Went to dinner with the band Switchfoot last night (thanks to their publicist!) before their Austin show with Denison Marrs and Noise Ratchet. Of course, I brought several copies of our latest issue to show the band the article we did on them. But there was that review in the same issue. (Thanks a lot, Christopher Rose!!!) He panned the band's latest release -- The Beautiful Letdown, calling it a "letdown." As a good review and a good pan does, it says both good things and bad things about the product. And he said it intelligently with a perspective of the artist's previous work. We stand behind our writers, never telling them what to write and appluading them when they can back up their opinions with reason and detail.
But MAN! It was SO awkward when the band read the interview there right at the table with 3/4's of our staff present. Credit to lead vocalist/songwriter Jon Foreman for handling it straight-up and with class, though. He mentioned having dinner with us to a family member earlier that day, who responded with, "You're buying lunch for THEM?! (after what they said in that review)" It was a classic moment of artist vs. journalist that was right out of Almost Famous. Of course, I whipped out the line, "Yeah, and Rolling Stone slagged every one of Zeppelin's albums..." I couldn't resist. Awkward... I think it was David's first such experience with an artist who felt somewhat wronged by what we published. For me, it came just 20 minutes or less after a lengthy phone call from Steve Rowe (Mortification), who was none too pleased over some remarks in the Relentless review in our Nov/Dec issue. It felt like the theme of the night.
As a communicator, I always try to keep my audience in mind. My audience for HM, I believe, is three-fold: Consumer/Fan (the kid who wants to know if x-album is worth his hard-earned money or not) he/she wants an honest answer; God (I need to write to the best of my ability to honor and worship Him); and the Artist (any criticism needs to be constructive, not destructive). I stand behind our writers when I feel like they have lived up to these standards as well.
The show that followed, however, was very good. The negative criticism of Rose's Switchfoot review was very qualified. It was stated with a respect to the band's art. This band certainly has what it takes. Namely, a charismatic male sex symbol frontman with a great voice, a deft talent in songwriting, and a band that backs him up all the way -- solidly. In a world of Third Eye Blind, Blink 182, Goo Goo Dolls, Train, and Staind, Switchfoot stands out as Christian music's finest modern rock band (sorry Third Day and Kutless, you're close...).
Denison Marrs opened the night at 9:30 with a smart set of tunes, including one new one, which featured some great guitar lines. Noise Ratchet followed with a terrific set that showed the promise that American Records saw when they just signed them to a big new mainstream deal. And Switchfoot, again to their credit, offer an untainted and honest-sounding voice of faith in the mainstream world (and always have, for the most part, even though they've been right in the middle of the CMI). Right before the first encore, I thought I was going to hear something back, as Foreman opened with "Do you guys read HM Magazine?" But then he said nothing else. Letting his next two songs do the talking for him. Restraint = class. Nice.
Posted by Doug Van Pelt at March 21, 2003 11:43 AM