UPDATE: Management has since asked us to take down the video. Sorry if you missed it! Don’t worry, Vice Verses will be in your hands soon!
*WARNING! SPOILER ALERT AHEAD*
Hey fans! Switchfoot had a special surprise for a few lucky folks at Alive Fest this past weekend and previewed 6 one minute song clips from Vice Verses! They played the album song clips off of Jon’s iPod and fortunately for you all… we have a video of the “preview party”! If you want to check out the new album first before it’s release, simply watch the video below! The song that are previewed are:
- Afterlife
- The Original
- The War Inside
- Restless
- Selling The News
- Dark Horses
Judging by the album clips, which song do you like the best? Share in the comments below!
P.S. If you’re new here, or haven’t been keeping up with the news, this Vice Verses FAQ will help answer some questions you might have!
Omygoshhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!
I want this album. NOW.
Me too!
Doesn’t Selling The News make you just want to bust a move?
Yes!!!
Oh my goodness Yes! It is so awesome, I’m super pumped about it! It has such a unique sound, nothing I ever would have expected. I absolutely love it!
Yes it does
I really like the studio version vs the first time I heard it live.
About the other songs, out of the starting gate: Afterlife and War Inside are a nose length away from each other, with Afterlife(riff very Zeppelin-esque) leading the pack but Dark Horses breathing down their neck. Those 3 are the instant gratification songs, but Restless while I really like now will probably blossom into love
Selling the news is making me want to hear it all the way through…liking the departure…signature SF. Really think Afterlife and War Inside should be singles too.
BTW – Heard the full studio of Dark Horses at Bro-Am and the very end where Jon whispers is so very cool. Love the little details in their music as in Lonely Nation and Shadow for example.
Yep, I just had a mini dance party listening to it =)
these songs sound exactly like versions. it’s really cool how switchfoot does that
87 days until Vice Verses! Can’t wait!
I reeeeeally want to listen to it… but I swore not to listen to ANY spoilers… but it’s soooo tempting… Ah, dilemma.
good for you!!! I am with you 100%, I have not listened to any of the final cuts of the songs yet, just the raw acoustics from like a year ago( I know that the songs have changed a lot since then) ……DO NOT GIVE IN!!!!! All of us who are holding ourselves back from the spoilers are going to have the time of our lives when we get our hands on the cd……less than 3 months left!!!!
:O!!!
No words. !!!! It was simply awesome. the best 8 minutes of my day, my week =)
these songs sound exactly like versions. it’s really cool how switchfoot does that. and selling the news…. Wow. sorry i had my doubts!
mint! wow these are sounding dynamic. three words: Selling. the. News. wow.
This is torture. I want the album now!!! I loved all of them but Afterlife and Restless definitely had favorite potential for me.
I went back and forth, to listen or not to listen! Then I decided, I’ve heard so many already what was the difference–by the time this album comes out we’ll be like old friends bringing a couple of new one to the party! So new song not heard before was Selling the News: interesting (in a good way), can’t wait to hear entire song through headphones. I REALLY love the diversity of this album: Restless to Blinding Light to Selling the News to Darkhorses–I almost want my month long vacation to be over so September gets here.
Wow. Not quite what I expected.
is this good or bad?
lol
This sounds awesome. My only issue with it is that the vocals seem overproduced, maybe a little autotuned on “Afterlife.” But it’s still gonna be great, and I can’t tell for sure right now on that. “Selling the News” is crazy!
yeah about Jon’s voice in Afterlife and arguably War Inside, it seemed too….flat im guessing is the word
However, you are listening in via youtube where someone recorded it.
Yeah, good point. I’m sure it will be great no matter what, I just fear overproduction.
It’s like picking a favorite child! I love them all but I can tell The War Inside and Dark Horses are gonna have a special place in my heart…
Son… I am HYPE!
I’m loving every one of these, Restless and Dark Horses sound incredible! Selling the News is… uh, well, different, not entirely sold on it yet but I’m sure it’ll grow on me.
Afterlife seems to be an instant favorite. If you’ve ever played a sports video game like NBA 2K or FIFA you know that The Original would fit right in with a game soundtrack. I really liked the war inside. Restless was allright, but I guess it’ll grow on me. Selling the News was just amazing. Its something new and I love the “preaching it” style. Out of them all Dark Horses left something to be desired. When I heard the first version, I was really excited for it. Now that they changed the chorus, not so much. If I’m not mistaken it’s going to be the first single, and frankly I don’t think it has single potential. Itis the Mess of Me of Vice Verses, cause they seem to have overworked it and should’ve just left it alone. Overall, I didnt know what to expect but I’m loving the new sound. Can’t wait to hear Thrive and Vice Verses.
When you hear all of Dark Horses studio version I think you change your mind, it’s definitely single worthy.
YESSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!i This makes me so happy for preorders this month. there’s 3 packages, $15,20, and 60! Got my $60, “like I’m ready to pay…”.
what really there’s going to be three 3 preorder options? how do you know?
Where did you hear this from?
I talked to management a few weeks ago. It should start this month, and from what they’re telling me, it looks like there will be 3 options: a standard edition at around $15, a deluxe edition at around $20, and a super deluxe collectors edition at around $60, and yes, I’m pretty sure we get Dark Horses. I don’t know what’s in these preorder packages other than the album, but I will go all out and pay the $60 since my birthday is in 2 weeks so I’ll have a lot and I will preorder first. maybe I’ll email management again and ask what the packages are composed of, but they probably won’t tell me.
[...] to hear a few samplers from Switchfoot’s upcoming album? The video is 8 1/2 minutes long, and features 1:00 clips [...]
Bass on dark horses–so amazing!!I like how layered it sounds .Selling the news, sounds pretty interesting, not that big a fan though
oW!! I’m freaking out right now!
They always outdo themselves! Afterlife is awesome! And Selling The News, very creative, I liked very much of the spoken part!
I want his Ipod!!!
OMG!!!!! THIS SOUNDS SOOOOOO TIGHT!!!! SO NOT WHAT I WAS EXPECTING FROM “SELLING THE NEWS” BUT IT REALLY SOUNDS LIKE RAP/POP CAN’T WAIT TIL THE LYRICS FOR IT AR OUT N STUFF. THE ONLY THING I DIDNT LIKE IS THAT JON’S VOICE DIDNT HAVE ALOT OF URGENCY IN “AFTERLIFE” AND “WAR INSIDE” IT JUST KINDA SOUNDED LIKE HE WAS SINGING FROM TOP TO BOTTOM IF YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN. OH AND “DARK HORSES” IS SOUNDING SO FLY! AND “RESTLESS” SOUNDED THE BEST IN MY OPINION, IT HAS A “DARE YOU TO MOVE-ESQ” VIBE TO IT! SORRY FOR THE CAPS, ITS A WAY TO SHOW THAT IM PUMPED FOR VICE VERSES!!!!
Man, this is everything I was hoping for and more!! What an amazing album, and they were able to put it all together so fast! Only a talented and well established band like switchfoot could pull something like this off. Again, how amazing, inspiring, and refreshing is this new album, and from the looks of it, we’ve got a real treasure coming up 9-27!!!
…. i have no words.
HEY IM SO SORRY I CAUGHT UP IN THE MUSIC THAT I FORGOT TO SAY HOW INCREDIBLY AWESOME THE LAYOUT IS, I THINK IT’S MY NEW FAV!!
thanks my friend!
To be honest, I really dont like “The Original” but the rest sounds great.
I can’t say that’s my favorite song either…
It just doesn’t sound very much like Switchfoot, you know?
Yahh…I think. War inside is not as good…
I heard some pretty sweet lyrics on the HH dvd
I thought I was gunna here some of that on the VV cd
I guess not….
I think they should have done. A goodbye hurricane and released all those songs left over from HH….
At least I have HH and oh gravity to listen for 1 1/2 more after sept. 27
They changed Dark Horses!!!!!!
Wow. I haven’t commented on here for a long time, but for something like this I just had to! Simply incredible!
Sound awesome. I still wish the original was left off in favor of against the voices, but maybe that song will grow on me. I think the war inside sounds really good.. selling the news could be a special song. Restless could be a great Christian radio song. Afterlife and Dark Horses are vintage Switchfoot rockers.
And to think this is only half the album. Can’t wait to hear it all!
Could they just release it already?? ….like, now?
See this!: http://landofbrokenhearts.org/archive/2011/06/vice-verses-faq/
I think my favorite has to be Dark Horses or Afterlife… I am so stoked for this record.
Wow… Selling the News is out there!
I do not know why some people do not like The Original … I think wonderful! I start to dance every time I hear!
l like the music of the song, but I’ve never been a fan of the lyrics – just me though!
My feelings exactly…
Yeah i think so too, out of all the song they previewed, “The Original” got the fans clapping
I was at work today and pop! starting singling the Original in my head!
I’m with you. Plus the guitar riff and solo is so catchy!
Is..Jon rapping??
