Switchfoot's diverse approach to rock music means that there are some pleasant surprises amongst the obligatory acoustic introspection and foot-stomping rock - highlights are first single "Dark Horses" and anthemic "The War Inside" - the latter kicking off with an electronic vibe, its flowing fight-lyrics and dark grooves combining to put a strong emphasis on rhythm - Tim's bass and Chad's drums kick in at the end of the first verse and gave me the same excited feeling I got the first time "Chem 6A"'s riff stopped me in my tracks. 'Vice Verses' also conveys that our reality is more than what we see in front of us: "A warm body doesn't mean I'm alive," Foreman sings on "Thrive" "Just because you're present/Doesn't mean that you're here," he claims on "Rise Above It" while the album's seven minute closer, "Where I Belong", sees Foreman expressing his hope for an eternal reality: "This body's not my own/This world is not my own/Still looking for a home/In a world where I belong". Thematically the album treads similar paths to previous albums - nostalgia and loss ("Souvenirs"), making the most of this life ("Dark Horses", "Rise Above It"), vacuous media hypocrisy ("Selling The News") and the title track which examines the serious questions that arise out of life, death and suffering.
'Vice Verses' was on the cards before 'Hurricane' had even hit the shelves although little of the band's original track listing made it through to the final recording. Having famously cherry-picked 'Hello Hurricane''s track listing from over 80 songs, this, their eighth studio album, sees the band focus on a much more limited selection, finding in discipline a freedom to be inventive. 'Vice Verses' plays like an album Switchfoot actually wanted to write and play. LABEL: EMI Christian Music Group 5099930672727
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