Cerulean lights illuminate the crowd of excited faces as the beginning bars of “Stars” fade in. The audience ranges from groups of young professionals to young children with their caretakers, but the common trait throughout are the ear-to-ear smiles plastered on every face in the room. The energy crackles through the arena as the anticipation grows and grows. Finally, Switchfoot takes the stage with the eagerness of young boys. It is obvious that they want to be there just as much as we do. Their faces seem to say, “We’re going to have a great show.”
Throughout the night the enthusiasm rarely dips as the group blends through bluesy twang, with the assistance of a harmonica, and Drew Shirley’s face-melting guitar solos. Not often do I see brand new material be met with such open arms as the band integrates new songs such as The Wound is Where the Light Shines Through and Float. The elation on the band’s face is evident as they look at the crowd reacting with their new creations.
Without notice, Jon Foreman leaps into the crowd and comes face-to-face with his fans as he serenades a few lucky concert-goers. He jumps back on stage as the show begins to wrap up and the set is winding down. Just when I thought the set was over, Switchfoot had one more trick up their sleeve as Jon starts to croon, “Welcome to the planet, welcome to existence, everyone’s here…” The crowd went wild for the song that helped Switchfoot skyrocket their album, Learning to Breathe, in the year 2000. The room was electrified once more while everyone shouted the words in unison. The words that got us through break ups and dark times are howled toward the sky as the room became one, inspired mass.
The next time you need a serious dose of inspiration and hope, Switchfoot is the band to experience.
