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After the mega-success of its previous work, The Beautiful Letdown, Switchfoot took to the road for two years and managed to crank out an entire album during its tour. Avoiding the quantity vs. quality dilemma, it has turned in an even better album under the stress of the road. Nothing is Sound is outstanding power-pop executed with precise and accurate brilliance.

The CD commences with the rocking "Lonely Nation," which laments how we have alienated ourselves through materialism, technology, and fulfillment of the id. The current radio hit, "Stars," follows next, a bombast of crunchy guitars and a tight rhythm section. Jon Foreman's voice never sounded better.

A deep, effective tune is "Happy Is a Yuppie Word," taken from an interview with Bob Dylan when asked if he was happy. Dylan replied, "Those are yuppie words, happiness and unhappiness. It's not happiness or unhappiness, it's blessed or unblessed." This is where Switchfoot is so effective at sprinkling its dogma in without bashing you over the head: "I'm looking for the kingdom coming down."

Things slow down with "The Blues," a fantastic ballad that shows off the talents of the band's aural sensibilities, as it is layered with a multitude of atmosphere and emotion.

My favorite song is "The Fatal Wound," a complex, juxtaposed tune that gets in your craw. Great acoustic guitar and powerful chorus make this song a treat.

The CD ends with "Daisy," and I must admit, I have an attraction to it because it's the name of one of my beagles! The song makes use of simple detuned acoustic that builds to a tidal wave of greatness. It's a beautiful song about letting the trappings of life go and allowing in the life spirit.

Switchfoot has released its best record to date.

Jon Rice  10/8/2005

There’s a lot to like about Switchfoot. They’ve delivered many a musically catchy and lyrically witty pop/rock tune throughout their now five-release history, and have been esteemed and beloved by critics in the Christian music industry for years.  They made the big jump to the mainstream with last year’s The Beautiful Letdown, and with their latest debuting at number 3 on the sales charts with over 130,000 copies sold, Nothing Is Sound looks to continue their success.

The Beautiful Letdown was a mix of the band’s common lyrical witticisms about modern decadence and uplifting life affirmers, composed musically of crunchy guitar-rockers, mid-tempo ballads, and bouncy happy-pop.  Nothing Is Sound sees the band zeroing in on the former of those classifications, the most blatant move towards a Top-40 sound the band has made yet.  The gritty-guitars throughout and the thick layers of sound provide for Switchfoot’s most lush and accessible recording to date.

The strongest card in the band’s suit , their ability to craft insanely catchy pop/rock melodies, is certainly apparent throughout Nothing Is Sound.  The album opens and ends identically to its forbearer The Beautiful Letdown, with the crunchy power-pop and the societal discontentment themes of “Lonely Nation” and the mostly-acoustic, softly delivered (until its punchy final minute) “Daisy,” both amongst the best tracks on the record.  If you mashed together the springy liveliness and blues skies-pop of “More than Fine” with the driving guitar licks of “Meant to Live,” you’d get “Stars,” Nothing is Sound’s first big single; while the song may feel a bit clumsy on first listen, it’s ultimately one of the most straight-forwardly fun songs on the record, despite its slight thematic redundancy to past material.

Jon Foreman has already sung at length about the hypocrisy of the masses. We should be just as ready to point the finger at ourselves rather than our political leaders for the problems existing within our culture.  Such themes, especially his introspection into finding what brings true satisfaction for our lives, like in the excellent “This Is Your Life”, were genuinely uplifting and emotionally moving within The Beautiful Letdown.  Unfortunately, the repetition of these themes throughout _Nothing Is Sound_ tends to undermine the effort by the song writers to capture the same level of heart that was found in The Beautiful Letdown.  We’re told that sex sells, that we’re discontented as a nation, that politicians are bad guys, that we’re not so-and-so’s.  While it is true that multiple morals and messages can be found in most of these songs, the most apparent themes are simply too every-day obvious to be sung like they’re amazing revelations; it gets to the point where the listener may begin to feel talked down-to.  It’s dangerously close to condescension.

While Switchfoot has been praised by some writers for now effectively achieving a "middle-ground" sound that’s accessible for many, _Nothing Is Sound_ speaks to me of a band that desperately needs to stretch out.  The tap has run dry; while _Nothing Is Sound_ doesn’t necessarily harm the band’s current standards, it certainly doesn’t advance them.  Another release bearing this same style could only be to the band’s detriment.  Switchfoot is still wholly capable of writing catchy pop tunes. There are enough good ones on _Nothing Is Sound_ to prove that beyond doubt but their current sound and lyrical goals could benefit dramatically from further artistic expansion.

My final feelings for the record are mixed.  You’re enjoyment of Nothing Is Sound may depend entirely on your take of the record’s lyrical content; it may still be uplifting to many though as reminders rather than profound observations but I suspect that many may feel turned off by the lyrical redundancy.  Switchfoot is still highly talented at writing good pop tunes, but they need to seek new ground for their sound and lyrical themes.  Nothing Is Sound doesn’t drag them down, but it still takes them nowhere. 
 
Jonathan Avants 10/9/05
 
2 1/2 tocks.