Switchfoot hit it big in 2003 with the smash hit
Meant To Live, and gradually made they’re way from indie darlings to alt-rock hard-hitters. Though they’re sound really doesn’t bring anything new to the table, Switchfoot’s music brings little more than an enjoyable, simple and at times hard-to-listen-to music. They’re fourth studio album
The Beautiful Letdown embodies all three of these characteristics, therefore bringing a fine album to the table. Nothing really special, but fun to listen to.
That being said, the music itself is great, if not that unique. The main drive of the album sounds like a band who struggled to get into the mainstream for quite a little bit of time, and gradually but surely making they’re mark as a quite popular band. Therefore, the album is a bit more simple than they’re earlier stuff, with a few grand exceptions that take a drive into the odd and bizarre. This is definitely a great album, if nothing more.
Switchfoot – The Beautiful Letdown (2003)
The Players:
Chad Butler
Jon Foreman
Tim Foreman
Jerome Fontamillas
As said before, this album doesn’t bring anything new to the table. There are some extremely enjoyable songs, some not-so-enjoyable songs, and basically just some okay songs that you have to be in a certain mood to be in (read: happy). Still, this album boasts some spectacular music that can surely bring a smile to your face. So. Let’s review, shall we?
Some of the best parts on this album are the hardest. Each of the harder ones houses a different feel to them than the last one. Songs like
Meant To Live, boasts a sharp, harrowing riff and leads into an alt-rock junkies dream, and the faster, more punk-ish sounding
Ammunition which starts out with little more than a jazzy drum-riff, and then leads into a breathtaking fast-paced punk-ish masterpiece. Both spectacular songs with a promise, and both sporting excellent lyrics but similar vocals. Thus lies one of the albums problems; the vocals sound almost the same on every song, regardless of the feel of the song. Possibly the “Letdown” on the album, if you will. Though they’re still quite enjoyable, the songs’ main focus really should be either the music (in the cases of such songs where there are breathtaking musical performances, i.e. the funky, hard-driven rock of
This Is Your Life, where the vocals can distract the listener from the great music), or the overall sound of the song (
Meant To Live which shouldn’t be dissected as the separate parts of the music aren’t that spectacular, but sound amazing as a whole).
The slower songs are also quite enjoyable, if a little less than the harder ones. The enjoyable acoustic anthems bring the album to a slower pace, and the influence of bands such as the Goo Goo Dolls are strong in they’re acoustic songs. They bring a different aspect though. The songs could’ve been, judging on the lyrics, harder, distorted songs with a vengeance. Though, they’re arguably more musically rewarding this way. On songs such as the title track,
The Beautiful Letdown, the band helps slow things down. The electronic intro, the laid back vocals, and eventually a hard rocking chorus keep things slow and, quite frankly, breathtaking. The mood is differing, and the more suitable to the album is the more solemn, beautiful and more heartfelt. With the ending song
Twenty-Four, an acoustic ballad with an uplifting feel, the album doesn’t only go out softly and calming, it’s arguably the best song in terms of simplicity. And what do you know? The song actually has some amazing vocals and strings! What else can we ask for?
Quite entertaining are the filler songs, if that makes sense. The filler songs are the more mainstream songs, where they rarely put more in they’re music than a few bar chords and a “yeah-yeah-yeah!”-ing vocals. The least creatively rewarding, these songs are what brings down the album’s rank. The boring, head-banging and too simple 2:50 pop nugget of
Adding to the Noise is nothing special in the least. A four chord chorus, verse, bridge and anything else that occupies the song make it fairly boring. The vocals are pretty good, especially in the chorus, with a hook that’s worth sitting through the otherwise boring song. Two other songs that are quite ignorable are almost excatly the same. On songs like
Gone and
Dare You To Move, the band tries to be aspiring and trying to keep simplicity in the same degree. It doesn’t work as they had hoped. Both songs suffer from boring, repetitive riffs and quite annoying vocals. The better of the two is the decent
Dare You To Move which chorus is actually quite enjoyable. The overlapping guitar in the second verse is also entertaining.
The album’s mood is quite pronounced on the album. It sounds like four guys in they’re late twenties/early thirties who wanna rock. Nothing really else. But for a quite objectionable subject, Switchfoot do it well. They add a bit more passion to they’re passion. And they really can vary they’re music, from the hard-rocking
Meant To Live to the simple, breathtaking acoustic anthem of
Twenty-Four. If you’re looking for complex, supremely intelligent music, it’s probably best to skip this album. However, if it’s a good, fun, simple and clean time you’re looking for, I suggest picking this up.
Pros:
Excellent guitar work
Some great vocals
The slower songs
Most of the faster, more furious songs
Great lyrics
Cons:
Some songs are annoying
Some very tedious and dull vocals
Not the most intelligent music out there
If you only had $1.00 left and you wanted to spend it wisely, download:
Twenty-Four
Thanks for reading,
AV8RS