It’s spoken word
hum, eu não consigo entender muito da letra… alguém tem elas escritas?
ops…
I really can not understand the lyrics … someone has written them?
I have only one thing to say – Akeeeeee!
omg, that was great! I ♥ Restless
Me too, Lina! It’s definitely my favorite of the new songs so far! I’m hopelessly in love with the lyrics.
I think it’s my favorite too!
I’m in love with that song ♥
Dude, I’m pumped! The Original is good, but I like the other 5 better. It would be really hard to pick a favorite yet. I can’t wait to see them sing these songs on tour some day soon!
Selling the News. Mind. Blown.
Could somebody please help me, its coming up with a blank square box and no video for me to click on. I really want to hear it =(
Go to Youtube and type in Switchfoot and click on the option to see videos posted today. i cant watch it on my phone on this site, but I could see it on Youtube Mobile Site. Hope it helps.
thanks bro!
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!
Wow. Definitely different, but that’s what I love. I really liked Hello Hurricane, but I didn’t want another one of those, and dang, we definitely are not! I think The War Inside is my favorite of these. Selling the News sounds amazing though, can’t wait to hear it full length. Not a fan of The Original, but there’s always a song or two on an album I don’t care for. Dark Horses sounds better studio than live, so that’s a plus for someone who isn’t a huge fan of the song, but I like it more now.
I’m super pumped!
I just want to point out that it’s 6 clips not 8.
Now…..Holy Crap that was amazing!
there all amazing!
I doubt anybody else notices but it bugs the living crap out of me that they changed the drum roll at the start of Dark Horses, anyone remember the first way they were doing it? Brought the song in with a much bigger punch…but I have a feeling it could be as big as Meant To Live and thats not a biased opinion. Songs are pretty good but I do have to admit aside from Selling The News its not territory they havent already covered in the past 3 albums a dozen times.
“I have a feeling it could be as big as Meant to Live and that’s not a biased opinion”
If you have a feeling then it is a biased opinion. Also I don’t think it would’ve been the smartest choice for them to make an album that consisted of all Selling The News-type songs, they’d probably lose a huge amount of fans for totally changing their genre, which they kind of already reinvented in Hello Hurricane. A lot of people like them because they do rock songs well, and if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. Personally, I like listening to a new rock song like Dark Horses or Original because I’ve already listened to Mess of Me and Bullet Soul thousands of times. It’s new.
Don’t mean to attack ya bud, sorry if it comes off that way.
How do you feel that they reinvented themselves with HH? I was always curious about that, because I never noticed a big change in their sound – in fact, I always felt like O!G was more of a reinvention of their sound
Hm that’s a good point Jeanna. Now that I think about maybe O!G was a bigger departure. But what I was saying is that I felt that Hello Hurricane simplified and really broke the band down to a much more defined new sound. Maybe Oh Gravity was getting there. I love the album, but it always felt crammed with all these different musical ideas in all the songs, and then in Hurricane, everything was much more defined and simplified. That’s just my take on it though.
Hmmm yes… but for me, I always felt Hello Hurricane didn’t break any new ground, but instead, went BACK to the basics. Don’t get me wrong, that’s not a critique… I LOVE HH. But I just never felt like it was new territory for them… it felt more like they packed up from where they were with O!G and moved back to TBL… then moved forward a bit to a halfway point between TBL and NIS.
I agree that Hello Hurricane was getting “back to the basics,” especially lyrically. But I think it also broke new ground, especially musically. While their older stuff is less polished (not a bad thing), nothing before Hello Hurricane had anything like the raw, agressive sound of “Mess of Me” and “The Sound,” with huge-sounding fuzz guitars. And there’s definitely nothing else I can think of that sounds like “Free.” I guess I can see both sides of it, but I think the return to the basics was largely within the lyrics of the songs.
I think that theyve changed with every album. They really started changing from B.L. to N.I.S.–N.I.S. was a slightly darker album, and then O!G was a lighter rock.
I think they changed their style quite a bit for HH. When I heard mess of me and the sound (best song forever btw), I didnt believe that it was them. Its hard to explain why, but just the way it sounded was radically different to me. It was the biggest “rock” sound that theyve had
Hmmm… you know I JUST don’t hear a change. I really don’t. Not a big one anyway. But I appreciate the fact that other fans do!
Being a newcomer to SF in the past year, what I appreciate the most about them is the variety in their music. It’s what makes it possible for me to listen to them almost exclusively for very long periods of time. I remember when I started listening to their cd’s I kept saying “oh, that’s switchfoot too?” on some songs that sounded familiar(from radio), but never realized they were all the same artist. I just love that, and I think it comes from what Jon said in an interview, that they enjoy so many different kinds of music and so they make what they like to listen to. Thank goodness for that!
I believe we still have one of the original live recordings of Dark Horses, pre change, in our media section
This is in reply to that comment above. Seems we’ve made a reply pyramid and thankfully I can’t continue to make it ridiculous. I think what made Hello Hurricane stand out as a change (because I agree it does kinda go back to their old sound, but a fresh look at it) is that it’s the first time I think they’ve made a real cohesive album. Hello Hurricane will always be my favorite because of all the recurring themes and connected flowing feel the 12 songs put together. I think (but could be wrong) that the end of Red Eyes is the first time they’ve made a reprise of something earlier in an album to bring it full circle, which I think was a big step for them to make something almost like a concept album, which is what I think Vice Verses will be a lot like, and I am super excited for it
I LOVE the reprise on Red Eyes. I remember when I first heard the album, I was with the guys, listening to it on Chad’s iPod, and each one of them kept telling me “Have you heard the end of Red Eyes yet? You HAVE to hear it.” And I remember thinking “Gosh, okay, okay… what’s the big deal?” Then I heard it. And THEN I got it. I think it’s one of Switchfoot’s most brilliant musical moments, agreed?
Oh easily. Whenever I introduce a friend to Switchfoot (since HH came out) I burn them a copy of Hurricane and tell them to listen to the whole thing straight through because it’s the BEST way to experience the album (and most albums, for me). And I’ll know if they listened to the whole thing if they come back asking about the rest of their music, haha
I’m glad I was at a soundcheck and got it on video. Little blessings.
I’m with you on the opening drum roll…not so sure about the MTL comparison due to mixed reviews, but hopefully I’m wrong!
I love Restless and totally relate to The War Inside. Do we have to wait until September???????? ugh.
fav part “wide open let your open eyes shine” in The War Inside
Im looking forward to hearing the album version of Thrive. It’s so good. By the way, I talked with management again and from what they tell me, preorders will start later this month, like near the end of the month, and other than prices ($15,20, and 60) and that we get Dark Horses, they won’t tell me anything else. were just gonna have to wait and see whats in store. gotta admit, The Original isnt my favorite, but its catchy. its like Bullet Soul in a way. i could see both in an iPod commercial.
So, I just noticed the chord progression after the riff in The Original sounds a lot like Nirvana. I don’t get why some people don’t enjoy that tune! I love all of these songs and how the actual recordings sound and I think Vice Verses might be my new favorite Switchfoot record, putting Nothing is Sound in second, haha.
Nothing is Sound is my favorite album by a LONG shot so far… but i agree… I really like how this album is shaping up!
Afterlife, The War Inside, or Restless would be my favorites. September is too far away!
Posted this on the boards but it seems LOBH is where all the discussion takes place anymore.
Yikes, Switchfoot seems to not have an understanding of what sounds really cheesy (ie. Selling the News, The Original)…
I hate to be the negative one but here are my thoughts…
- Afterlife: Still like this song, but yes it sounds a lot like alternative rock radio
- The Original: Switchfoot could have put this on the Legend of Chin, this isn’t really growth. Not the biggest fan, it’s cheesy
- The War Inside: I like it, but the chorus gets a little repetitive, overall good though
- Restless: Good song, great lyrics, no complaints
- Selling the News: Am I listening to Christian rap? Did Tobymac co-write a song with Jon or something? Lyrics are kind of biting, but this is one of the cheesiest things I’ve ever heard Switchfoot put out and, frankly, I would be embarrassed to listen to this song in front of others.
- Dark Horses: Has grown on me over time, intro is sweet, it’s catchy, but it is a little cheesy.
I guess I just have a weird perspective on this album. I want to like it but then I take most of these songs and imagine how it would sound next to Switchfoot at their height (Meant to Live, Dare You to Move, Stars, even Awakening) and it just sounds really amateur and “lame” next to that era.
I will take a lot of flac for this and I hope this post doesn’t offend anyone, but this album doesn’t sound like a high-point in my opinion…
Still love Switchfoot and I know Jon still has it in him because the new Jon-written Fiction Family songs are golden and as are some of the tracks they decided not to release on this album.
(ehehe we try)
To comment on some of your points:
The Original… Lyrically, I agree… it lacks (no pun intended) originality. Musically, I like the tune quite a bit.
