“We really felt like you want to do something when you see that happening … we’ve kind of felt like we’re in the best place we could be in order to be supporting Habitat…” – Chad Butler on the San Diego wildfires, drummer for Switchfoot
They’re coming to Cal Poly tonight and they’ve got an Appetite for Construction. Guns N’ Roses turned nice? No, Switchfoot and Relient K on their co-headlining nationwide rock tour.
The two Grammy-nominated rock bands will play at the Recreation Center tonight as part of their Appetite for Construction tour, so named because a dollar from each ticket will be donated to support Habitat for Humanity. The tour has raised more than $67,000 for Habitat so far.
Switchfoot and Relient K have long been fans of each other’s music and, while working out the details of this tour, discovered they also held a mutual respect for Habitat for Humanity’s mission of eliminating poverty housing and homelessness around the world.
“We’ve known (Relient K) for years, but we met up last year when we were both playing at a Habitat for Humanity benefit concert in Los Angeles and the idea kind of blossomed into what this tour is,” Switchfoot drummer Chad Butler explained.
“We found this common desire with the Relient K guys to work with an organization that’s nationwide but has very local hands and feet in each community.”
Relient K’s bassist and vocalist John Warne said, “Habitat is an amazing organization that enables people who wouldn’t ordinarily be able to buy a home the opportunity to have one, and we’re excited to be a part of that.”
Appetite for Construction is also Switchfoot’s first tour since dropping Columbia Records and announcing that they will release their next album as an independent band.
“As our first tour as an independent band, we wanted to try something different,” Butler explained. “It feels incredible to be partnering with Habitat for Humanity and making a difference in the local communities. It’s been very different from touring just to promote your latest single or to sell records.”
“We’ve been able to go out to the local housing build sites and participate. It’s not only us bands, but also the people who come to our shows. We’ve been inviting people out and they’ve been building with us.”
“None of us are very experienced at construction. You know, we play guitars and drums for a living,” Butler chuckled. “So for us to show up and make any real difference, it was surprising to me how simple it was.”
“We really had no idea what we were doing as far as the construction goes,” Warne agreed. “But within thirty minutes we were putting up siding on the house and sawing and hammering.”
The lead singers of each band also got together this summer to write a song, aptly titled “Rebuild,” which can be downloaded from Switchfoot’s Web site for a voluntary donation of money or time to Habitat.
Along with Butler, the rest of Switchfoot consists of lead vocalist Jon Foreman, bassist and backing vocalist Tim Foreman, guitarist and keyboardist Jerome Fontamillas and guitarist Andrew Shirley.
The band has sold more than one million concert tickets worldwide since the 2003 release of their breakthrough Double Platinum album “The Beautiful Letdown,” which featured their most successful singles, “Meant to Live” and “Dare You to Move.” Their recently released “Oh Gravity” album peaked at No. 1 on iTunes’ Top Albums chart.
Relient K broke into the music mainstream in 2004 with the release of their fourth record, “Mhmm,” which debuted at No. 15 on the Billboard 200. Their latest album, “Five Score and Seven Years Ago,” debuted at No. 6 on the charts, making it their highest-charting album to date.
The band is made up of lead singer Matt Thiessen, drummer Dave Douglas, guitarist Matt Hoopes, guitarist and vocalist Jon Schneck, and Warne.
Self-described as the more pop-oriented band on the tour, Warne said, “The goal with our music is just to get kids to think a little bit . We write songs about the things we believe in and what’s relevant in our lives and just hope that other people can relate to that.”
Both Switchfoot and Relient K hold Grammy nominations for Best Rock Gospel Album, and the band members consider themselves to be faithful Christians, so their music is often times categorized as Christian rock. But both bands have attempted to swerve away that from that genre label, fearing it will limit their audience.
“I think that if you label us as Christian, you’re going to get some people who aren’t Christian who won’t even give us a listen because of that,” Warne said.
“We’ve always tried to put out honest music for thinking people,” Butler said. “You can categorize it and put it in a box however you want . but I think the music is more dangerous when it’s outside of the box and you aren’t labeling it.”
“If our songs are communicating hope, that’s a really meaningful and fulfilling message,” Butler continued. “We’ve been able to travel to places like South Africa and India and see a very different culture than our own, a very different set of circumstances. To find kids that are growing up in dark places of the world . and yet they’re able to find hope in the midst of that, that’s intriguing and inspiring to me.”
“People like Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash wrote songs about the journey of life and the questions of life,” Butler explained. “There’s a connection in music that can be very powerful for talking about things that are uncomfortable to talk about in conversation, yet it feels very natural in a song.”
“I want to continue the conversation each night we play,” he said. “The most important part of the night for me is to hear people singing along and to feel that they’re getting something out of the music more than just entertainment . Hopefully we’re making music that extends the conversation for more than just the one night we’re in town.”
The two bands will bring their music and their appetite to the Recreation Center stage Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available at www.vallitix.com and the Mustang Ticket Office for $25.