Jon Foreman - 'Spring and Summer'

Jon Foreman, the well-known frontman for the multi-platinum band, Switchfoot, continues his solo side projects of indie-folk with Spring and Summer.

• Style: Indie-folk
• 12 songs on 2 CDs
• Release Date: June 24, 2008

I like Switchfoot so I really looked forward to Jon Foreman's solo projects. Fall and Winter was very good but it was a little dark. I wanted some light and fun on Spring and Summer and he hit the mark on both counts.

Spring starts out with the quirky and short "March (A Prelude to Spring." The visions that popped into my head were a kind-of a Sgt. Pepper goes to the circus thing.

Jon definitely shifts gears when he moves into "Love Isn't Made." It's almost depressing (note - I said almost) but there is that hint of the hope that we all live with in relationships when they take bad turns. "In My Arms," the third song on the release, stays in the same vein, making me really wonder about the inspiration for those two songs and causing the mom in me to want to "fix it," whatever "it" is.

"Baptize My Mind" changes gears again. This light, upbeat tune really brings spring to mind and it works all the way around.

Summer is where things really kick into high gear even if the first song, "A Mirror is Harder to Hold," is something of a head-scratcher. At the beginning of the song I expected a mariachi band to kick in because the vibe was definitely there, then it went into an almost old James Taylor kind of direction.

"Resurrect Me," with it's steel-guitar and killer beat is a 100% rocker and it's my favorite song on both CDs while "Instead of a Show," another fave, kicks butt with hard-hitting lyrics that belie it's almost lazy sounding music.

Bottom line - With his solo projects, Jon Foreman shows the world that he is a seriously multifaceted kind of guy.

Spring

1. March (A Prelude to Spring)
2. Love Isn't Made
3. In My Arms
4. Baptize My Mind
5. Your Love Is Strong
6. Revenge

Summer

1. A Mirror Is Harder to Hold
2. Resurrect Me
3. Deep in Your Eyes
4. Instead of a Show
5. The House of God Forever
6. Again