Album: Spring and Summer
Artist: Jon Foreman
Label: Credential Rec
Sounds like: Derek Webb

With Switchfoot’s star ascendant in recent years but their music continuing to tread pretty much the same Foo Fighters road, it’s not surprising that Jon Foreman should want to stretch his wings. It’s also not surprising that this involves making quieter, more acousticfocused home recordings. This pair of EPs is his second, making up the set of four named after the four seasons. Opener “March” is a bit of a surprise. It’s a folksy waltz, with snappy, “Sergeant Peppers” slightly Mexicali horns. “Love isn’t made” is more indicative of the overall sound—trembling strings usher in a lazy acoustic guitar and circling, cherubic background vocals. A gentle, seemingly effortless melody and Foreman’s voice sit at the centre, augmented by little tinkling percussive effects. A bit like Sarah Masen’s music—unsurprisingly, as she sings on it (a nice surprise). “Baptize my mind” has a more polished, Latin feel, with a flute solo that is both unexpected and fitting. “Your love is strong” (not to be confused with “Let your love be strong” from Oh Gravity) is the closest to worship music (complete with Lord’s Prayer), yet despite its final crescendo, manages to largely avoid being overblown. More mariachi horns turn up on “A mirror is harder to hold,” a song that showcases Foreman’s talent for twisting phrases into illuminating new shapes. “Instead of a show”

is plain angry, castigating Christians for “playing religion games”

and favouring pomp over justice. “Resurrect me,” a centrepiece of this set, contains more lyrical gold, while its unusually upbeat tribal feel shows what you can achieve with minimal instrumentation.

Otherwise, it can feel like there’s a lot of sluggish material here, so it’s not surprising that his record company has just released a single disc compilation that cherry picks the best songs from the four EPs, thereby possibly remedying the problem.

Nicks rating: 3/5