Vice Verses (Atlantic Records), the new album from grammy-winning rock band Switchfoot, debuts at No.8 on The Billboard 200. It also debuted at No.5 at iTunes Album chart, No.5 on the Internet Album chart and No.3 on iTunes Alternative chart. The band will perform Dark Horses, their new Top 15 Modern Rock hit, on “Conan” on October 25th. The track was just added by Clear Channel Alternative Premium Choice, WTCL (Denver),WRFF (Philadelphia), KNDD (Seattle), WRXL (Richmond) and WVIC (Lansing).
Switchfoot’s co-headlining tour with Anberlin is currently underway. (See below for itinerary.) After performing for a packed house at New York City’s Best Buy Theatre last week, lead singer/guitarist Jon Foreman took the show outside, performing atop a newspaper stand for thousands of people in Times Square. Along the tour route, local chapters of StandUp for Kids (www.standupforkids.org), a national nonprofit volunteer outreach organization dedicated to making a difference in the lives of at-risk, homeless and street kids, will be collecting new and used backpacksat the concerts. The backpacks will be used to distribute food and essentials to kids served by the organization.
The War Inside, another track from Vice Verses, can be heard in the trailer for In Time, an upcoming 20th Century Fox film starring Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried. Switchfoot has contributed an exclusive new song, “Out of Control,” to the just-released Hawaii Five-0 soundtrack. The track was heard in this week’s episode of the hit CBS show. You can also check out Switchfoot‘s recent performance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live”
Switchfoot waged a Game Day takeover of ABC, with Vice Verses tapped as the exclusive music for the Oklahoma vs. Florida State football game. ESPN hosted an exclusive stream of Vice Verses and partnered with the band to give away a trip for two to the 2012 Rose Bowl in Pasadena, CA. Hurley selected Switchfoot as the exclusive music for the Hurley Pro, held last month in Trestles, CA and the band performed at a recent San Diego Padres game.
Vice Verses, the eighth studio record from the multi-platinum rock band, explores the polarity of what it means to be human. “Between the dialectic of life and death we are pulled tight, stretched out like the strings of my guitar,” Jon Foreman explains in his latest Huffington Post piece, which you can read HERE. “We are the notes dancing from the strings of time, held firm between life and death. This is the polarity of our existence, pulled tight between despair and hope, belief and doubt. We are strung tight between our birth and the grave. Humanity is dancing on the fretboard in-between. Death will one day cut the string. Until then, we live in the tension.”
It’s an adventurous collection that builds on the harder-edged sound of 2009’s Hello Hurricane and puts the rhythm section upfront, with hip-hop influenced tracks like “Selling the News,” “The Original” and “Blinding Light.”
“[The] gorgeous, swelling ‘Restless’ sounds plucked from U2’s Achtung Baby,” said Alternative Press. “But the real standout is ‘Souvenirs,’ a stunning ballad that, if there’s any justice, will go down as one of the band’s biggest hits to date.” Billboard praised Vice Verses‘ “powerful, anthemic rockers” and Relevant Magazine called it Switchfoot “most unique” album yet.
Switchfoot– comprising Jon Foreman (vocals/guitar), Tim Foreman (bass), Chad Butler (drums), Jerome Fontamillas (keys/guitar) and Drew Shirley (guitar) – recorded most of Vice Verses in the band’s San Diego, CA home studio, working with producer Neal Avron (Sara Bareilles, Weezer). Mike Elizondo (Eminem, Dr. Dre, Pink) who produced 2009’s Hello Hurricane, served as executive producer. Hello Hurricane entered The Billboard 200 at No. 13 and contained the Modern Rock hits “The Sound (John M. Perkins’ Blues)” and “Mess of Me.”
The band took home “Artist of the Year” honors at the San Diego Music Awards earlier this year and remains very connected to their hometown. Each year they host theSwitchfoot Bro-Am Presented By Hurley (https://www.switchfoot.com/c/bro-am), an annual concert/surf contest/silent auction. The event has raised more than $500,000 to date for San Diego-based children’s charities, including StandUp for Kids.
Switchfoot / Anberlin Fall 2011 US Tour
10/7 Boulder, CO Boulder Theatre
10/8 Salt Lake City, UT Gallivan Center – X96 concert
10/10 San Francisco, CA The Warfield Theatre
10/11 Los Angeles, CA The Wiltern
10/13 Amarillo, TX Azteca Music Hall
10/14 Siloam Springs, AR John Brown University – Bill George Arena
10/15 Longview, TX Le Tourneau University – Belcher Center
10/17 Dallas, TX House of Blues
10/18 Austin, TX Stubbs Waller Creek
10/20 Albuquerque, NM Kiva Auditorium
10/21 Phoenix, AZ Grand Canyon University Arena (SWITCHFOOT ONLY)
European Tourdates:
Nov.. 7, Manchester, Manchester Academy 2
Nov. 8. London, O2 Empire Shepherd’s Bush Empire
Nov. 9. Birmingham, O2 Academy 2
Nov. 10. Edinburgh, The Liquid Room
Nov. 11. Cambridge, The Junction
Nov 12. Melkweg, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Nov. 13. Live Music Hall, Cologne, Germany
Nov. 15. Grosse Freiheit 36, Hamburg, Germany
Nov. 16. C-Club, Berlin, Germany
Nov. 17. Hessenhalle, Giessen, Germany
Nov. 18. Alte Feuerwache, Mannheim, Germany
Nov. 19. Gasometer, Vienna, Austria
Nov. 19. Gasometer, Vienna, Austria
Nov. 20. Volkshaus, Zurich, Switzerland