Not only is Switchfoot back, but so is Kirk Franklin. This week we have new
release from Flyleaf, Kirk Franklin, and a bunch of boring compilations.
Plus, we have new reviews from Switchfoot, an interview with Smalltown
Poets, and much more. So enjoy this week's cMusicMail and have a good
weekend!

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NOTHING IS SOUND - SWITCHFOOT (2005)
By Bert Gangl

It's no easy feat. Just ask Fleetwood Mac. Or Def Leppard. Or even Bruce
Springsteen. Each of these artists are all too familiar with the daunting
task of following a career-defining album (Rumours, Hysteria and Born in the
U.S.A., for those keeping score) with one of equal or greater magnitude. All
of this is, of course, old news to Switchfoot songwriters Jon and Tim
Foreman, who, along with drummer Chad Butler and multi-instrumentalist
Jerome Fontamillas, released The Beautiful Letdown in early 2003. That
record, as most who listen to Christian pop already know, was the one that
plucked the band from the Christian pop niche market and set it down it
squarely in the middle of the mainstream, pulling down Top 20 honors on the
Billboard Hot 200, a pair of gold singles, sales of over two million units
and a deal with Columbia Records in the process.

Because of the band's extended tour for the Letdown album, the lion's share
of Nothing Is Sound was written on the road. True to the circumstances
surrounding their creation, cuts like "Lonely Nation," and the similarly
impressive "Stars" and "Happy Is a Yuppie Word," are fitted with rousing,
crowd-friendly rhythms, towering bass lines, plenty of sludgy, drop-tuned
guitars and hooks enough for a store full of winter coats. Shimmering,
pop-inclined tracks like "We are One Tonight" and "Golden" appear equally
likely to roust even the most passive of concert goers from their seated
positions. The laid back, slightly Beatlesque strains of "The Blues" will
set those same listeners swaying enthusiastically in time to its loping,
piano-driven melody. And the moving, acoustically-based album closer,
"Daisy," is sure to fill arenas everywhere with raised cigarette lighters,
camera phones and hands.

For all of its musical zest, Sound is perhaps the group's most lyrically
dark album to date. "Lonely Nation" ("Blood, sweat, and one thing's missing
/ She's been breaking up inside"), which harks back to "Underwater" from the
debut, is equal parts forlornness and desperation. "Easier Than Love"
("Everyone's a lost romantic / Since our love became a kissing show /
Everyone's a Casanova / Come and pass me the mistletoe"), by comparison, is
shot through with sarcasm and jadedness. "The Blues" ("It'll be a day like
this one / When the world caves in") is as gloom-filled as anything in the
group's back catalog. And "Politicians" and the leadoff single, "Stars,"
("Maybe I've been partly cloudy / Maybe I'm the chance of rain") each paint
a decidedly less than flattering portrait of their subjects.

The above notwithstanding, it bears noting that, for all of their
introspective tendencies, the Foremans always manage to stop just shy of
gratuitous self-pity or wallowing in despair. To be sure, cuts like "Happy
Is a Yuppie Word" ("Blessed is the man who's lost it all") are more
acknowledgment than lament. Others such as "Shadow Proves the Sunshine"
("Oh, Lord, why did you forsake me? / Oh, Lord, don't be far away") look
upward as much as they do inward. Even the desolate fabric of "Golden"
("You're a lonely soul / In a land of broken hearts / Your far from home /
Is a perfect place to start") comes stitched with a tangible thread of hope.
And the very acts of "looking for the kingdom coming down" and seeking "a
bridge I can't burn" ("Happy Is a Yuppie Word") intimate that the singer
believes that such things indeed exist.

Fans who took a shine to the playful, tongue-in-cheek aesthetic of songs
like "Might Have Ben Hur" and "Gone" will such quirky humor in short supply
on the latest project. Similarly, those waiting for a return to the
unmistakably spiritual language of, say, the New Way to be Human or Learning
to Breathe albums are liable to be likewise disappointed. That said, the
poignancy and depth of the new material affords it a deeper, more lasting
impression than the group's former, more lighthearted fare. And the oblique
spirituality of the latest record encourages a closer, more objective
inspection of its songs in order to harvest their underlying nuggets of
truth, which is arguably the aim of any band that feels it has something to
say.

