SWITCHFOOT
Oh Gravity (Columbia Records)
Reviewed by Eric Saeger

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Since they assuredly don't suck, Switchfoot can be forgiven for riding Jesus' coattails into major label semi-legend status, that show-biz dreamland where Keane is bigger than U2 and Muse gets to tour with Queen for two years straight. Still trying to shake off their born-again-virgin Xtian fankid minions (now more than ever their press soundbites are devoutly Unitarian, and you can literally feel them squirm), they've managed to scrape some very worthwhile (even lo-fi at times) AOR-post-punk together, not the easiest feat being they've only taken a year to mull it over. Unlike the antidepressant-popping Nothing Is Sound, Oh Gravity is more grounded in hard pop, relying on emo bludgeoning, Powerman 5000 cold-clocking and latter-day Ramones stomp to prove that, hey, they were just kidding about their generation being a bunch of wastes. Plenty to like here either way, from the Socialburn-esque "American Dream" to "Awakening," which wants to be Beck, to the more-garagey-than-thou "Amateur Lovers."

© 2007 - Eric Saeger