Opening the show, Wildermiss, an Indie-style three-piece that originates from Denver but now hails from Nashville, had the audience swaying and rocking along. The lead singer, Emma Cole, brought a smooth vocal arrangement but also had a ferocity in the rock-edged screams that were opposites but meshed well with their sound. Emma is joined by Joshua Hester on guitar and Caleb Thoemke on drums.
Their set while short, packed a punch. They had the audience engaged and fascinated by their interesting brand of music. It was an eclectic sound and the energy from the stage was contagious. Joshua Hester and Caleb Thoemke played the guitar and drums with high octane energy that was a blast to watch.
Wildermiss:
Emma Cole: Lead Vocals
Joshua Hester: Guitar
Caleb Thoemke: Drums
Setlist:
1.New Year’s
2. Decay
3. Elvis
4.W.I.F.I
2. This isn’t How the Story Ends
3. Identify It!
4. Getting Old Rock and Roll
Taking us back to 2003, 20 years, CD players, and cellphones are just now coming into popularity and people are still trying to find a way forward from September 11th. A band comes to the forefront of the music scene that would have an album that would define music for a generation: Switchfoot. This San Diego-hailing band, while not new to the scene in 2003, grew in popularity with The Beautiful Letdown Album.
2023 marks the 20th anniversary of that album that was an anthem for so many. The only way the band thought to honor the impact was to go on a country-wide tour singing songs that have impacted so many, and this show did not disappoint.
Switchfoot played every song off their Beautiful Letdown Album from back to front and even threw in some songs off other albums to a sold-out capacity crowd at The Bluestone in Columbus, Ohio. They took requests and went with the flow of the show with the additions. Making each show of this tour truly unique all while hearing every song off The Beautiful Letdown which is the capstone of the show.
They opened with “Ammunition” which is a heavy-hitting song that packs a punch to make sure the crowd is amped up. They continued with another heavy hitter “This Your Life” which Jon Foreman came out into the audience to sing with the fans and proceeded to go to the back of the house and stand on a rail to sing with others enjoying their show.
The energy continued to be high with “More than Fine” which they brought up a man from the audience to play with them because he had held up a sign wanting to play this song with them. The audience continued to sing along “Gone” an obvious crowd favorite. Then came the title track of the album “A Beautiful Letdown.” This slows things down for a bit with tracks like “On Fire,” which was a special acoustic moment where the crowd lit up the room with the room with their cellphones.
The show propels forward back to higher energy songs with “Adding to the Noise” and then three long-time fan favorites, “Meant to Live,” “Dare You to Move” and “Twenty-Four.” While “Meant to Live” and “Dare You to Move” are rock anthems that had to crowd screaming along there was just as much appreciation for the softer “Twenty-Four,” where it was also done acoustically and Jon Foreman came out into the audience and sang in the center of the packed out room.
That brings us to the end of The Beautiful Letdown track list and brings us to other songs in their discography. Which were “Stars,” “Oh! Gravity,” “Mess of Me,” and then the encores of “Float” and perpetual crowd favorite “Where I Belong.”
One of my favorite parts of the night was the little snippets of songs that were woven throughout like, “Shadow Proves the Sunlight” before “The Beautiful Letdown” and “Only Hope” made popular by a Walk to Remember after “Meant to Live.” Then the “Wound is Where the Light Shines Through” snipped in the middle of “Dare You to Move.”
Switchfoot never ceases to disappoint and their fans are as present and loyal as ever. Everyone exuded pure joy at being able to sing along to these songs that framed much of their early formative years. The crowd was captivated and transfixed as the guys from Switchfoot took them on a musical journey of high up-tempo rock anthems to heartfelt, melodic pieces. It was a tour to remember.
Switchfoot:
Jon Foreman: Lead Vocals, Guitar
Tim Forman: Guitar, Background Vocals
Chad Butler: Drums
Jerome Fontamilias: Drums, Background Vocals
Boaz Roberts – Touring Guitar
Setlist:
1. Ammunition
2. This is Your Life
3. More than Fine
4. Gone
5. Beautiful Letdown/Shadow Proves the Sunlight Snippet
6. Redemption
7. On Fire
8. Adding to the Noise
9. Meant to Live/Only Hope Snippet
10. Dare You to Move/ Wound is Where the Light Shines Through
11. Twenty-Four
12. Stars
13. Oh! Gravity
14. Mess of Me
Encore:
15. Float
16. Where I Belong
Follow Wildermiss Online
Follow Switchfoot Online
Music and the appreciation of coverts and live music was introduced to me at an early age. I love the shared experience of live music. Christian Rock was a mainstay in my from early in my childhood to present day. My parents introduced me to the pioneers of Christian Rock, like Petra and White Heart. This only progressed me in my love of music and concerts. My musical preferences are a wide range of genres and artists.
While in college, I received my bachelor’s in communication. While in college, I had my own Christian Rock show on the college radio station. I also interned with two different radio stations. I always have had a passion for sharing music and musicians’ passion and artistry. That has since progressed into some concert photography and being able to capture that passion from bands on stage. I have be able to photograph many artists across the Midwest region.