While Sound falls well shy the group's defining efforts (Letdown and New Way
to be Human), its strongest material is well on par with anything the group
has written thus far. And if its unrelentingly solemn appraisal of the human
condition can become wearisome over time, it nonetheless offers an
unflinchingly honest and objective appraisal of both the Foremans'
generation and the times in which they find themselves. Admittedly the
Switchfoot collective's most difficult listen, Nothing Is Sound is also its
most rewarding.

Read more about Switchfoot at cMusicWeb.com:
http://cMusicWeb.com/modernrock/switchfoot


MORE NEW STUFF ON cMUSICWEB.COM

Feature: Smalltown Poets Interview
http://cMusicWeb.com/modernrock/smalltownpoets/interview.shtml


AVAILABLE TUESDAY, OCTOBER 4 (at cMusicWeb.com or your local music store)

ADD TO THE BEAUTY - SARA GROVES
Sara Groves is one of the most prolific songwriters in Christian music. As
usual, the music is top-notch and the lyrics are even more prolific. If
you've never checked out Sara Groves, you should also get this PICK OF THE
WEEK.

DISAPPEAR HERE - LA SYMPHONY
LA Symphony, in its independent days, was a force to be reckoned with. Their
appeal has waned a bit since the departure of Pigeon John and a couple other
members, but this is still a quality hip hop album.

FLYLEAF - FLYLEAF
These rockers are one of the hottest new bands, and no doubt a full-length
album is going to help that. A couple of the songs from their debut EP are
also on this record, but it is definitely worth giving this female-fronted
band a listen.

HE REIGNS: THE WORSHIP COLLECTION - NEWSBOYS
Let's just face it: nobody like the Newsboys worship crap. Give us Thrive or
Take Me To Your Leader, but leave the worship music to real worshippers.
It's basically an 11-track best-of from their last two albums.

HERO - KIRK FRANKLIN
The Gospel legend is back. TobyMac, P.O.D.'s Sonny, Yolanda Adams, and many
more make appearances with Kirk Franklin, who takes his craft up another
notch.

INTO THE RUSH - ALY & AJ
Apparently, Disney's label heads now have an in with the Christian
distribution. These pop girls can rock a bit, but they're still mainstream
pop.

LETTERS TO THE PRESIDENT (LIMITED EDITION) - HAWK NELSON
Why a re-release? This album was fun for a listen or two, but there are only
so many times you can take "California". So, if you needed more of this
"wanna-be Relient K" music, then check it for the remixes and DVD-type
bonuses.

THEY'RE ONLY CHASING SAFETY (LIMITED EDITION) - UNDEROATH
This album has been selling well and is one of the best harcore albums out
there. Get some special packagaing, lots of behind-the-scenes features, and
lose a whole bunch of money for basically nothing.

WINTER WONDERLAND - POINT OF GRACE
Great... another Point of Grace Christmas album. I guess we couldn't have an
actual album from Point of Grace (not that we want it).

WOW CHRISTMAS GREEN - VARIOUS ARTISTS
Christmas in Christian music land scares me. Every year ten Christmas
compilations release and most of it is just recycled material. This is more
of the same, for sure.

WOW HITS 2006 - VARIOUS ARTISTS
So yeah... every year they release one of these. If you don't have a radio,
then this is what you haven't been missing. Instead of paying the money for
this album, pick some music and buy them.

X WORSHIP 2006 - VARIOUS ARTISTS
This really is not a worship album. It's just a bunch of more worshipful
songs from rock artists. For example, there's just a bunch of slow songs
from hardcore bands and then the obligatory Tree63 and delirious? songs to
make it a real "worship" album.


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Dan Ficker
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