Switchfoot Rumor-mill

DISCLAIMER: These are just rumors... and my own predictions.

EDIT: However, some of these "rumors" have been confirmed by people close to the band. Confirmed rumors have been marked as such. Peace.

Ok, so the title may have been either tantalizingly interesting or annoyingly vague. Whatever it may be, I thought I would post my grand predictions for Switchfoot this year, considering the rumors that have been heard and what not.

So let’s begin. (Keep in mind, this is just me rambling, and should not be quoted as fact or news stories! Please remember as you read through this post.)

First: “They will be working in some fashion with ATO Records” – Charlie Peacock on an interview back in December 2007. STATUS: CONFIRMED

This is one of my posts from on the Official Switchfoot message boards:

The rumor is that LCP (lowercase people Records) is an imprint label (like, nothing more than a brand name), and it will be working with ATO Records (Dave Matthews founded it), which is the label Radiohead's working with right now. This partnership, I'm particularly excited about, because they've done a great job with Radiohead's In Rainbows cd. (No. 1 on the Billboard 200, and Bodysnatchers, their single, is No. 7 on U.S. Modern Rock Radio). So if that's the case, and if its true (i hope we hear confirmation soon), then Switchfoot's in great hands!

From the ATO Records website:

“According To Our Records (ATO Records) is a record label committed to artists and building their careers. Founded by Dave Matthews, manager Coran Capshaw, and two associates - Michael McDonald and Chris Tetzeli - ATO seeks out talented songwriters, musicians and performers for whom there is genuine passion and belief. ATO strives to build career artists. As a truly independent label ATO is steadfast in our commitment to maintaining that focus.

ATO is based in New York and distributes its records through RED. ATO looks for the label to evolve naturally on an artist-by-artist basis. The priority for the label is that there be sufficient time and attention to develop each artist and each release. There is no timeline, but there is a plan to build the label on the quality of the musicians we work with.”

Another factor that might be a piece of evidence furthering this possibility, is this portion of an interview with Jon Foreman last year during the Appetite For Construction Tour:

Will Botwin, President of ATO Records, stopped by to talk to Jon for a bit during the interview. He’s foreseeing the upcoming year for Switchfoot as a big one.
It’s going to be a beautiful, daring, different, comfortable, fantastic year. It’s going be great. There’s going be a lot of activity next year. They’re one of the hardest working bands in the world and are some of the nicest people you’ll ever meet, on and off the stage.

Jon explained the relationship Switchfoot has with Will.
A little history on Will, he’s just a great guy. He’s currently the president of ATO Records, they put out the Radiohead record and all that. The history is, he was president of Columbia when we were there. So we’ve got a lot of history with him. He’s just a great guy. You don’t meet good people that often in the music industry. We like to work with good people. And that was the thing, we had so many great relationships over at Columbia. It’s not like anti- it’s more like when all those people leave, there’s no trust. And that’s what music is built on. It’s a relationship, its trust. The moment the trust goes away, then it’s really hard to make music that you feel comfortable with. Any relationship. Marriage, girlfriends, dogs. It’s all like, well, can I trust you. And for us, I feel like it comes to a point that we’re surrounding ourselves with people that we trust so that’s the best place to move from.

You Sing I Write Interview with Jon Foreman

Exciting! So, my bold prediction is Switchfoot will have a new hit single, and a renewed interest in them from American mainstream listeners. My theory is that Lowercase People Records will choose the singles, album release dates, etc., and ATO will handle the distribution and manufacturing.

Second: The Real SeanJon (or whatever it’s gonna be called) STATUS: NAME OFFICIALLY CHANGED TO FICTION FAMILY with a possible summer release

So I heard somewhere (not sure where), that the Real SeanJon would be working with ATO as well. They must really love Mr. Jon Foreman! Heh. But at his latest gig in San Diego, Jon told the crowd that he and Sean Watkins were looking for a new name for their duo. Perhaps Puffy finally decided to sue them! But, the release of this album is slated for before the Spring/Summer ep’s by Jon come out. That should be within the next few months. Hopefully the name change doesn’t delay it.

Third: Up In Arms Tour

Ok, so this isn’t really much of a rumor, because it’s been confirmed and all. But I’m excited nonetheless for this tour, because again, it’s a philanthropic effort by the band. They have such great hearts. But supporters of “To Write Love On Her Arms” will hear a lot more about Switchfoot because of this tour. Jamie, the founder of TWLOHA, is a great guy, and by the way, idolizes Jon Foreman. Just a thought…

Fourth: Of course, Jon Foreman’s Spring and Summer EP’s

With songs like “Your Love Is Strong,” hopefully a re-worked version of “Revenge,” and "Love Isn't Made" confirmed for the Spring EP, the next two Jon ep’s look to be just as great as the previous two. And as we are likely to hear more never-before-heard songs on these ep’s, we will not have a shortage of Jon Foreman brilliance to listen to this summer and throughout the year.

Love Isn't Made


Fifth: And, of course of course, the new Switchfoot record

“Running From Me,” “Blood Is Soil,” “People Put Your Hands Up,” and “Fluorescent” are several working titles we have heard about already from various places. I’m excited to hear “Running From Me” get the full-band Switchfoot treatment.

Here’s a video of it being played for the first time ever by Jon at a gig:




Man, the acoustic version already sounds sweet.

With new sounds, and possibly a great label behind it for support, the new Switchfoot record looks to be their most exciting yet, when you combine all the different aspects surrounding it. (independently released, ATO-backed, new sounds, etc.)