I’m not sure I understand why you find Selling The News to be cheesy. I don’t see that all, lyrically, it reminds me of Easier Than Love (good thing!) and I think the spoken-word format is a good stretch for them. I don’t think they’re trying to “rap” – they’re just doing a different format on singing a song. I hope that people don’t write the song off because they mistakenly think Switchfoot is trying to rap.
Agreed! And. When I first heard the beginning of Selling The News, my mind automatically went to Damon Albarn of Gorillaz. I don’t find it cheesy at all.
-Afterlife: Probably the best of the lot; excellent live. I’m excited for it.
-The Original: I like the melody/mix with screaming in the live versions, and miss that in this version. Maybe it comes back in the second verse. Vocals are kind of dull, honestly. Guitar’s cool, yeah, but this isn’t supposed to be a guitar-driven album.
-The Way Inside: I like the live version a lot more; here, it just sounds cheesy with “age don’t matter/race don’t matter” etc etc. Didn’t 30 Seconds to Mars do this song?
-Restless: Same; I’m hoping it sounds airier played on a proper speaker set or whatever. I still detect a lot of U2 in their softer songs.
-Selling the News: I can’t even take this seriously. It sounds like a preview for some teen cause or whatever. Don’t do drugs, etc. We all know the news, media, etc etc sucks. We’ve been hearing about it nearly as long as they’ve been a band. The chorus doesn’t catch me at all.
-Dark Horses: Sick of hearing about this song. Yeah, it’s fine and all, but at this point, we’ve gotten all of the Switchfoot standards – rock singles, emotional tracks, and anthems. They haven’t changed a thing as far as construction is concerned. At least Jon got a few good screams in.
You shouldn’t be the one getting flack; the band should. Yeah, I hope the songs end up sounding better in context, but as it stands, I’m not nearly as big a fan of this record as I thought I would be. The concept they keep presenting in interviews sounds intriguing and well-thought out, but I’m not sure that the execution is all that.
I hear you guys, I was a little apprehensive about VV because I love HH so much. But having heard the complete studio versions of Dark Horses, The Original, and Blinding Light at Bro-am and the live versions of the ones they played over those three days; I am so excited for VV. The 1 minute clips do not do the songs justice.
Wow. harsh. haha I love all the new songs I’ve heard. Honestly, SF as a band is an artist, and artists change all the time, and i think it’s good. I think one of the reasons they’ve been successful for so long is because they’ve changed to fit the times and matured their music. I agree with @switchfanberlin, they are artists, so let them create art
Not giving you any flac. To be honest, I think I agree with you. I want so badly to like this album bit I’m getting worried…
Wow. I said the same exact thing about Selling the News. My exact words were, “Sounds like a Tobymac song.” Haha.
People people people… I dont even know where to start. I used be to like you, doubting this record. I was honestly scared, I thought this is the end. Then I realized this simple truth; “you can’t change what you can’t change”. I think most people here probably became fans with TBL, and because of that we have this bias for the glory days. I think deep down we all wish we could back to those days, and we compare every new release to TBL and NIS, and guess what, anything new the guys do isn’t gonna give you those warm fuzzy feelings like when you listen to M2L and DYTM. Because you havent lived with these songs for 8 years. Switchfoot has never been in the business of repeating records. TBL wasn’t only their biggest mainstream success, it was (in my opinion) their most mainstream sounding record. Every release since I feel has been a step to a more mature, original sound. Left brain speaking I feel switchfoot has grown in creativity and artistry, but right brain feeling, I find myself less effected by the songs regardless of the fact I feel the songs are getting better with every new release. Because although the songs are getting better, they don’t compare to the way their older songs speak to me emotionally, because I havent lived with them for as long. I realized with this record, subconsciously, I was almost trying to control the way the record turned out, then I let it go, and embraced the fact that if switchfoot wanted to change, it was their decision to make. I embraced the fact that they were maturing, and that never will be another TBL. Maybe you have the same problem maybe not. All I’m saying is, question your reasons for disliking this record.
*applauds* well said, gives me some food for thought!
well said!
i agree
I super agree with you! I believe every record they have made bears its own flavor. Therefore, it’s just normal that we all have our own favorite flavors. Love it or hate it, it’s still Switchfoot. And we all love ‘em, do we?
I totally agree with everything you said. I feel kind of dissapointed with this album..
I was thinking about getting mad after I read your post… but then I realized that I haven’t even listened to any of these songs yet (because I had this really bad idea to wait and listen to the whole album)… so I guess I’ll just stay calm and wait for September. But seriously dude, you’re makeing me nervous!
don’t be nervous! I’m doing the same thing(not listening til it comes out) and I know that SF would never release something that was anything less than excellent……they are probably one of the most passionate bands out there and they would not do anything that would make their music “silly: or “unreal” . I believe that they are giving this CD everything that they have and I am not losing hope yet. VV here I come!
Favorite: Afterlife- This song is one of the few that, at least from what I’ve heard, I like better on the recording. Really nice beat.
Least favorite: The Original- I don’t know… I wasn’t a big fan of Bullet Soul, and this kind of reminds me of that. Not sure. Ironic, I know, but it just doesn’t sound that original and unique.
Does The Original remind anyone else of “vintage” Switchfoot? Like from the New Way To Be Human – Learning to Breathe era?
That’s what i think too. very classic rock and roll
I feel like The Original is to this album what Amateur Lovers is to O!G. They both have a ‘pure’ rock and roll feel. Amateur Lovers seems a little bit Rolling Stones
. I like. A nice detour.
Still going strong!!!! I am not going to listen until i get the cd…..hard, but worth it i’m sure
))))
Holy Cow!!! Awesome stuff here….just Awesome!!!
Selling the News is legit! The War Inside must be a single
That’s an insanely catchy song
BEST ALBUM OF ALL TIME BY ANY BAND OH MY GOSH! IM SO EXCITED. IM LITERALLY CRYING
nice, I can imagine that’s how I’ll be when i finally listen to the cd….
…eh. I’ll reserve final judgement for when I’ve heard the record, but “Selling the News” especially is just really lame. The lyrics are a huge preachy turnoff.
The few before that range from decent to average; “Afterlife” is the best of the bunch. But I dunno, I expected some great curves and production. Sounds more this is to “Hello Hurricane” what “Oh!Gravity.” was to “Nothing is Sound.” It’s just shaping up to be a bunch of rock singles.
How so? I don’t find them preachy at all – they seem rather Easier Than Love-esque to me
But “Easier Than Love” was, for one thing, a lot of fun musically, and for another had a subtlety in how blatant it was. It was more inward than outward; there was an emotion attached to the song. It talked about loss of the soul, and the monsters, and that sort of thing. Sex is something human that we’ve distorted, and that song took it and examined the sanity of doing so. This one’s just rapping (literally or not) about teens and the media.
Even if it was *exactly* like “Easier Than Love,” I don’t need two versions of the same message.
I don’t think you can write the song off by simply saying “It’s about teens and media” when we’ve only heard a short clip. I have a feeling that label might be too simplistic once the whole song is heard. To me, I agree, Easier Than Love was pointing the finger straight back at oneself, but I think Selling The News does the same… after all, Jon doesn’t say “THEY’RE selling the news”, he says “WE’RE selling the news.” I feel like Easier and this song are similar as in they’re both taking a no-holds barred look at society today. Are you saying you liked Easier better because it was easier to swallow? It was gentler? I love the fact that Selling The News is bold. Nothing wrong with a little preaching when it’s coming from a place of honesty… especially when he’s including himself as part of the problem
(BTW, thanks for continuing the discussion!)
My impression of selling the news is from the perspective of the media. They are selling the news to us all… kids and elders alike. Basically, the media does what’s in ‘their’ best interest to generate revenue (selling) instead of what the news was intended to be originally (unbaised reporting).
I think the difference is that it’s cool to talk about the media, etc etc, and us being part of it. Talking about sex as they did, however, is considered “prude” and “uncool.” It’s *too* honest, and that’s what I like about Switchfoot. But, on a personal level, how meaningful can a song about us selling the news really be?
No, “Easier” wasn’t easier to swallow or anything – the writing was just more interesting, despite that the guitar is actually stolen from “More Than Fine.” To me, talking about something that makes us who we are is far bolder than talking about some machine we’ve created. That’s what punk was for, and that movement’s over. No one cares anymore, because the social media is just a thing. Sex is forever, and therefore “Easier Than Love” will always be relevant.
I think you’re taking the message of Selling The News too simply… you’ve got to dig a bit deeper in the song, define what the problem is and then define your own role in it. We’re all guilty of not only selling but SWALLOWING the news. Are we so complacent that we’ll blindly accept what we’re being fed? Yes, society is spoon feeding us information, but no one said you have to swallow.
Definitely not arguing on the relevance of Easier Than Love! That song continues to hit me right between the eyes. I will sing that songs merits to the heavens! *laughs* I’m just saying, don’t be so quick to write off Selling the News without studying the lyrics and hearing the whole song. I have a feeling it will surprise you.
Thats a fine point, the only problem is that most switchfoot songs actually have the same message.
