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Switchfoot Break Out With Pop-Culture-Questioning 'Meant To Live'

First single off band's fourth album hits Billboard's Modern Rock

There's something ironic about "Meant to Live" being the song to catapult Switchfoot into the mainstream. It's about being put off by pop culture.

"It's a song that [says], 'When I look at the magazine pages or a TV screen, I know there's nothing they can sell me that will satisfy me,' " singer/guitarist Jon Foreman explained recently. "And when I look at the sunset or the stars, I am reminded that there's something inside of me that's meant to live for more than what pop culture often sells us. The punch line is, 'I'm not buying it and I want something more.' "

"Meant to Live," which is currently #18 on Billboard's Modern Rock Tracks chart, is a hard-rocking anthem with the chorus, "We were meant to live for so much more/ Have we lost ourselves?/ Somewhere we live inside."

"The songs on the album are like diary entries and 'Meant to Live' is like that," Foreman added. "The [video] concept is about escapes of sort. There's a guy tearing down a house while we're playing in the middle of it."

The song is the first single from the recently released The

Beautiful Letdown, Switchfoot's fourth album, but first on a major label.

"We did it quick, two weeks or so," Foreman recalled. "I think that's the best way to make a record. It hits hard. There's the mistakes and the beautiful parts all together."

Before signing to Columbia Records, the San Diego band, which also features bassist (and Jon's brother) Tim Foreman, drummer Chad Butler and keyboardist Jerome Fontamillas, released music on labels specializing in Christian music.

Similar to P.O.D., the band has been able to transcend outside the Christian rock scene by touring consistently, often with bands from other genres.

"We pretty much tour all the time," Jon Foreman said. "We [are currently on] tour with a band called Bleu and a band called Sleeping at Last out of Chicago. It's amazing. We're hitting up all our favorite places and we're really excited about it."

Switchfoot tour dates, according to Columbia:

  • 10/23 - Atlanta, GA @ Coca-Cola Roxy Theatre

  • 10/24 - Orlando, FL @ The Social (Sapphire Supper Club)
  • 10/25 - Tampa, FL @ Guavaween
  • 10/26 - Jacksonville, FL @ Freebird Cafe
  • 10/27 - Birmingham, AL @ Workplay Theatre
  • 10/28 - Nashville, TN @ Rcktwn
  • 10/30 - Dallas, TX @ Trees
  • 10/31 - Norman, OK @ University of Oklahoma
  • 11/1 - Austin, TX @ The Parish
  • 11/3 - Colorado Springs, CO @ 32 Bleu
  • 11/4 - Albuquerque, NM @ Launchpad
  • 11/5 - Tempe, AZ @ Nita's Hideaway
  • 11/6 - Tucson, AZ @ City Limits
  • 11/7 - San Diego, CA @ SOMA
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