Ryley Walker unironically loves Switchfoot. He tweets about them regularly, and when he contributed to our Save Stereogum: An '00s Covers Comp album, he decided to cover the crossover Christian rock band's "The Shadow Proves The Sunshine." So he was understandably thrilled when he got to interview Switchfoot's founding brothers Jon and Tim Foreman for Grammy.com and tell them about the time he listened to their album 30 times in a row while smoking crack:
Ryley Walker: I want to say for the record that I'm a huge head. I came to your music like most other people. When I was a kid growing up, I heard it on the radio and everything. But for years and years, maybe I didn't keep up with you guys. But about seven years ago, I got way into your record Nothing Is Sound. It's one of the most far-out experiences I've ever had.
OK, this is a funny story. I was on a crack binge with this dude. I'm three years clean and serene, by the way. I'm smoking crack with this dude and we're like, "This is one of the most sick anti-war records! It's, like, so anti-war!" We listened to it 30 times in a row. I was in a bad state of mind at the time, but that record f***ing lifted me out of some weird stuff. I really celebrate that record a lot.
And I was wondering: Do you still play those songs live? I haven't seen you guys in a long time.
Jon Foreman: That's a wild story, man! Beautiful! I love that!
Ryley: Don't smoke crack, by the way.
Walker also mentions his cover of "The Shadow Proves The Sunshine," which he says is "your headiest tune, I think. That's the most deep, deep, heady. I love your lyrics on there so much and where you guys were going."
Switchfoot have a new record called interrobang, which Walker and Switchfoot agree is "a weed-whacking-in-Vermont anthem." And at the end of their Zoom conversation, Switchfoot promise to take Ryley surfing the next time he's in San Diego. All in all, an extremely successful interview!
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