Mess of me has the same message as meant to live, company car has the same message as american dream. really, all of their songs repeat meaning wise. Im just grateful that they choose to branch out their playing style. there are some bands that have songs that all sound the same, like linkin Park (not to offend any hardcore Linkin Park fans out there).
Yes, the problem with that point is that every single band out there has done at least one song like that. I can name a few, not even by Switchfoot, off the top of my tongue – “SING” by My Chemical Romance was a big one recently, and almost the entire “A Thousand Suns” album by Linkin Park. Just by Switchfoot, you have “Gone,” “Adding to the Noise,” “Meant to Live,” “American Dream,” “New Way to be Human,” “The Blues,” “Politicians,” “Dirty Second Hands,” “Ammunition,” the list goes on. All of these, in some way or another, deal with human corruption in response to social media.
It’s not an emotional message – it’s not even an interesting one. Sure, in the context of some of those songs, it’s great, but at this point I’m sick of hearing it. We get it. We’re being fed, we’re feeding ourselves, etc etc, but that’s old news. We’ve heard the same messages over and over again.
Notice that arguably the most emotionally interesting album and arguably the best in their entire discography – that being ‘Hello Hurricane’ – has one single song about politics or teenagers or whatever, that being “Bullet Soul,” and even that is pretty vague. “The Sound” itself isn’t really that sort of song – the video and whatnot kind of push a message, which is why I don’t care for it outside its own context.
What’s funny is that the idea of “Oh, look how enlightened I am, not falling for being spoon fed and swallowing” is a sensation to fall into in and of itself.
@Jared:
I think you’re really limiting the songs by categorizing them all as “about media/corruption/whatever.” I don’t see how you’ve arrived at the conclusion that Bullet Soul is about politics or teenagers. And few of those songs you mentioned actually say anything directly about media. Yeah, you can stretch them to apply to it, but that doesn’t make those songs about response to corrupt social media. For Example, whenever Switchfoot plays “Politicians,” Jon says it’s about the kingdom of heaven. Which completely makes sense if you listen to it, it’s a very poetic song about God’s country. That song is NOT about politics, even though it mentions politics. Just because it mentions it doesn’t mean the song is about it. Think about it… just because Needle and Haystack Life mentions a needle girl in a haystack world doesn’t make that song about finding a good girlfriend. The message is a lot bigger than that, and if you don’t look past the surface, I think you’ll miss a lot of the real message of the song.
Sorry if that sounded cutting, no offense intended… I just think there’s a lot more to the songs than meets the eye (ear?).. that’s what makes Switchfoot great.
@Kirby, that’s fine, I just have no idea what your point is. Obviously, the lyrics aren’t the direct meaning, but the point is that Switchfoot uses politics and whatnot to get their message across. Saying that a song that uses politicians as a metaphor isn’t about politicians isn’t necessarily true. I’m a songwriter myself; I get the nuance. I just think they need new metaphors.
I’m curious to see everyone’s opinion on this: Rank the switchfoot albums in your opinion.. and include where you think Vice Verses will end up. Here’s mine:
1. The Beautiful Letdown
2. Vice Verses
3. Hello Hurricane
4. Nothing is Sound
5. Oh! Gravity
6. Learning to Breathe
7. New Way to Be Human
8. The Legend of Chin
Nothing is Sound
Hello Hurricane
The Beautiful Letdown
New Way to be Human
Oh!Gravity. (It’s grown on me)
Legend of Chin
Learning to Breathe
Vice Verses could go anywhere; it could turn around and be my favorite, but it could be less interesting even than Learning to Breathe. I expect it to fall right below Oh!Gravity.
Hello Hurricane
Oh! Gravity
Vice Verses
Nothing is Sound
The Beautiful letdown
Learning to Breathe
The Legend of Chin
New Way To Be Human
Note: all of the Albums except New Way have been my favorite,
Nothing is sound is the first Cd i got but i wasn’t a fan until i got The beautiful letdown then i got Oh! Gravity on the High of discovering SF. so it holds a very specail place in my heart, New Way was the last i heard besides Hello Hurricane so that’s probably another reason why it’s so low, and i find it too much like it self.
Good question but a tough answer! I never know where to put O!G on the list because my head recognizes that it’s one of their finest works – but for some reason, i’ve never been able to FEEL that album. Can I borrow your question for a future discussion point?
I agree, I love love some O!G songs but I always end up down/depressed when I listen to entire album (hmmm, maybe that means I do FEEL it)
Really? I just don’t feel an emotional connection with that album… though some of the individual songs are my favorites – Faust, Yesterdays, Dirty Second Hands, Let Your Love Be Strong. GREAT songs, that just doesn’t make a strong statement as an whole. But individually? WHOA. Incredible.
I agree with that, A lot of the songs are really good but it doesn’t really make a strong statement as a whole. It’s one of my favs because of sentimental value i guess
Yes, borrow away. I think it would be a good discussion! The Beautiful Letdown is not only my favorite switchfoot album… it will forever be my favorite album of all time. It was during a pivotal time in my life… and there are so many amazing songs on the album: I think the guys know it’s their best album too, no matter what they say.. there’s a reason they still play so many Letdown songs live!
I agree with some of the above comments. Oh! Gravity is confusing for me because it has some of my favorite Switchfoot songs of all time (Dirty Second Hands may be my all time favorite) but as a cohesive project it felt stale.
Nothing Is Sound, Hello Hurricane, and ESPECIALLY The Beautiful Letdown all had a sort of “change your life” aspect to them that Oh! Gravity was definitely missing. Like Jeanna said there’s no emotional attachment to the record at all. Too much talk of materialism for me..
Anyway I’d rank their albums as such:
1. The Beautiful Letdown
2. Nothing Is Sound
3. Hello Hurricane
4. Learning to Breathe
5. Oh! Gravity
6. New Way To Be Human
7. The Legend of Chin
The Beautiful Letdown
Vice Verses
Nothing Is Sound
Oh! Gravity.
Learning To Breathe
New Way To Be Human
Legend Of Chin
I really dont know where vice verses will also land but so far what i have heard im pretty sure it’ll top The Beautiful Letdown. I put vv on 2nd cause i havent hear the whole album. Jeeeze you really hate OG to be on the bottom of your list. I think Oh!Gravity and Nothing Is Sound made them better at there musical skills.
I think that this new album will be the #1 bestest switchfoot album, I mean come on guys “restless” is like freaking AMAZING
I’ll reserve VV for after I hear it all. It’s so difficult to choose an album considering there are gems in all, but I know I’m very attached to Oh!G so I’ll prob put that on the top of my list:
O! Gravity
Nothing Is Sound
Hello Hurricane
The Beautiful Letdown
Learning To Breathe
The Legend of Chin
New Way to Be Human
***I’ve created my own ‘box set’
and it’s about 43 songs long and counting, when VV arrives.
Hello Hurricane
Nothing Is Sound
The Beautiful Letdown
The Legend of Chin
Learning To Breathe
New Way to Be Human
Oh! Gravity
Hello Hurrican is my favorite because, when it came out, i was going through a really rough time, and it basically saved my life. So it will always hold a special place in my heart.
I’m not going to rank VV just because, we haven’t heard the entire thing yet or even some of the songs in their fullness.
I think some of you are also forgetting what a great song “Vice Verses” is… I also think “Where I Belong” will be an epic album closer…
The whole album may not be this new sound that they’ve been portraying… but it’s still shaping up to be one of their better albums if you ask me.
Well, what about those who haven’t kept track of the live releases, but saw this? It *is* marked “preview.” I do agree with your point about the namesake, but one song doesn’t make an album.
Yeah! I love Vice Verses (the song). I hope they didn’t change it up too much.
OH MY GOSH JEANNA I WANT THIS ALBUM NOW!!!! ITS JUST AMAZING. THIS ALBUM IS THE BEST ONE SO FAR, WAY BETTER THAN HH.AND I LOVE THE NEW LAYOUT JEANNA
I WANT IT,
I WANT THE ALBUM SO BAD!
From all I’ve heard so far I am really loving Vice Verses. I personally love The Original. Love the sound and lyrics, switchfoot+funk is a good thing. I find what I have heard so far to be a continued growth from HH. A little disappointed with the change in Dark Horses from the first version, but still liking it. Selling the News is awesome from the 1 minute clip. I don’t feel Jon is trying to “rap” but rather speak a powerful message. I feel Switchfoot took some chances and explored new territory with VV. No one wants a HH part 2. The growth of any artist might have some fans upset over the “newness” of the sound and song choices. I personally wouldn’t want to have them just rehash their older songs. It takes guts to step outside of a box and create something new. Not always easy but I imagine satisfying for the artist. I feel like everyone else here and can’t wait till September to have VV in my hands. Excited to read about presales options!
“Selling the News is awesome from the 1 minute clip. I don’t feel Jon is trying to “rap” but rather speak a powerful message.” – well said! I don’t think we can even consider it rap because I honestly don’t think that’s what he’s trying to do. Spoken word is a lost genre in music!
