Jon Foreman. lead singer of Switchfoot, promises that Switchfoot fans will get a different perspective on the band from its upcoming film project, "Fading West," which the band will tease with a trailer at the auction night before the group's 9th Annual Bro-Am surfing contest and concert.
The Bro-Am takes place July 12-13 in Encinitas, California. A charity auction, a performance by Switchfoot and a sneak peek of "Fading West" will take place on the 12th, while the 13th will feature a full-scale beachfront concert, a charity surf contest with surf jousting exhibitions between heats, and the Rob Machado Bro Junior competition. The Bro-Am has raised more than $715,000 for San Diego-area children's charities during its history. More information about the event will be posted on the band's website.
As for the "Fading West" film, Foreman tells Billboard that, "Our goal was always to be professional surfers -- and I'm only partially kidding when I say that -- and if nobody is gonna make a movie about us, let's do it ourselves. We love surfing, so this was kind of a chance to introduce that to the rest of the world and maybe connect a few of the dots to the music as well."
"Fading West" combines scenes of the band surfing at locales around the world -- including the U.S., South Africa, Bali, Australia and New Zealand -- with behind-the-scenes of Switchfoot on tour and in the studio, as well as on stage. "It's about rock 'n' roll and the journey we've been on for the past eight albums," Foreman says. "There's a lot of special moments in the film."
There will be no formal soundtrack for "Fading West;" a new Switchfoot album is due out in September that will include some songs heard in the film. And Foreman says the group has reached out to some friends to be part of it, including his Fiction Family bandmate Sean Watkins and his sister Sara, Karl Denson, Charlie Peacock and others.
"We want to just kind of pull on different people whop lay other instruments and can add colors to the score that we would never be able to add," Foreman says. "It's been a whole lot of fun to dream it up."
