WE'VE MOVED!

To all of my dear followers (all six of you): I've decided to start over Christian Rock OBSESSION on a blogging site called Tumblr. It looks better, is easier to post things, and seems to be where blogging is going nowadays. Feel free to follow me over there, because I'm trying lots of new things. You can link up here.

Also, if anyone is familiar with JesusFreakHideout.com, my review for Seabird's Christmas EP was featured recently as a "Reader Review." Please check it out at JFH and my Tumblr site and let me know what you think.

Love you guys!

-FISHER

Switchfoot- Hello Hurricane

Ever since Switchfoot announced late last year that they would be working on their seventh full-length album, the hype has been slowly building. More recently they've been featured on YouTube's homepage and even a Blackberry commercial. But the road to where they are today wasn't easy. With nearly a hundred songs to choose from for an album that would join a catalogue of a few highly impressive past albums, the pressure was on. That's just one of the hurricanes that hit them during the making of the album. But Switchfoot survived to tell the world that love is a fortress that can survive any hurricane, which is the theme of the newest effort from the band, aptly titled Hello Hurricane.

Before I get started with this review, there's something that Jon Foreman--the lead vocalist of Switchfoot, also known for his solo project and work in Fiction Family--said about Hello Hurricane that I really agree with. This album is not one that you can listen to and enjoy and not know a single thing about the story behind the music. Each individual song has a unique message about love and hope that has really touched me. That's one great thing about this album. Rarely do you find music with this much meaning put into it. Looking through the tracklist, I can't think of a single song that--while reading Foreman's commentary on--I didn't have a "wow" moment during, whether I said it in my head or out loud. This album has made an impact on me like none this year. And so that you can experience this album the same way that I did, you can link up to Jesus Freak Hideout's song lyrics/commentaries provided by Jon Foreman by clicking here. Sure it's a lot of reading material, but it is well worth your time.

Having nearly a hundred songs to work with for Hello Hurricane might have seemed a bit overwhelming for the band, but you can bet they had plenty of good ones to choose from. Some bands go into the studio and do all of their writing at that time--Switchfoot is obviously not one of those bands. So to be able to work with and experiment to see which of these tracks would be the absolute best for the album, the guys in Switchfoot built their own studio so that they could take their time picking through each song. I can tell you now that all of their work payed off. With the exception of the final track, "Red Eyes," which didn't really catch on for me, there is not a single track that I would be able to overlook when listening to the entire album.

The song-writing, as usual, is strong. Without a doubt strong enough to withstand a hurricane. Jon Foreman is a master of song-writing, made evident most recently by the work put into his solo projects. Switchfoot's lyrics separate them from the mediocre song-writing that is found so often in our day and age. Songs like "Your Love Is A Song," "Enough to Let Me Go," "Always," and "Sing it Out," are some of the best. For those looking for the fun rock style of Switchfoot's biggest hits, I think the phenomenal lyrical content of this album might make up for what it lack in heaviness. Of course, you do have tracks like "Mess of Me," "The Sound (John M. Perkin's Blues)," "Hello Hurricane," and "Bullet Soul," that you can still have a great time listening to. And that isn't to say that all of the slower-paced tracks don't sound any good. Quite the opposite--they sound fantastic. Switchfoot is not your average group of guys--to go with the great song-writing, their musical genius is without a doubt some of the best in the industry. Switchfoot could take on any genre, and I'm positive it would sound great. The perfect combination of exceptional lyricism and music makes Switchfoot such an exceptional band.

From the chorus of "Needle and Haystack Life," you know you're in for something good. Foreman sings, "In this needle and haystack life/I've found miracles there in your eyes/It's no accident we're here tonight/We are once in a lifetime." The lead single off the album "Mess of Me" has really distorted electric guitars that create a unique sound. The same sound is used again in a few latter tracks, giving them a fun style that isn't like every other rock song on the radio. "Your Love is a Song" is a beautiful song, one of the strongest on the album. It's a great metaphor of God's love and a fantastic worship song. Foreman's vocals sound almost perfect on this track, and the instrumentals are moving. "The Sound" breaks the calm that was set by the previous track. From the start, you know it's destined to gain popularity. Already, millions of people have heard it through the newest Blackberry Storm 2 commercial. It's great that a Christian band can display their music to such a wide audience. And Hello Hurricane is not overly oblique about God being a huge part of these guys' lives, so I'm sure they're planting a seed in plenty of people's hearts. "Enough to Let Me Go" is a song that, again, talks about love, but this time talks about how it is not selfish. The acoustic sound that the song carries is great. "Free" is a darker song that asks God to free us from ourselves, kind of like the same idea as "Mess of Me."

There are a lot of recurring themes throughout Hello Hurricane. Sometimes that could be a bad thing. For example, there are albums that have songs again and again that talk about some breakup or bad relationship. But the topic of God's love and asking to be saved from the hurricanes that plague our lives can never get old. And, frankly, I don't think it's a topic that's talked about enough. We hear about worldly love all the time, but God's love is just so much more powerful.