I agree with spoken word being a lost art.
It sounds like hes speaking a story! Theres little rap to it in my head! I think of it like hes talking with a spring in his step!
I Just cant understand what upsets people about these songs; granted, Im not a tried and true fan from the start. When I was growing up I remember hearing Dare You To Move and Meant to Live and Stars but I never really knew where the songs were coming from and I was too young to really take interest. I think the first time I seriously looked at Switchfoot with genuine interest, even an insatiable curiousity, was sometime after Hello Hurricane came out. My sister bought the cd but it wasnt until a while later that I took it and listened to it front to back. I was hooked! I already knew who they were and had checked them out before but that was when I REALLY wanted more.
For me its been a process of listening to their older songs again and again and always going back to run through them again to find a new song thats finally grown on me.
Switchfoot is like that! If i dont like a song the first time its a guarantee that itll grow on me down the road. The Original put me off the first time I listened to it, but it only took 2 or 3 more tries before the music stuck.
Back to the album!!! Its worth noting that thats only 6 songs (half the album) and theyre only 1 min clips (about a 3rd or 4th of the song) and that even though theyre the studio versions were hearing them through speakers through a camera, so even if its good quality were not hearing the songs in their perfect form! I have faith that when I get the album and I get comfortable with some really good headphones and crfank it up my head will probably explode!
I really like Selling the news i like that it’s different, and not what we typically hear. only song i don’t really like is Restless, it’s not bad or anything just expected. a little too soft and boring i like what happens later in the song and i am looking forward to hearing the full studio version.
and i get what your saying about hello Hurricane being like the beautiful letdown. I always kinda considered it The beautiful letdown 2. and i always kinda thought Vice verses would be like Nothing is sound 2 not that it will have the same sound or anything just that it would be as different to HH as NIS is to TBL. (I can’t wait for the record after VV a.k.a. Oh! gravity 2, JK. Oh! gravity is at least my second favorite or favorite album)
Let me start off by saying I’m a huge Switchfoot fan. They’re seriously my favorite band. But I’m not a huge fan of these songs. I do like Afterlife, the chorus on The War Inside, and Dark Horses. I don’t really like the auto-tone sound or the rap/pop sound. And I liked the old version of Dark Horses better. The new version is awesome too though so that’s ok. Hopefully I’ll like the songs better once I listen to the whole album. Maybe they’ll grow on me. *Fingers crossed*
jeeze…after reading all the comments I really cannot wait for Sept. I’m going to resist listening but i know having the cd with me will make it that much sweeter
woah! can we just skip on over to september now?
my favorites from the clip were restless and dark horses.
weird, because i didn’t really love dark horses the first time i heard it.
I. CANT. WAIT. Seriously these all sound great, except for the Original. To be honest, I don’t like the lyrics or the music. I think it might turn out to be the one bad part of the album (for me at least), kinda like Amateur Lovers on Oh! Gravity. (That song is the only Switchfoot song I HATE.) Selling the news was great though. When it started with the half-singing half-talking rappish thing I was a little unsure, but the chorus sounded awesome.
Selling the News does kinda sound like Gorillaz.
SFfan84 the first time i heard “the original” I actualy dint like it at all, I dont know why? but for some reason when I heard this sampler I actually like it now. weird. Selling The News was ok, im sure when we hear the whole song it’ll sound good.
wow. war inside is some major rap huh ? (: but i LOVE the original!
but selling the news… what??!?!? that’s certainly a…big move for switchfoot!!
I would give one of my kidney’s to see what artists Jon has on his iPod. (:
Im sure if you just asked he would tell you
really? no kidneys required?
If you meet him at a show, just ask. He’ll tell you! in the meantime… you’ll enjoy this if you haven’t seen it yet!: http://landofbrokenhearts.org/switchfoot/playlists/
I also really like the speaking part on “Selling The News” because it seems more direct and I feel there’s more of an urgency to say what needs to be said when you do it in spoken word.
But… I’m a sucker for “Restless”. I love it because it has the same feel and vibe as 24.
the original sounds like poparazzi.
So… Im new here. Hi everyone:) Thank you so much Jeannna for this treat! Im so excited for the new album! I just cant believe no one likes The Original–thats my fav!Makes me a little sad. I think Im going to like all of Vice Verses and even if–when I buy it–i dont, im not gonna put down the band cuz they’re doing a more than fine job. Selling the news is so Bob Dylan–I love it! Its so amazing to watch Switchfoot evolve….:) oh yeah the new layout is S.P.I.F.F.Y!!!<3
I love The Original also, makes ya want to dance! Didn’t think I’d say that about a Switchfoot song.
I dont really think Jon is trying to “rap” in Selling The News what i think he is trying to do is maybe let us know that the message in that song is a strong one. So its different than the others. This album is going to rock.
Dark Horses and Restless should be there singles
In all honesty i can’t see that not happening, at the very least restless will be the second o third single most likely to christian radio
And probably Afterlife sometime after Dark Horses.
Amazing! That’s all I can say! I’m so hyped for Vice Verses (again, italics please!). September 27th is not coming fast enough – and when it comes, I may just drop dead from the awesomeness of Switchfoot’s newest album.
I must say that the original reminds me of old switchfoot( which was my favorite switchfoot.) I love selling the news, spoken word is not easily done, you guys need to remember. I miss the old dark horses and against the voices, but still can’t wait for this album.
Afterlife- great song and fantastic opening to the album. Very drum and bass driven like jon has been talking about in interviews.
The Original- Great guitar riff song..very catchy:) I don’t understand how people can complain about this song, other than not liking it because the chorus is repetive.
The War Inside- Jon takes on a Bono rapping style is this song… I honestly really like it and I can’t stop listening to the live version of the song. I know some other people may not like it though, the line” I got the feeling that we are living in sci-fi” may turn people off but I like it.
Restless- Probably will be one of the most popular songs on the new album. Really good song. The one minute sample doesn’t do it justice, especially since the second part of the song is better than the first.
Selling the News-
Eh..It’s okay. The singing part of the song sounds good, but I need to hear the full song to decide if I like it..
Dark Horses-
I still like the original lyrics wayy more but this version is still pretty good. I saw a comment that said that Dark Horses was the Mess of Me of VV..sounds about right..i don’t think it will do thatttt good single wise..but still a good song.
Over-produced. My original fear when Avron was announced as producer. Hmm. “Selling The News” is interesting. I like it.
Define Over-Produced..
vocals seem like they’ve had a lot of work done on them. Doesn’t sound as natural. One of the best things about Switchfoot is the raw vocals by Jon. Someone above said they sounded a little flat, and I think that sounds about right. The guitars seem to have lost some punch….not necessarily sound-wise, but in the way they’re mixed. I dunno…I have no problems with the melodies or lyrics (“The Original” is kind of like “Bullet Soul 2.0″…but that’s fine.), but it just sounds too…clean. Slick. Had the same problem when Avron produced “New Surrender” by Anberlin. Had some good songs, but a lot of the ones with real potential (don’t know if you’re familiar with the album, but “Soft Skeletons” and “Retrace” both suffered from it) left me feeling kind of “meh”.
I’m familiar with a lot of his other work as both a mixer and producer, and would even consider myself a fan (his mixing work with Linkin Park has been fantastic, and his production style is perfect for Yellowcard). I’m just not sure it works for Switchfoot.
Keep in mind, this is just my first opinion after hearing samples of six songs and knowing how he usually makes his records sound. I’ll be first in line to pre-order, and from hearing the live videos, I’m still excited. Just cautious. But I’ll hold final judgement till I get 45 minutes to myself, and a good pair of earbuds.
really? To me, it seems like this album, besides “Afterlife”, had the least work done on Jon’s vocals.
I see what you mean, I think The TBL had a very Over produced sound to the Vocals, And i really like the “aged” sound Jon had to his voice on Hello Hurricane, but I don’t really think they did too much to his voice, considering these sounds sound exactly like the live versions minus mistakes.
Sounds like a lot of people want to hear the same Switchfoot album over and over again. They’re never going to make another TBL, and they never should. They are branching out a bit in their style, and I like it. Don’t think we should get pissed because they don’t want to become complacent in their music.
amen. Now, to play devil’s advocate, just because they’re not complacent doesn’t mean that every album they make is going to be better than the last. I personally don’t know if they’ll ever top “Nothing Is Sound” (just my personal favorite SF album). And I’m fine with that. I know they have the ABILITY to, and are always looking to change and expand upon their sound, but you have to keep an open mind about albums. Just because it’s “different” or “new” doesn’t mean it’s good (though “Selling The News” is freaking awesome). Even if it’s from the greatest band ever made up of some of the coolest guys in the world
Very Well Said, and needed to be said thank you
THANK YOU, I am who I am. I was kind of going through “sad-pissed off-WTF-sad” moments while reading the comments till I got to you.
