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intereact!Switchfoot
Retail Price (not our price): $11.98
Release Date: 1999-03-23
Manufacturer: Re: Think
Format: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Track List
Now here, for your listening pleasure, the tracks...
| Disc 1 |
Editorial Reviews (supplied by Amazon.com):
1) Amazon.com
Switchfoot fly out the door, swinging from the first bouncy note of their sophomore LP, New Way to Be Human, proclaiming that having a relationship with Christ is "the only way to be human." Bothers Jon and Tim Foreman on guitar and bass, respectively, are rounded out by Chad Butler on drums, and the multilayered harmonies of these young fellows stir it up like Rembrandts on crusade. Not surprisingly, the band's sincere message coupled with samples, pop whimsy, and clean hummability have already landed them soundtrack tunes on the television shows Dawson's Creek and Party of Five. At the record's center, the acoustic "Let That Be Enough," written and recorded on the eve of Jon's 22nd birthday, eloquently captures the wonder, fear, and hunger for wholeness that all folks coming of age experience. This track is a prayer, which ultimately conveys the essence of New Way to Be Human: in the singer's words, "that Christ's love" will be enough to see him through the threshold of manhood. --Paige La Grone
Customer Reviews (supplied by Amazon.com):
Average Customer Rating: 4.5 out of 5
1) Only fleeting glimpses of greatness [Rating: 3 out of 5]
I'd heard of the band way back with their debut LEGEND OF CHIN but I'd kind of forgotten about them until "Meant to Live" exploded at alternative radio. At that point, I decided I would revisit their older stuff and see if I was missing out. At this point, the band lineup was a trio consisting of lead singer/guitarist Jonathan Foreman, drummer Chad Butler and Jon's brother Tim on bass and backing vocals. Jerome Fontamillas (Keys & Guitar) and Drew Shirley (Guitar) weren't yet part of the lineup.To be honest, I can only hear glimmers of the wonder that THE BEAUTIFUL LETDOWN is here. Many of the songs are tuneful but tend to drift into the background. Only on a handful of occasions (all of them rockers) do they really grab my attention. It wasn't until LETDOWN that the band started to write ballads that could move me.HIGHLIGHTS:"New Way to Be Human" practically skips out of speakers on a whistling keyboard riff. Foreman takes aim at a disillusioned generation ("And where is our inspiration?/When all of the heroes are gone/Hey, kids, could WE be the ones?") noting true transformation will only come when we look outside ourselves ("The God of redemption could break our routine...") "Company Car" blasts empty materialism as the song's protagonist gives up wider hopes for "that which is attainable" finally realizing he's lost his moorings entirely ("I've become one with the ones that I never believed in".) "Something More (Augustine's Confession)" renders a first person look at St. Augustine's Confession in contemporary language. ("At 31, his whole world is a question mark/All this time he's never been awake before...in a quiet desperation of the emptiness he said/'There's gotta be something more/than what I'm living for/I'm crying out to You'") LOWS:"Only Hope", "I Turn Everything Over" and "Under the Floor" are all fairly non-descript filler.BOTTOM LINE:Ignore those saying this one's the band's best. They would go on to do MUCH better art than this one. If you're already a big Switchfoot fan you may like this but it's not one you can't do without. Hear it first and download the best bits off ITunes.2) Their best albulm? [Rating: 4 out of 5]
I to have disagree with reviewers who say this albulm is not as good as The Beautiful Letdown. I haven't listned to Switchfoot's two most recent albulms (Oh! Gravity and Nothing Is Sound) but I think this is the best of the four I have listened to. (And by the way, Learning to Breathe is also better than The Beautiful Letdown in my opinion). This is an excellent albulm both musically and lyrically.I will agree with a previous reviewer: if you're not a Christian don't let that turn you off. Sure, you may not agree with everything Foreman's lyrics say, but you can still appreciate this for being great music and a lot of the lyrcis are about existential experience and things we all deal with. He is a talented lryicist and whatever he says, he says it well. I am an atheist and consequently don't listen to much Christian music, but Switchfoot is the one Christian band I listen to often.3) Still the best... [Rating: 5 out of 5]
Three great albums later, Switchfoot has yet to eclipse their Sophomore release "New Way to be Human." This is the album that first started raising eyebrows in the music world and rightfully so. The CD kicks off with "New Way to be Human" a very solid, though explicity Christian, rock tune. If the Christian thing is a turnoff to you, fear not--I am an athiest myself and I think Switchfoot's handling of Christian messages is tasteful, thoughful, and not at all preachy. This is a big contrast to overbearing Christian bands like "DC Talk."The album continues without lag from beginning to end in such a way that it is hard to distinguish the highlights. The entire album is the highlight! Don't worry about skipping through the album or downloading the wrong songs on ITunes. Just sit back and let it work.Apart from being the best Switchfoot album, "New..." is probably the most diverse. Track 4 "Company Car," a mockery of material superficiality, comes close to being ska. The next song, "Let that be enough" is one of the rock balad heard on "A Walk to Remember." A few tracks later, they really get experimental in "Amy's Song." If you get one Switchfoot album, make this the one.4) Switchfoot's best [Rating: 5 out of 5]
This is switchfoot's best CD and "New Way to Be Human" is their best song hands down.5) Another beautiful release from Switchfoot [Rating: 5 out of 5]
Having listened to their other album 'The Beautiful Letdown', I decided to buy through Amazon.com their entire collection and I got my monies worth. This album 'New Way To Be Human' whilst not as good as 'The Beautiful Letdown' sure comes close. Some of the most beautiful songs with lyrics to match are written by this young trio who proudly and rightly so bring their music under Contemporary Christian Soft Rock brand. I wished I had known of Switchfoot earlier in my adolescent years, they have music that is moving and touches the soul and heart. The song 'Incomplete' and 'Only Hope' were my favourites on this CD. 'Only Hope' grabbed my heart and pulled at my heartstrings. It is a special song and sung with a deep conviction of faith and hope. This band is proud of their faith in God and they don't sing about sex, drugs or the like but about important issues that we all have faced in our lives and sing about faith and mercy and redemption in the eyes of God. One of the best Christian soft rock albums I have heard since Third Day's 'Wire' album.