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    For our 8th annual Highlighting feature, we split the year into TWO pieces -- January to June and July to December. Each list contains 15 artists/releases for a total of 30 in total for 2014. So, without further ado, we give you Highlighting First-Half 2014!



  2 of 15  



Album Cover
#2. Switchfoot
Fading West

Release Date: January 14, 2014
Yeah, it's out already, but Switchfoot is one of those bands that just knows how to keep things interesting, and putting together an album that also works as a soundtrack to a movie made about the making of that album makes Fading West more than just another pop rock record. Even before hearing the final product, this was a much-anticipated release for months, and after getting the full Fading West experience (seeing the movie, then hearing the album), there's good reason it's still high up on our list.
        - John DiBiase

Okay, okay, Fading West is already old news to some. But we'd be remissed to not honor this achievement on our list. January is historically a pretty weak month for music, so Switchfoot's latest accomplishment started 2014 off on more than the right note. Experience Fading West's film and soundtrack if you haven't already.
        - Roger Gelwicks

If you haven't picked up Fading West yet, it is well worth your time. This film soundtrack features huge anthemic hooks and a warm, atmospheric vibe that's quite different from the heavy rock-leaning Vice Verses, but they bring some very welcome sunshine to these winter months. The best way I can think to describe it? These songs are alive.
        - Jen Rose

I may have been in the minority in indiscriminately liking Fading West upon first listen (something I had not expected based on the grapevine), but the fact remains that Switchfoot definitely pulled out another quality album.
        - Mark Rice

Few listeners - and, if they're being honest, few folks surrounding the band itself - would have guessed that, when this San Diego trio-turned-quintet turned in their modest, yet thoroughly engaging, debut under the watchful eye of producer Jimmie Lee Sloas, they'd still be at it some 17 years later. While many a fan secretly hopes their favorite group tosses artistic growth to the wind and merely replicates their last release, front man Jon Foreman and his companions have arguably staked the better part of their legacy, particularly in recent years, on their ability to simultaneously confound expectations while somehow managing to still deliver the proverbial goods nearly every time out of the gate. And, as their latest release shows, they've once again managed to do just that.
        - Bert Gangl

There's a reason that Switchfoot has been around for so long, and it might just be because they constantly reinvent themselves. With Fading West, they've done it again and with style. Lyrically challenging and more infectious than ever, it seems like the band isn't planning on stopping anytime soon, and I'm completely okay with that.
        - John "Flip" Choquette

The boys from San Diego made a surfing film (probably a long time dream come true) and scored it with the epic tunes that soundtrack the film. "Love Alone Is Worth The Fight" may be the best song you hear this year. This album made the dark and cold month of January a bit sunnier for many music fans.
        - Alex "Tincan" Caldwell

Switchfoot has earned "buy on release day, even if I've got an advance copy" status for me. This project, with its unique gestation and the accompanying feature film, made me more curious than any before.
        - Mark Geil

  • Visit our Switchfoot page for more information about them...

  • 2014 Countdown:

    15 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1
    Highlighting 2014
    ©January 2014 / June 2014 Jesusfreakhideout.com




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    This Tuesday, September 22
    ALBUMS
    PFR Target and the Arrow (independent)

    This Thursday, September 24
    SINGLES
    Bloodlines So Much To Lose - Single [Facedown]
    NEEDTOBREATHE Can't Apologize (feat. Jonah Kagen) - Single [UMG]

    This Friday, September 25
    ALBUMS
    Altarheart Prone To Wander [Rottweiler]
    ANTHNY Worship Leader's Diary [SONY/Provident]
    Elan Brio Sound Waves [Polished Arrow]
    Brotality Jaws of the Earth (independent)
    Forsaken Eternity Shades of Existence - EP [Rottweiler]
    Gaither Bill & Gloria Gaither and their Homecoming Friends Present You Are Loved: A Tribute to the Songs of Bill & Gloria (Live) [Gaither]
    gio. PROMISE LAND [Capitol CMG]
    Pomegranate More To Find - EP (independent)
    Red Worship Witness (independent)
    Stryper Throne Of Thorns [Frontiers Music]
    Tommis & Company The Wonder of You, Vol. 2 - EP (independent)
    We Are Messengers Halfway Home [Curb]
    Matthew West Jesus Is King [Story House Music]
    The Wood Drake Sessions East to West (independent)

    SINGLES
    Sarah Anthony Jesus is King - Single (independent)
    AustinThaNoble Mommy, I’m Praying for You - Single [Syntax]
    Chris Caro DID WHAT I SAID - Single [Syntax]
    Jenn Chenoweth Still Small Voice - Single [WieRise]
    Peter Ebraheem The King is Risen (feat. K.N.O) - Single (independent)
    Kirk Franklin This Time (feat. GloRilla) - Single [Uptown]
    Kelo Real Love - Single [Syntax]
    Perry LaHaie Well Done - Single [Frontiers]
    Rachael Lampa Permission - Single [Centricity]
    Jamie MacDonald Used to Be - Single [Capitol CMG]
    MŌRIAH Kick - Single [F2]
    Neal Morse & The Resonance Walk On Water - Single [InsideOutMusic]
    Mackenzie Phillips Made - Single [Gotee]
    Presence Music Fight or Flight - Single (independent)
    QEW & Cyrus Sonata Nu Nimbus Vibez (ft. Scribe Music) - Single [Syntax]
    Jenna Raine I See What You're Saying - Single [Warner]
    River Valley Worship King of the Empty Grave - Single [BEC]
    Seph Schlueter All In - Single [Provident]
    Sleeping At Last Go On Easy - Single (independent)
    The Sean Coleman Project Might Just Be My Day (feat. Brad Goff) - Single (independent)

    DVD
    Gaither Bill & Gloria Gaither and their Homecoming Friends Present You Are Loved: A Tribute to the Songs of Bill & Gloria (Live) DVD [Gaither]

    Next Friday, October 2
    ALBUMS
    Charles Billingsley Replay [StowTown]
    Amy Grant The Me That Remains (Deluxe Edition) [Thirty Tigers]
    The Light Superior Dayspring [Rottweiler]
    Jake MacAdam Source of Life - EP (independent)
    Josh Snodgrass Praise (Instrumental Guitar) - EP (independent)
    Tauren Wells Here Comes The Church (Live) [Capitol CMG]

    SINGLES
    Francesca Battistelli Won't Miss A Moment - Single [Curb]
    Gracie Binion & Bella Fabrizio Recompense - Single [BEC]
    Koryn Hawthorne God Is Real - Single [Motown Gospel]
    Olivia Lane Mother's Eyes - Single [BEC]
    Chandler Marie Ride Away - Single (independent)


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