2023 marks the 20th anniversary of Switchfoot’s seminal album, The Beautiful Letdown. The
triple-platinum record included the chart topping hits, Meant To Live & Dare You To Move and
changed the lives of the band members and a generation the world over.

The underdog success story of The Beautiful Letdown exemplifies Switchfoot’s iconoclast, grassroots
approach, defying the odds of major labels and mainstream media. When the band began the recording
process, they believed that there was a real possibility this would be the last album they’d ever
make.

"We’d watched most of our favorite bands dissolve after 3-4 albums, and although there had been
some exciting moments the year prior, we knew there was a very real chance this could be it for us.
So we approached it like it WAS our last record. What are the last songs we want to sing? Let’s
make that album” says bassist Tim Foreman.

Teaming up with now legendary producer John Fields (Brandie Carlile, Jimmy Eat World, Ben Rector),
Switchfoot dove headlong into the recording process.

Lead singer and guitar player, Jon Foreman remenices, “Even 20 years later this part of my life
still feels like a strange dream.

At this point in our journey, we were at a crossroads as a band. There were no examples of anyone
who was doing what we wanted to do, so we were essentially paving our own road; knowing it could be
a dead end.

Until I met John Fields, I'd never encountered anyone with a musical appetite that matched my own.
Tracking was a glorious blur. We were sleeping on the studio floor or on the floor of our manager’s
house. Meals were cheap and fast. We were pouring all of our free time into the songs- every day
starting early and ending late. Unlike a lot of records, this was recorded, mixed and mastered in
just a few weeks.”

When the album was finished, one of the largest record labels in the world had signed on to release
it and Switchfoot seemed poised for a wonderful new chapter. After years and albums of trying to
make ends meet, the band was gearing up for a bigger audience than ever before.

And that’s when their dream took a turn, “We flew out to play our first big show in New York City.
The plan was to win over the east coast contingent of our new record company, and celebrate
the album we were about to release.


Instead, the band walked off stage to a much different reception. “Turns out, the head of the
record company hated us. Halfway through our performance of Dare You To Move, he walked out of the
room, yelling 'Why do you keep signing this $#!&' And boom, just like that, we were dropped before
the album even came out.”

Over the next few days, the band faced their fears and doubts in a new way. “Our rejection in New
York brought up some big questions: Do we believe in these tunes? Are these songs still worthwhile?
With or without the Columbia logo on the back?”

Ultimately, we came to the conclusion that the record label’s opinion didn’t matter. We believed in
these songs. And no record company logo or opinion could take that away. We decided to do what we
had always done: singing in spite of whatever opposition we might face, paving our own road, and
finding a way forward.”

Fast forward a year, a few hundred shows & 2 million sold copies of the album later, the band was
living in an entirely new world. Even the head of Sony records was a reluctant supporter.

Drummer Chad Butler recalls, “There were so many unbelievable moments… Our songs were on the radio
all over the world?! Our videos were on MTV, VH1, and all the late night shows wanted us to play!?
It was a surreal crazy time for this young band from San Diego…

Looking back, I realize the album was aptly titled - The Beautiful Letdown embraced a human story
equally full of highs and lows.”

Celebrating the 20th anniversary of The Beautiful Letdown, the band realizes just how important
that rollercoaster was. “The journey of the beautiful letdown reminded us why we started playing
music in the first place. It united us and gave us a deep appreciation for each other and the
people that showed up to sing with us. We’re so excited to celebrate the release of The Beautiful
Letdown (Our Version) and the worldwide journey that we’ve been on ever since. We can’t wait to
take these songs on the road and play the album front to back for the first time ever!”

Switchfoot has sold over 10 million copies worldwide of their thirteen studio albums (including
their 2003 triple-platinum breakthrough The Beautiful Letdown and 2009's Grammy
Award-winning Hello Hurricane), racked up a string of Alternative radio hit singles, and performed
sold-out tours with over 5 million concert tickets sold in over 40 countries around the world.
Through their unique blend of emotionally intelligent and uplifting brand of alternative rock,
Switchfoot has earned a devoted and loyal global fan base.

Switchfoot has raised over $2 million dollars to aid kids in their community through their Bro-Am
Foundation.

Switchfoot consists of Jon Foreman (vocals, guitar), Tim Foreman (bass), Jerome Fontamillas
(keys, guitar) and Chad Butler (drums).
 

ftentimes the greatest art is born of the right partnership. Lostboycrow, aka Los Angeles singer-
songwriter Chris Blair, found just that while collaborating with producer Chris Chu on his
upcoming album Indie Pop.
Originally from the Pacific Northwest, Blair grew up singing along to his parent’s Beatles cassette
tapes and watching that thing you do religiously. It was not until high school that he picked up a
mic and started performing everywhere he could from showtunes in the gymnasium to pop-punk
in a local dive. He later established his genre-fluid style with 2016’s Sigh For Me EP, which he
followed up with 2017’s Traveler EP trilogy, 2019's full-length Santa Fe, and last year’s
Valleyheart.
For Indie Pop, it felt important to Blair that he make Lostboycrow “feel more like a band,”
something Blair had begun to do on Valleyheart but sought to expand when working with Chu.
Chris Chu, who performs with Pop Etc (formerly known as The Morning Benders), built his career
touring with '00s indie-pop staples like Grizzly Bear, Death Cab For Cutie, Ra Ra Riot, We Are
Scientists, and more, so was the perfect person to produce the record. “That’s always been what
I love,” Blair explains of his musical history spent listening to decades-spanning pop-rock bands
like the Beach Boys and Fountains Of Wayne. Through working with one of his musical heroes
and good friends, Blair crafted the most expansive, ambitious album of his career.
Taking a handful of ideas left over from the Valleyheart sessions, Blair and Chu wrote 10 new
songs where the two played nearly every instrument – along with some help from Cole Petersen
on drums. Together, they honed a distinctly power-pop sound, which led Blair to ultimately call
the project Indie Pop: a nebulous, purposefully tongue-in-cheek name that reflects Blair’s
lighthearted nature and self-awareness. “It just stuck out to me as the perfect amount of not taking
itself too seriously because the songs don't really take themselves too seriously,” he says. “This
process was a very deliberate I-wanna-make-a-band album, but by the same token, I didn’t want
it to come off as, ‘All right now, take me seriously.’”
Lostboycrow adds, “If Santa Fe was a conversation between my younger and older selves, and
Valleyheart was a bouquet of love songs written longingly from my apartment, then I suppose
Indie pop is a solitary dance on the way to somewhere unfamiliar. I wanted the music to be as
stripped back and carefree as I felt heading into the next chapter. Free from any self-importance
or pomp. It was a chance to not take myself too seriously, in all my excitement, hopelessness,
hopefulness, and curiosity. A time to lace up my shoes and be more than an observer of life.”