Switchfoot: Live In Singapore
By Lennat Mak
January 31, 2008
Max Pavilion, Singapore Expo
Singapore
Opening bands: The Fire Fight, West Grand Boulevard
Some say music is a religion. Some may beg to differ. But the power of a good rock 'n' roll show is never to be undermined. It transports you to places, to a different realm of reality that only unadulterated music can take you.
In town for the first time, San Diego's Switchfoot is one band that you have to witness live to believe their prowess. Whether they are a secular act or not, that's not the point for debate. For sure they wear their faith proudly on their sleeves, but Switchfoot is a band that aims to deliver a rock show blending a wide mélange of musical style from classic rock, to blues, to sound rock and more, and they will never fail at that. Jon Foreman is also a royally consummate front man who connects with the crowd at all levels of intimacy. The venue, Max Pavilion, is built like a huge warehouse but for this very night, it's a huge living room for the band and the fans.
And Switchfoot didn't save any fire power for the last too. After kicking off the set with "Oh! Gravity.", the band immediately went into "Stars" taken off their 2005 album Nothing Is Sound. Seemingly, the latest crowd favorites had been played. What could be next? As they blazed through their old hits mixed with the new, the band's gripping presence was simply mesmerizing. On stage was a band so comfortable with themselves and each other that they could intertwine and interact based on instinct alone. When it was time to rock out and "f*ck things up," Switchfoot tore down the stage, be it with the old favorite "Chem 6A," "Dirty Second Hands," or Gone" where they mischievously segued in and out with Beyonce's "Crazy In Love." During "American Dream," the entire band froze in motion for a good couple of minutes. You would have thought only The Hives could pull off such a stage antic but obviously, Switchfoot could equally deliver fun as well.
With their breakthrough association with Mandy Moore's A Walk To Remember, playing "Only Hope" together with other softer tracks like "On Fire" (which they sequenced out to a bit of Radiohead's "High And Dry") seemed almost ritualistic. And the most beautiful and gorgeous moment was undeniably the encore where Jon came out alone and belted out the brooding "Twenty-Four" on his acoustic guitar. From there, the night ended with a huge sing-along on their major hit "Dare You To Move." Like Jon said in an interview, he wishes that fans would walk away from their gigs with "an experience that stays with (them)." Without a doubt, it's certain that everyone did.
Setlist:
Oh! Gravity.
Stars
This Is Your Life
Ammunition
We Are One Tonight
Only Hope
Breathe
Chem 6A
Gone
American Dream
Dirty Second Hands
On Fire
Awakening
Meant To Live
Encore:
Twenty-Four
Dare You To Move
|
||||||||||
