. So we made the decision really quickly, within a couple of days, from spending some time up there - that he was the right guy to finish the record.  CDM: 'Hello Hurricane' is your debut release on Atlantic Records. What prompted the move in record labels? TIM: We left Columbia Records following the release of 'Oh! Gravity' - we felt like we needed to recapture our independence, to really make the album that we wanted to make. So, we took two and a half years and we recorded over ninety songs. Having that freedom from a major label was certainly a part of allowing us to make this album. Once we finished the album, then it became a matter of finding which label had the most passion for the songs, and the best partner. We started our own independent label called lowercase people [ records ] and we started to look for a partner to team up with - to get the music out there. CDM: Having been through the motions of independent record labels, through to Columbia and now Atlantic Records - what are the most important things you have learnt as a band? TIM: A big picture thing that I've learnt that certainly applies when you start thinking about major labels - you have to make music for yourself. You can't be thinking about what other people are going to think - who's going to buy it? You can never second-guess what someone else is going to think and that's true whether it's your fans, or wherever it's the record company - and that's something we've always tried to do - is to just write honest music, that resonates with us. You never know if it's going to resonate with anyone else. That's always the unknown. But the moment you try to guess what will and won't connect - that becomes a slippery slope. It does seem that the songs that resonate the most with us and connect with us, those tend to be the songs that resonate with people that listen to our songs, that listen to our music. CDM: I hear you have all been busy signing Christmas cards! TIM: Yeah! We do it every year. Every year, there's a lot of people that will question if we're actually hand-signing all two or three thousand, however many it is - and my hands can answer that, yes! That is in fact true. We don't have a stamp. *laughs* Sometimes I wish we did. But, it's a good tradition that we have. I think the people that listen to our music, like it as well. We've always tried to be a very hands-on band and stay connected to our fans. It's a big part of the type of music we make - the idea that the conversation and [ fans, ] they're just a part of the music as we are. CDM: Having gained mainstream recognition from four Switchfoot songs included on the 'A Walk To Remember' film's soundtrack, what are your thoughts on the placement of music in movies? TIM: I love it whenever our music is able to interface with another art form. I think movies are a powerful art form and I'm a sucker for a good film. So it's always an honour to be a part of that. I'd love to have more songs in movies. We just had our song in a TV show last night and I loved it. It's not always how you picture your song when you wrote it, but that's not always a bad thing either. We always have a pretty open-mind about what people think about our songs. I think that's part of the beauty of music - that three people can listen to a song and all get something different out of it. CDM: What about when bands are asked to write a song especially for a film - is that still art? Or is that an attempt to become relevant to non-traditional audiences? For example, Death Cab For Cutie's 'Meet Me On The Equinox', which is the theme song for the second film in the 'Twilight Saga'... TIM: It's a tricky thing, when you've got an intersection of art, some sort of faith, belief or what-have-you, commerce - there's a lot of traffic. In that example, I don't think that. Death Cab For Cutie wrote a great song. The song, is in many ways, bigger than the movie. I think it transcends that single's spotlight - and I applaud them for that. That's always the trick, you know. To write a song for a movie, you want that song to live and breathe, in a space beyond the movie as well - while also connecting within the movie. And I think they did a good job of that. Selling out, would be to write something that doesn't feel true to your art - to make a compromise of some sort. I'm sure that bands have done that, but I don't think Death Cab is one of those bands. CDM: When can Switchfoot fans expect the next album, 'Vice Verses'? TIM: 'Vice Verses' is almost done. I'm not sure if it's going to be out this year, maybe the year after - but we are very excited about it. We've already even written a lot of songs since that, that we're excited about as well. 'Vice Verses' is kind of a different collection of songs - a little more melancholy than this batch - and songs that we're really excited to get out as well. SWITCHFOOT's 'Hello Hurricane' is in-stores now. Features the singles 'Mess Of Me' and 'Always'. Catch Switchfoot live at Parachute Music Festival this Auckland Anniversary weekend at Mystery Creek. |
