Fiction Family

By Mark Bowyer 

In the mood for some music, but you can't decide between the edgy thought-provoking lyrics of Switchfoot and the instrumental wizardry of Nickel Creek? Now you don't have to deliberate, because both are combined in the great new group Fiction Family. Starting the process in 2005 by writing music together, Jon Foreman of Switchfoot and Sean Watkins of Nickel Creek announced as of March 13, 2008, they would be “Fiction Family.” So what's in a name? In their Wikipedia entry, and March 10th interview with theboot.com, Jon Foreman is quoted as saying, “They are two words that hold a lot of meaning for me. I think that much of who we are as a culture lean towards fiction. As for the family of it, you have the entire nation that’s kind of looking for family. That’s one of the reasons why I like the name. Also both of us come from sibling bands and this is not a sibling band, so this is kind of a fiction family of sort.”

With song titles on the album such as “When She's Near”, “Elements Combined”, and “Please Don't Call It Love”, the two artists seem to be making an attempt to express their Christian world-view on love and human relationships through touching ballads and positive snappy refrains. A soft, yet passionate sound reminds the listener that being a Christian in the world today may be challenging, but it is certainly worth it. The especially catchy chorus of “When She’s Near” had this reviewer hooked from listen one. I would find myself humming it or singing it when work flow at the office began to slow or at the all-too-common-stone-walling red light. Fiction Family released the single “When She’s Near” as a free download on their website, and the video has been viewed by their fans since December of 2008.

Amazing to me, the members of Fiction Family took turns singing vocals and playing a wide variety of instruments like 12-string guitar, keyboard, bass, baritone ukulele, and mandolin. Sara Watkins is featured on a few songs too, but the majority of the sound is the familiar, yet gripping tone of Jon Foreman mixed with the musical dexterity of Sean Watkins. Lasting just over a month, their first tour went from January to February 7th of this year. They played in Boston, New York, Charlottesville, Atlanta, Nashville, Seattle, and San Diego.

Fiction Family fans have many avenues to explore if they want to get involved with the group. From their website, fans can join the street team or enter their email address to be added to the Fiction Family email list. The extremely entertaining video for “When She’s Near” can also be seen on sites like Youtube among others. So, Fiction Family is the perfect combination of passion and levity–and with Facebook devotees, and 4500+ friends on their Myspace Music page as of April 6, Fiction Family is proving that people all over the world who love Switchfoot and Nickel Creek now have a new, unique way to appreciate both bands.

To learn more about this artist, visit http://www.myspace.com/fictionfamily