I still can’t believe people are being so critic over a 1 minute youtube not-so-good quality samples! I feel we might be overthinking some stuff, until we get the album I won’t give too much credit to all points covered here.
One of the things I love about Switchfoot is the diversity of their sound, like others already said. They can get away playing quite a wide set of styles and doing it really well. Another thing I find myself doing is not liking a song for a while and then BOOM, just when I thought I wanted to skip it I’m humming and singing along. And then the opposite too, according to what I’ve read here I’m not the only one.
I really believe VV is worth the waiting. Anyway, they are making things different and that is just great. That’s who they are, they are still discovering what it sounds like to be Switchfoot despite all the time they’ve been out there. Someone said once: “We are impermanent beings in flux and we cannot expect either our relationships or those in our lives to remain static.” That feels right to me.
“Another thing I find myself doing is not liking a song for a while and then BOOM, just when I thought I wanted to skip it I’m humming and singing along.”
EXACLTY! I’m on record numerous times (in this thread alone) saying I really am not a fan of The Original at all, find it annoying, repetitive… all that stuff. And tonight, just hanging around the house, what do I find myself doing? “Got your hands in your pocket, like you’re ready to pay. Got your eyes out of socket, like you’re a mile away.” Then skipping to: “Come on baby free yourself. Hey!” Thats what this band does. Even with a song you think you don’t like, you end up singing your heart out to it… thats what makes them the best
As if i havent commented enough on this page ienough already but ive got one more thing to say…. WHERE I BELONG!!! Its gonna be big.
Have you heard it? What’s it like?
just the previews weve gotten so far… it sounds like its gonna be one of my favorites
It’s impossible to judge based off sections of sections of an album played through speakers on YouTube. all I can say is that based off what I hear I am excited, criticizing without the full album will just turn yourself off for when you actually get it. Can’t wait for the full product, September can’t come soon enough!
Let me continue this great discussion with a long and lengthy paragraph. From what I’ve been reading, some people aren’t liking this record. I could understand why. It has a few songs that some find dissapointing. I would like to leave you guys thinking about something: Despite what we don’t like, they like it. You see, what Jon writes is compelling and motivating, and it tells a story, good or bad. All of his music tells a story. He is perhaps one of the smartest and influential men in existance. He is my musical idol. His motives have good intentions. It’s all for the story, and this is how they tell the story. The message of polarity and calamity in this album is strongly used in each song. They all revolve around one concept. That’s what every song does: it revolves aroun an idea and spreads to others to create new ideas. With this record, the story seems out of place at times, but if they didn’t like it, they wouldnt’ve made the album the way it was. It makes me think of stories in real life. For example: I’m in the middle of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, and when I first started, I got bored, but then I tried again and grasped the concept it threw me. That’s what we NEED to be doing when we listen to music. If we sink our teeth into what they give us, then maybe we understand why they do what they do. I honestly, for one, love Vice Verses. I’ve been looking forward to it ever since Hello Hurricane and theses past 2-3 years of ideas for this album have been great. If this album tells a clear enough story, I’ll enjoy it. That’s why I enjoyed Hello Hurricane so much. It just flowed together so well, and it’s not only become my favorite Switchfoot album, it’s become my favorite album of all time. Period. Nothing is Sound had a good flow to it. The Beautiful Letdown was great too, and Oh! Gravity, and all their other albums. It just depends on the flow. The Beautiful Letdown didn’t have the best flow to it, because it seemed like ideas being thrown out at you. The key to a good album is flow. As for the flow of Vice Verses, I don’t know. I’ve only heard half of it. But this is what the guys want. They know it’s good and we need to be suportive of what they do. Otherwise, it doesn’t make us good fans. If were not suportive, then what’s the point of being fans? I will hapilly take what they give me, and I hope you guys do too.
I loved Afterlife, Dark Horses, and The War Inside. Restless is beautiful. The Original is different, I like it. But I think Selling the News is the most different thing so far. They aren’t among my favorites though. Can’t wait for the rest of the album!
Wow, wow, wow…I love the new songs!! The song samplers have a more crunchy/edgy sound to them (with the exception of Restless). I’ve always been a big fan of the SF songs that have a heavier rock sound to them and it sounds like Vice Verses is going to deliver in the rock your socks off arena. I have a feeling that quite of few of these songs could end up on mainstream rock stations. YES! Afterlife was my favorite.
In the words of Jon Foreman “I’m ready now! I’m ready now!” – Afterlife. Bring on the pre-orders!
Hahahaha I like this and agree
what ive found interesting is when someone talks negatively toward a new song or the album, I kinda start to think that I dont like it either…but when someones like “The Original” is SO tight, it makes me like it more…if that makes sense…I think the songs are stellar, its a close race between NiS and HH(my fav albums)
Two thumbs up?! I have nothing to add to this discussion on the songs or the album, at least not now. I need some time to listen, to feel, to think and then to listen again and again. I am probably a little slower than most here, but it just takes me time to listen and make sense of how new music makes me feel. It takes me even longer to put together a coherent set of thoughts on new music and lyrics. That said, there is absolutely nothing that JF and SF produce that I do not like.
LOBH – great work getting this stuff out and facilitating such great discussions.
WOW! I’m loving this album! Just wanna say that I really love the tone of the guitars. Gotta love that distortion xD
I feel like dancing in this set. Hahaha. Awesome!
I really want to listen to all of Selling The News now. Sounds so weird to me but weird in a good way.
Oh I really love how there’s this glimmering light shining in between Drew’s torso and arm haha it looks so awesome!
After only a few seconds of Afterlife I’m madly in love with it! Love the sound! Same with The Original. I realize now that this is the sound I’ve been longing for.
Could someone help me decode the lyrics to Selling The News? I can’t get the first sentence for the life of me. Welcome to the ??? city, ??? ??? green, built with lands of the low self esteem?
I think the first line says “welcome to the holy city”
i thought it was the “windy city” like Chicago! I think it fits with the theme of the song
scratch that, youre right its definitely “holy”
i dont think it’s holy. either windy or whirly. idk why…but i dont think “holy city” fits…i might be completely wrong, but that’s just me.
Heres my take, Id have more but p[eople close to the camera thought it was a great Idea to have a conversation in the middle of the song -_-’
Welcome to the holy city, a silver screen
Built with the lands of the low self esteem
A teenagers plea for meaning that means
Were Selling the News
See opinions are easier to swallow than facts
The greys instead of the whites and the blacks
If you shoot it to straight it wont come back
Were Selling the News
See money speaks volumes louder than words
And virtues with slings(?) maybe not quite at first
But ?????????
Were Selling the News
See all ??? equal all is for sale
??????????????????
The lowest Common Denominator prevails
Swere Selling the News
I wanna believe it, I wann believe
That evryhting is inbetween
The fact is fiction
The fact is fiction
I wanna believe you, i wanna believe
that everything is in between
The fact is fiction
The fact is fiction
Suspicion is the new religion
I dont even know where to start with the missing bits!
alright, you filled in some blanks for me and now i think i got it all, or most of it.
Welcome to the holy city, a silver screen
Built with the lands of the low self esteem
A teenagers plea for meaning and means
We’re selling the news
See opinions are easier to swallow than facts
The greys instead of the whites and the blacks
If you shoot it too straight they wont come back
We’re selling the news
See money speaks volumes louder than words
And virtues with wings, maybe not quite at first
But salaries are paid with the ads not the verbs
We’re selling the news
?See all is unequal?, all is for sale
A powerful dog who’s been chasing his tail
The lowest common denominator prevails
We’re selling the news
I wanna believe you, I wanna believe
That everything is inbetween
The fact is fiction
The fact is fiction
I wanna believe you, I wanna believe
That everything is in between
The fact is fiction
Suspicion is a new religion
I believe its “built with the lens of a low self esteem”
that would correlate better w/ the silver screen bit
I was thinking that myself! And that a good catch with the dog bit…. i swear the parts i missed were so hard to hear!
Selling the news has a Newsboys sound, don’t you think?
I’m trying to avoid hearing previews as much as possible. I previewed Hello Hurricane like 5 times on Myspace before it came out so it wasn’t all that exciting to get in the mail
I’m curious how Thrive will be arranged
Im diggin their new songs. Selling the news reminds me of some of their songs on learning to breathe!love dark horses!!
First time listening to it, I was disappointed, but I gave it a second try a day later and it’s not to bad. I’m quite excited about the album now.
Darn…I already changed my mind on which song I like better…now it’s War Inside over Afterlife but still almost too close to call.