The title track is another fun one, singing "Hello hurricane, you're not enough/Hello hurricane, you can't silence my love/I've got doors and windows boarded up/All your dead end fury is not enough/You can't silence my love." "Always" is another beautiful song, following in the steps of "Your Love is a Song." Another highlight that uses great metaphors to describe God's love for his children. It compares a father's love for his newborn son to God's love for us: "I am always yours." "Bullet Soul" is an instant classic, using the same distorted guitars in "Mess of Me." It's one that you'll find yourself singing along to involuntarily. It would definitely be something to look forward to at a Switchfoot concert. "Yet" is another awesome ballad, about looking for hope. "Sing It Out" is one of the best on the album--one more worship track. The bridge sings, "I'm holding on/I'm holding on to you/My world is wrong/My world is a lie that's come true/And I fall in love with those that run me through/When all I need is You." The music that accompanies the already amazing lyrics has some deep meaning behind it. According to Foreman, "The song is singing about itself--struggling for melody, for life, for meaning. Singing about rebirth, the song spends most of its time in the grave and comes to a bright, glorious finish, held out until the very end. To match the lyric we saved almost every instrument for the end of the song." I think that's pretty cool. The only song on the album that I couldn't really connect with was the finale, "Red Eyes." It ends with a reprise of "Needle and Haystack Life" which is kind of interesting to hear at the beginning and end of the album. But still there wasn't much for me to like about it. But that doesn't in any way change the album as a whole.

Hello Hurricane is one of the most brilliant, well-written albums to come along this year. Foreman and crew have managed another beautiful effort to add to their other successful albums. It's great that people will be hearing about God through their music. There's so much to learn from Hello Hurricane about how God's love can defeat any hurricane that comes against us. Expert song-writing and unbelievable instrumentals make this seventh album an epic one, ready to be loved by all who enjoy Christian rock.

The Almost- Monster Monster

The name Underoath has become a common one among... well, anyone who knows what Christian rock or metal is, and even those only familiar with the secular version of these genres. It's not difficult to see how such a talented band has gained the best of both worlds in today's music industry. And as most successful vocalists do, Underoath drummer/vocalist Aaron Gillespie created a side-project. But The Almost wasn't just any side-project. 2007's Southern Weather was one of the most successful side-projects Christian music had ever seen. And, just like Underoath, The Almost caught the eyes of those categorized by secular music, partly because of their Tooth & Nail/Virgin Records partnership. This year brings us another healthy dose of Almost, titled Monster Monster.

The opening title track has the fun guitars and vocals found the last time around. Except this time there's something different--it all feels like more of a band effort. Not only are the vocals and lyrics extraordinary (something typical for a vocalist's side-project), but the music is as well! "Monster Monster" exhibits these elements perfectly. Repeating everything in the chorus twice gets monotonous, but it doesn't take away from the song in any way.

One other thing that this first song demonstrates is the beginning of a concept album. The theme running through Monster Monster has to do with the dark side of our human nature. We all have a monster living in us that defies God's will for our lives and does what it wants for itself. But we can't let that monster win. Every day we have a choice to make: do we fight the monster or give in to its wicked desires? This is what Gillespie and crew structured Monster Monster around. In what may be the highlight of the album, he sings, "When I am a monster, You never wince when You look at me. When I am a freak, You never stare. When I am a leper, You never say 'unclean.' And when I am lost... You come and get me free." God loves us even when we do give in to the monster, and is waiting to welcome us back into His arms when we realize our mistake.

Other highlights of the album include the singles "Lonely Wheel," a punk-rock track that sounds born to be played on the radio, and "Hands," a song that not only has the catchiness and amazing lyrics to go with it, but the melodic piano fused throughout that gives The Almost a better chance to shine their musical talent. Without the piano in "Hands," I'm not sure it would even be the same song.

The diversity of Monster Monster is one of the things that makes it so enjoyable. From the punky, fun-loving mood of the opening four tracks, to the rougher and darker "Young Again," to the ballad "Summer Summer," all the way to the country tinge in "Hand Grenade," we can see that the monster that The Almost has created is definitely a diverse one. The closing track, plainly titled "Monster"--set up to inevitably be confused with "Monster Monster," the opening track--perhaps demonstrates the range and utter talent that this band is capable of the most. Starting off with just the acoustic guitar and Gillespie's voice sets the stage for something epic to unfold. Halfway through the song, it explodes with the rest of the band, with the main highlight being a guitar solo with a real blues feel. I wouldn't have been surprised if a harmonica had suddenly joined in. The band claims that the piece was recorded live, making an already epic track seem completely unbelievable.

The amount of effort and genius put into this sophomore album is above and beyond what I had expected. It's rare to find a band with the incredible gift to make such great music and still choose to label themselves as "Christian." Although the band isn't overly blunt about any of the Christian messages found throughout, their fame might cause some people to look into their background more, and hopefully through Tooth & Nail, discover God's love for them. I look forward to seeing what will happen with The Almost in the future with such a fantastic album. Best Christian rock album of 2009? We'll see...