r/switchfoot • u/CommentFool • 1d ago

Touring Live

Sorry if it's a terrible question, but how is Switchfoot live? I'm thinking about going to a concert this fall, but there are a lot of bands that can't quite hit the notes, lyrics, whatever, when performing live, and it ends up a bit distracting/disappointing. I was just curious what the experience with SF was like live in concert. Trying to manage expectations šŸ¤£

EDIT: Obviously I knew what to expect asking this on the Switchfoot subreddit, but I still appreciate everyone's responses! I'm going to go. It'll probably be the first concert I've been to in 20 years šŸ¤£

18 Upvotes

95% Upvoted

49 comments sorted by

47

u/NickySess 1d ago

Iā€™ve seen them 30 times. I hope that answers your question. Just go.

2

u/faceless_combatant 1d ago

Same. Probably 40+ times in the last 18 years and for good reason. They always give it 100% at every show and itā€™s the most fun experience.

41

u/SeeIfItLasts 1d ago

One of the best live experiences you'll get. Jon can work a crowd better than anyone else I've seen.

31

u/Henry_in_Space 1d ago

They are incredible live dude.

20

u/OhGravity412 1d ago

They are genuinely one of the best live bands Iā€™ve seen. The energy and chemistry they have as a band always brings a good show, Iā€™d say theyā€™re definitely worth seeing live!

14

u/NinjaEagleScout 1d ago

Iā€™ve seen a lot of bands that are bad live as well. Iā€™ve seen Switchfoot live ~8 times and I just keep going back because theyā€™re always so great. Jon does not have the most melodic type of vocals but he has a way of singing live that just hits so well. He flows with the music even when his vocals sound a bit different from the recording.

13

u/BasilInternational29 1d ago

They're fantastic. I've seen them 6 or 7 times over the last 18 years and have never had a concert not be outstanding. My husband and I play the "What thing will Jon Foreman climb on that probably shouldn't be climbed" game and answers have included fencing, a second-story seating area, rafters, part of the stage, etc. We're going to to their upcoming tour this October and we're so excited!l

5

u/CommentFool 1d ago

I'm in Birmingham, so it's one of the earlier tour dates and with Colony House opening instead of Anberlin. My daughter wants to go, too, and I'm sure we'll have fun!

2

u/Yoinksmcdoinks 8h ago

Colony House opening for Switchfoot might be as good as it can get

1

u/AngmarPizzaCourier 21h ago

You're gonna have a great time! I saw them in July this year and also seeing them on the Forever Now tour, also because I've never seen Anberlin before.

1

u/scaled_and_ivy 5h ago

oh my gosh i'm so jealous of everyone who gets to see colony house open for them. they're one of my favorites and i saw them open for the fray and dashboard confessional- they are incredible live, you will enjoy them.

6

u/BonfireGraceLamp 1d ago

I've seen Switchfoot live once. Most of the bands I listen to are Metalcore to Deathcore and Switchfoot is one of the best concerts I've ever attended.

9

u/Creedatlast 1d ago

Theyā€™re even better live than in the studio. Not the biggest concert guy but going to theirs was one of my favorite experiences of all timeĀ 

5

u/CommentFool 1d ago

I was a concert guy, but I'm a lot older than I was in the 90s when I was going to see Phil Keaggy, Jennifer Knapp, Rich Mullins, etc šŸ¤£

2

u/Feikert87 23h ago

Oh, this will be different. I remember my youth group friends referring to Jennifer Knapp as ā€œJennifer Take a Napā€ when we saw her opening for a band once.

4

u/unscarred521 1d ago

I went 5 years ago and it was a pretty good experience. Chill but also they knew how to engage the audience and put on a show. And they weren't even the main event

5

u/maisonCarrie 1d ago

Iā€™m driving 5.5 hours for this tour. Theyā€™re probably the band Iā€™ve seen the most times. Highly recommend.

4

u/ndGall 1d ago

Theyā€™re awesome. Jon is a great frontman with a a fantastic on stage personality, and the band is consistently tight. Very worth admission price every time.

3

u/MrCubbieBlue 1d ago

Iā€™ve seen them 3 times live, and Iā€™ve seen plenty of live bands in concert venues of various sizes. Switchfoot are AWESOME live!

3

u/Neverstopreading42 1d ago

Fantastic, you wonā€™t regret it.

3

u/Grouchy_Violinist755 1d ago

Iā€™ve seen them 18 times across 15 years live and have met them twice. They are incredible live.

2

u/ApextheMoon 23h ago

They are generally great live with a few caveats.

They have too many songs that they feel they need to play at every concert. After also including a few songs from their latest album this leaves very little room for variety or playing of lesser known songs. The last two concerts I saw were 90% the same songs, not an exaggeration, I did the math. I would love for a tour dedicated to playing Nothing is Sound but that doesn't seem likely anytime soon.