Is it just me, or does The War Inside feel like it will be the “Free” of Vice Verses? Maybe part of that is just because they use the floor toms live when they play it too, but it just seems to have that ‘epic’ feel to it that Free did…
Gosh! I have sooo much to say about this discussion:
1. For me “Selling the News” sounds a lot like the intro he does for “Free” when they sing live… and I just LOVE that.
2. A lot of the Latin America fans have compared “The Original” to a very emblematic spanish rock song called “Música Ligera”… What do you think? http://youtu.be/KpiY999wHTM
3. I like the fact that they are going in a new direction, yet I think they’re sticking to their sound. Like Jeanna said O!G was a “new” sound for them, but I think in HH they kind of stablished themselves and it was sort of a starting line…
4. I like most of the songs I have heard but “Restless.”.. I just DIE everytime I hear that song, I love everything about it. One of the reasons why I love Switchfoot is that their albums usually match with the stage that I am going trough, for example, HH was realeased right after I had a really harsh breakup… and now “Restless” is exactly how I feel…
5. Even though some have said the lyrics sound auto-tuned or over produced, I think the real deal is seeing the band live… and I feel that is the difference between Switchfoot and other “over produced”/”autotuned” bands.
6. I have heard some of the Vice Verses previews… I really don’t understand how it will fit in the album. I’m really hoping to hear the studio version
7. I had the chance to hear “Dark Horses” at the Bro-Am and I think that’s when I started to “believe” in that song.
8. I will miss Against the Voices
BTW he also does the spoken part on MTL
Personally, I like Learning To Breathe best of all the albums… And it seems like most of that sort of material has shifted into the Jon Foreman and Fiction Family records, but I am still excited about this album. “Selling the News”, “Restless,” and “Afterlife” seem most promising!
back to the ranking the albums question-
i find it so incredibly hard to rank their albums! i always start with TBL and HH/NIS but then i remember how great their first three really are and i can’t find a good place to put them in! i usually end up with something like this:
1- The Beautiful Letdown
2-Hello Hurricane/Nothing is Sound
3-Legend of Chin/Learning to Breathe
3 1/2- New Way to be Human
4-Oh! Gravity
its so frustrating!!!!
now about this sampler video- i am PUMPED for the album to come out. one of the big reasons i love switchfoot is that i can either rock out to the music or just sit there and listen to the message- and i feel like i can do that with all of these songs! for all the negativity out there-remember that these are only clips of the songs, and only half of the songs on the entire album. also, remember that they are the ones in charge of their music and always have been- the album is EXACTLY how they want it to be. you can obviously choose whether to like it or not but the fact remains that this will always be Switchfoot through and through and thats why we love them. i can’t wait for the tour!
my take on the Selling The News lyrics
Welcome to the holy city, a silver screen
Built with the lands of the low self esteem
A teenagers plea for meaning and means
We’re selling the news
See opinions are easier to swallow than facts
The greys instead of the whites and the blacks
If you shoot it too straight they wont come back
We’re selling the news
See money speaks volumes louder than words
And virtues with wings, maybe not quite at first
But salaries are paid with the ads not the verbs
We’re selling the news
?See all is unequal?, all is for sale
A powerful dog who’s been chasing his tail
The lowest common denominator prevails
We’re selling the news
I wanna believe you, I wanna believe
That everything is inbetween
The fact is fiction
The fact is fiction
I wanna believe you, I wanna believe
That everything is in between
The fact is fiction
Suspicion is a new religion
I agree with you on everything but I think it’s “built with the Hands of a low self esteem…”
Only because it makes more sense to build with hands, than to build with lands, y’know?
I think its ‘lense’ of a low self esteem. it matches the silver screen bit
I really love the Vice Verses countdown on the home page – makes me more excited than ever for the release of this album!
where??
Uh… on the LOBH home page…. right underneath the “subscribe to updates” section?
Am I seeing things? I assumed you put it there….
ahaha no! you aren’t! That was Kevin, the brilliant mind that he is! I didn’t know about it until you said something – LOVE it too!
Awesome surprise, no?! I think it’s really great – 85 days and counting!
*looks around…. then does a wild dance in excitement*
Argh, just can’t let the radio stations have these. K-Love WILL overplay just like they brutally murdered Your Love Is a Song.
You know technologys taking over when…
hahahaha!
Anyone else hear in the bassline after the chorus of selling the news – another one bites the dust …lol jk. No but really, wow, that’s definitely a departure from Switchfoot sound. I think I’ll like it but I need to hear it on my own speakers and not through a youtube video where some of the sound gets lost. I’d say it does sound a bit hip hop/rap-like, but I don’t have a problem with that. I always thought of spoken word as more of poetry being read with music in the background, and not necessarily having it go in rhythm with the music, which is why I think this makes me think rap, but like I said, I don’t have a problem with that. I like it.
Overall, I’d say these sound very much like the live versions but cleaner, and I really like them. The first time I heard the first three songs in their live versions, I didn’t care for them much, but now they’re starting to grow on me.
Restless I think will be incredible live, based on the live version I’ve heard, and I can’t wait to experience that live soon.
I’d like to make the point that when I first heard the clip of Enough to Let Me Go, I thought it sounded like a departure, and I didn’t like it at first, but after hearing the whole thing, I LOVED it and it became my most listened to song on HH. So I still think this album has potential for me to fall in love with it when I get it. It really needs to be blasted on some car speakers while driving down a highway, which is what’s going to happen when I get VV in the mail (that’s what I did with HH).
Also, I love how Jon and the others are tapping their feet to the music. They’re so adorable that they can jam to their own music and that they seem to like what they’ve made and are excited about it =)
ahaha I can’t believe it, I’m already getting addicted to Selling the News… I’ve listened to that single song clip several times now. It’s just so catchy!
I don’t know what every one is complaining about. Switchfoot/Jon’s lyrics are just way above the norm. It’s basically like comparing a day at the beach vs. a day at the pool. It still beats a day of work. You may not be totally happy with the whole album, but you kind always find a wholesome, genuine nugget (‘s) among any of their work. It’s all about musical perspective and passion.
It seems to me like people get fed up over lyrics a lot and say ‘Oh the meaning here is just like the meaning over here’, totally disregarding the fact that the songs may differ completely musically. Music isnt just words. Its rythm, melody, harmony,… groove! These songs each have unique sonic qualities and manage to be something totally new MUSICALLY! Lyrics are one small part of a song. Without the rest of it its just a nice little poem. I happen to love the rest of it! And the lyrics satisfy me where they dont impress me!
I wholeheartedly agree with what you say about Jon’s lyrics. Theyre much more heartfelt than any of the GARBAGE in popular music these days… were spoiled by Jon’s good lyrics and asking for more! Let the man, and his dear friends, play the songs that THEY feel strongly about. They wouldnt make an album just to make more money, they play these songs because they enjoy it and because they mean something to them.
You’re right there. Also i think we should acknowledge that, while some are complaining about the lyrics being similar in some songs, that this album does have a theme. The guys have said numerous times it is about “the polarity of life and death”. You can see that when you read the lyrics. And i like that, when an album is written around a theme.
Jeanna, i can’t believe you didnt see the vice verses countdown! happy early 4th of july i guess…
i know! on my own site!
kevin is so awesome, i think we should all acknowledge that for a bit
haha! yes, way to go kevin! happy early 4th of july to him too!
Hello hurricane
Noting is sound
The beautiful letdown
Learning to breathe
New way to be human
The legend of chin
Oh gravity.
If these snippets are any indicator this may end up being one of my favorite Switchfoot albums ever. Here’s my opinion of each song:
Afterlife – This is going to be an awesome opener. Almost reminiscent of Meant to Live in a way… maybe even better.
The Original – Sounds like this could’ve gone on Oh! Gravity… with a bit of old school Switchfoot mixed in. (think Company Car)
The War Inside – This song sounds awesome… probably my favorite of all of these. Also it seems to have gotten the warmest reception from the crowd.
Restless – Sounds like your typical Switchfoot ballad.. but on steroids. Love it.
Selling the News – Very different.. yet somhow it’s still very Switchfoot. This is why I love this band.
Dark Horses – Least favorite of all of these… I have a feeling the full song will change my mind, but as a lead single it doesn’t jump out at me like Mess of Me did.
After I asked everyone to rank the switchfoot albums in order.. I really thought I’d see the Beautiful Letdown as number 1 on more people’s lists. This is when most people first fell in love with the band, or even heard about them. It’s extra special to me because of where I was in life at the time of first hearing it…. but I also think it just had the best music. If I were to make a “best of” switchfoot album and could include 20 songs, 7 of them would be from that album. No other album of theirs would have any more than 3 on it. But seeing how different the order is for everyone just further proves what a great band Switchfoot is… and just how many great songs they’ve put out there!
