Jon Foreman

Fall and Winter

(Credential)

Record Review by Amber Henson

I have been accused, in the past, of being “cold” - simply because a song has never made me cry.  Well, now I’ve had a breakthrough in the form of Jon Foreman’s album.  Admittedly, I was on AIM at the time, talking to my friend about something sad, and it was likely the combination of that and the song “I Am Still Running” on the Winter part of this double disc that made me tear up, but it happened and now I have it as proof that I’m not dead inside.

Okay, enough about me.  Jon Foreman is the lead singer and guitarist from the band Switchfoot.  Apparently, he is a man with a lot to say.  After gigs with the band, he would often find himself onstage, with no fancy lights, no one to back him up, just him, his guitar and the audience, occasionally starting with Weezer songs that everyone could sing along to until he switched to his own, half-finished compilations.  After a few years of being encouraged by his band to get these tracks down, he finally has (which is something nice to hear - that the other band members were supportive of his solo project).

This album of Foreman’s voice, his guitar, drums, and clarinets is not something I would consider my ‘type’ of music, but I gave it a chance and I was surprised by the way the sound made me feel.  Foreman is painfully honest and has a great understanding of power, two things that are currently a large part of my life.  There are tracks on this album that are a little more upbeat and move faster, and though normally that’s what I enjoy more, it was the slower stuff that I liked better.  It makes me somewhat apprehensive about how much I like the companion album to this one, Spring and Summer, but Foreman has found a way into my heart and I feel like I owe it to him.

Sometimes the songs can get a little preachy, like the one about a homeless girl that dies, or the song where he talks to God.  Perhaps I’m cynical, but some of the subject matter gets a little cliché.  But the majority of the album seems to be very personal to Foreman, and he’s very vulnerable singing about these things.  If you miss being genuinely moved by music, this album should be at the top of your list.