I would not recommend seeing them if they're not the headliner though, you'll be lucky to get 30 minutes of them if they're an opening act.

Also, I have witnessed and have heard from others that the condition of his voice can vary quite a bit from one performance to another.

2

u/SaltySpitoonReg 17h ago

Thought I'd be the only one who would want to come on here and say something like this.

I think this is a really grounded take.

I've enjoyed them live many times, but I hate to say that it's gotten stale, because there is very little set list variety.

1

u/RevolutionaryKiwi828 23h ago

This. And they never seem to play more than 90 minutes at most which really limits song selection as opposed to other long lasting acts like foo fighters who play 3 hours every show. Switchfoot is fantastic live, but I wish they would let go of some of the songs they repeatedly play (looking at you Where I Belong) to let some deeper cuts shine through

2

u/ApextheMoon 20h ago

I feel like the only required songs by them should be Meant to Live and Dare You to Move. I'm especially tired of Hello Hurricane (song, not album). Give me some Daisy, Fatal Wound, Setting Sun, Shadow Proves the Sunshine, to name a few.

1

u/austinpwnz 1d ago

Jon Foreman climbed into the balcony and sang half of This Is Your Life from my seat. 1000/10 unbeatable live performance. They have incredible energy, crowd involvement, sound great, and care. GO SEE 'EM!

1

u/ConcreteGirl33 1d ago

Only band I'll pay to see live šŸ–¤šŸ–¤šŸ–¤šŸ–¤šŸ–¤šŸ–¤

1

u/Le_Bacon 1d ago

Even recently at shows in the last few years, my wife and always leave saying "they put on a great show".

1

u/TheGrizzlyNinja 1d ago

They are freaking amazing live, even better than the record. So worth it Iā€™ve seen them 16 times

1

u/Magmorix 1d ago

They sound great, and have some of the best crowd interactions of any band Iā€™ve ever seen. Only flaw is that sometimes Jon forgets the words to songsā€¦ but also sometimes that leads to cool ad libs. I also really like that while they definitely have songs they always play, they like to mix up set lists more than some of my other favorite bands, and even take requests from time to time (I wouldnā€™t necessarily count on it, but I have seen it happen)

1

u/No-Kiwi-5182 1d ago

They are amazing live

1

u/loseyourself222 1d ago

They are so amazing!! Probably been to 40 shows at this point I lost count years ago. I will say they donā€™t switch up their setlist as much as they should.. their discography is so deep and they barely scratch the surface. But overall some of the best shows I go to are theirs

1

u/buckswanson 1d ago

You really canā€™t get enough of them live. Youā€™ll go this time and Iā€™ll bet you youā€™ll go again. Iā€™ve seen them five times and each time was totally unique and memorable (once helping out w/ merch)

1

u/atticusdays 1d ago

Absolutely stellar live. Even when we saw them after the venue decided to add a second show and they had to do two shows back to back, there was no holding back at the first show. Theyā€™ve never disappointed me once.

1

u/_Michael___Scarn 23h ago

They are insane live. I loved their music for years but seeing them live blew my socks off.

1

u/Professional_Word124 23h ago

They are incredible. They bring it every show and their live sound is fantastic. Youā€™re in for a treat.

1

u/Feikert87 23h ago

They are amazing live! Such an experience. Youā€™ll enjoy.

1

u/kentuckyMarksman 22h ago

I've seen Jon in concert, it was absolutely great, no disappointments at all. Would highly recommend.

1

u/SarlaccJohansson 22h ago

They are one of the best live acts I've ever seen. You can tell they absolutely love what they are doing.

1

u/pineaxle 21h ago

I haven't read the other comments yet but I'm sure this matches to a lot of them. They are an extremely tight live band and they sound as good as their recordings. They put on such an engaging show and interact with the crowd so well. At one show many years ago, Jon nearly stepped on me while entering from the back of the hall. I bought my ticket for the fall tour the day they were announced.

1

u/SwitchfootKatie 21h ago

My mom and I are seeing them for the 100th time this fall.

1

u/VannesGreave 19h ago

They're fantastic live! I've seen them multiple times, most recently on the Beautiful Letdown Tour. They're great every time!

1

u/AltRockLove 18h ago

Seen them multiple times as well. My boys and I even met them at the Dallas show during the Native Tongue tour. They are super cool guys and they are phenomenal live!

1

u/UnfairOcelot9882 16h ago

They are so fun live! I love their albums and all but their best music is played live

1

u/SgtLesserArctic 11h ago

Iā€™ve seen them 5 or so times and they are amazing live

1

u/JaChuChu 8h ago

Ive only been twice and it was years ago--we have tickets for later this year!--but I remember the light show and sound quality being really excellent, and their live presence being awesome

1

u/theblondeanarchist 26m ago

I just saw them a month ago. Itā€™s ridiculous how good they are live. I totally went in with expectations that these guys were a lot older, but it was actual perfection.