Nothing is Sound is definitely my favorite Switchfoot album, and Legend of Chin would be my least favorite (I first heard Switchfoot when Legend was released, so it holds a certain place in my heart, though overall its a pretty immature album, but yet was the right sound in the late ’90s) but in between is difficult. I mentioned the other day that The Beautiful Letdown was always one of my favorites, but the fact that it was when a lot of other fans discovered them, and that was the record they were known for— it almost turned me off, causing me to somewhat shun that record. But lately i’ve been listening to it a bit, and realizing i can still like it even if everybody else does. And Hello Hurricane was a breath of genius, and was really exciting with it being the first Switchfoot release for a long time, and I really loved it when it came out. So it would probably be second. Oh! Gravity is one of those records thats hard to place. I think it was Jeanna that mentioned this the other day, that individually, there are some amazing songs on it, but as a whole, it just doesn’t have that same “connection” as other Switchfoot records do. Learning to Breathe is a very underrated album from the guys, and has always been one of my favorites, and sometimes is my favorite, but it bounces around in ranking. New Way to be Human was a huge breakthrough for them on just their second record, and for me, blew Legend out of the water. Its another one of those really underrated records, and sometimes is my favorite, and i go back to it quite a bit. Its a record that a lot of the “younger” Switchfoot fans dislike. Its not a bad mark on them, but it was released when a lot of them either didn’t know of the band, or were too little to even know the difference. That said, here are my rankings as of today (but theres no Switchfoot record that I don’t like):
1. Nothing is Sound
2. Hello Hurricane
3. The Beautiful Letdown
4. Learning to Breathe
5. New Way to Be Human
6. Oh! Gravity
7. Legend of Chin
OH EM GEE.
Just multiply that by about a million and you get my reaction. I don’t think I’ve ever been so excited about anything in my life before. Vice Verses, please hurry up and get here!
A more thorough reaction to each song-
Afterlife: It took me a couple listens to warm up to Afterlife originally, but I grew to quite like it. It makes me feel like getting up and doing something, like getting up and just living. Not to mention it’s amazing for air guitaring.
The Original: I didn’t really like this one much before, just because it seemed too much like one more of the eleventybajillion songs in the firework/we r who we r/born this way/etc vein that everyone seems to be doing lately. I don’t know, it just rubbed me the wrong way. But listening to it now, I have to say it’s growing on me. And it’s very dancey!
The War Inside: I love TWI. It feels really raw and powerful to me. Like so many of SF’s songs, it’s like someone pulled it right out of my soul.
Restless: Restless is another one of those songs that really fit right into my heart/soul. Probably my favorite of the VV songs so far. Some nights if I can’t sleep I’ll lie on my rooftop and watch the stars, listening to Restless. It makes me cry, it’s so so true and amazing and aksljdfkajsfhdsfj. So basically, yeah, I love Restless xD
Selling The News: I have to say most of my original OMGSELLINGTHENEWSTHISISSELLINGTHENEWSOMGOMGOMG reaction was because of all the “spoken word” hype the song has been getting. The actual song wasn’t really that much of a shock factor, I just felt like I should be shocked because this was Selling the News, oh em gee. After I got over that, this song is fantastic! Totally dancey!
Dark Horses: Dark Horses is my jam. Yet another of those songs that fits my life perfectly. Air guitaring/rocking out to the max.
Wow, so much to say.
First off, I love Selling the News-It’s just so…epic (for lack of a better term). Jon’s voice sounds awesome. Some commentors mentioned the use of autotune? I don’t hear that at all-they used lot’s of effects on his voice-like reverb, delay, and even some distortion (kind of like when Jon sings into his guitar, except it’s more subtle) which i think is really cool-it gives his voice more definition and it draws attention to it.
Secondly, I actually really like The Original. Especially the music-alot of you have mentioned that you like the music but the lyrics aren’t your favorite, which I think is probably true. I’m a musician, but not a lyricist. i’ve never been good with writing lyrics, so the music in that song in particular stands out (to me) more than the lyrics.
To me, VV sounds almost like a great mix between Nothing Is Sound and Hello Hurricane-which are probably my two favorite albums anyway (they seem to be alot of people’s favorites) I can’t wait to hear the album on my iPod with good headphones!
About Jon’s vocals-I think Jon, as a singer, goes through periods of experimenting with vocal styles and songwriting styles-he has over the years, and VV almost sounds like he’s taking alot of his styles and combining them (like he talks on Selling The News, and The Original sounds almost like an older switchfoot song to me…) but they all still have a very defined ‘new switchfoot’ sound, which i think is awesome! I really like the sound of his vocals, even if they were processed to a certain extent. One thing I loved about Hello Hurricane was Jon’s raw vocals throughout the record, but as has already been said, they didn’t want to remake HH, they were making a new album-well said…
I didn’t become a REAL switchfoot fan until right after they released O!G, so I don’t have the loyalty to TBL that alot of fans do-it’s an awesome album, but I can’t say it’s my favorite. And I completely agree with Jeanna-I love alot of the songs on Oh! Gravity, but as an album, it’s not my favorite either…
Ok, now for ranking the albums:
1) Nothing Is Sound
Learning to Breathe
2) Hello Hurricane
3) Vice Verses
4) New Way to Be Human
5) The Beautiful Letdown
6) Legend of Chin
7) Oh! Gravity
Nothing Is Sound just has way to many of my favorites to not be number 1. Also, this list changes alot just depending on what songs I’m into the most at that time, but for the most part, NiS and HH are always either 1 or 2, and New Way to be Human and TBL switch between 3 and 4 for me. Maybe I’m expecting too much from Vice Verses, but I doubt it
Awesome post, sorry for the long comment!
27th of September… Why can’t you be now?
Alright i’m just going to say it so far Selling the news is my favorite song on the album so far, It’s different i like different!!!!!
Oh! Gravity
Vice Verses (??)
Nothing is Sound
Hello Hurricane
VLearning to Breathe
The Beautiful letdown
The Legend of Chin
New Way To Be Human
Anyone else think that Selling The News would make an awesome music video? Or is it just me?
That would be AMAZING!
Seriously I think it could make a really rockin’ video. Like here’s my concept idea:
Starts off in a carnival like setting and Jon dressed up as a carnie welcomes the viewers and he’s just walking around doing his talking parts and every now and then it cuts to the other guys jamming out and all and Jon is like giving a tour to the viewers of all the rides and games all with themes based on the lyrics of the song. Just my idea that I thought of today.
That’s a really cool idea, I never would have pictured anything like that! I think that there would be so many awesome ways to put the song to a video it would be hard to decide…lol but I love that idea.
It is really hard for me to rank these but I’ll try. lol
1.)Vice Verses
2.)Hello Hurricane
3.)Nothing is Sound
4.)The Beautiful Letdown
5.)Oh! Gravity
6.)New Way To Be Human
7.)Legend Of Chin
8.)Learning To Breathe
IS there going to be a Deluxe Album of Vice Verses?
From what I heard… yep!
Hopefully the Deluxe album has Against the Voices on it!
My album order:
1. Nothing is Sound
2. The Beautiful Letdown
3. Hello Hurricane
4. Learning to Breathe
5. Oh! Gravity
6. New Way to be Human
7. Legend of Chin
I’ll wait to hear VV when it’s released before I rank it, but I can tell it will probably be in the top four. To be honest, I liked some of the live versions of the songs better than those preview versions, but like people have said, they are only 1-minute snapshots so I’ll have to wait and listen to the whole album before making a judgement.
I haven’t anticipated a Switchfoot album this eagerly before…c’mon Sept 27!
Hmm…. Oh! Gravity. is not loved here. For me it captured the essence of Switchfoot more than any previous release.
…I gotta say, I am disappointed with what I have heard from the album so far…I love “Restless”, “Thrive”, and “Vice Verses” but thats pretty much it. I don’t know, I just loved Hello Hurricane so much, and now the songs from VV just sound cheesy…this is really depressing.
i still prefer the old dark horses version. really it all sounds amazing, but a little more produced than the last album. i was really hoping theyd make it sound even more raw. overall though my fav is restless
Okay, after listening to the samples about 15 times (not even kidding) I have decided that I am super excited for this album, I wasn’t really sure about it at first, but these songs are finally starting to grow on me!
After to listening to this a couple times..I looked up the exact song order for VV. Does anyone find it weird that jon skipped “The Blinding Light” on his ipod? It’s supposed to be 5th on the album.
My guess is that he skipped The Blinding Light and Thrive because he wanted to play more upbeat catchy songs initially (ones that would be more likely played live), and I think those two are more downbeat from what I’ve heard. Also, he probably wanted to make sure to get to Dark Horses since it’s going to be a single.
We heard Blinding light at Bro-am and if these 6 songs got fams talking I can’t wait to see discussions. People are definitely going to say, “are your sure this is Switchfoot?”. I loved it though.
Oh I see I didn’t know it was a slow song. How did you hear it at Bro-am? Well the non switchfoot sounding songs are pretty great so far lol.
VIP at Bro-am got to listen to studio versions of Original, Blinding Light, AND Dark Horses….very cool. It’s not really a slow song, just very islandy.
Wow oh my gosh ¡¡!!!! I’m soo excited !!
69 days, 1 hour, 40 mins, 33 secs
Boo yeah !!!!! Haha XD
I can’t wait for them to come to the Celebrate Freedom Atlanta concert ! I really hope I can go … Even better i hope i can go with Rocky !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:DDD
Love you guys! (Jon,Tim,Drew,Romey,Chad and everyone on LOBH) muahh! Lol XD