Restless (Switchfoot song)

"Restless" is a song written and recorded by American alternative rock band Switchfoot, and a radio single from Vice Verses, their eighth studio album. It served as the album's co-lead single with "Dark Horses".

"Restless"
Single by Switchfoot
from the album Vice Verses
Released	July 2011
Recorded	2011
Genre	Alternative rock
Length	5:18 (Album version) 4:06 (Radio edit)
Label	lowercase people/Atlantic/Credential Recordings
Songwriter(s)	Jon Foreman
Producer(s)	Switchfoot Neal Avron
Switchfoot singles chronology
"Dark Horses" (2011) "Restless" (2011) "Afterlife" (2012)

Song history

Lead singer and principal songwriter for the band Jon Foreman wrote the song in Europe, with the intent of "trying to embody the story of the rain," which comes from the idea that raindrops are on a "relentless" journey back to the ocean. "I was thinking about the idea that I'm on a journey myself," he says. "...reaching and searching and longing for more.^[1]

The song first made a public appearance in April 2011 when Foreman performed an acoustic rendition live at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan.^[2] It was later performed by the full band on May 18 in London, Ontario during a brief Canadian tour.^[3]

The official music video for the song debuted on 31 October 2011.^[4] It was directed by Tom Aiello.

Reception

"Restless" was released to Christian CHR radio in July alongside Switchfoot's mainstream single, "Dark Horses." Air1 picked up the song on July 18, 2011.^[5]

Charts

Chart (2011)	Peak position
US Alternative Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[6]	15
US Christian Songs (Billboard)[7]	23
US Rock Digital Songs (Billboard)[8]	25

References

1. Restless Video Interview. Sparrow Records. Published July 11, 2011
2. Restless - Brand New Song by Jon Foreman. Land of Broken Hearts. Published April 10, 2011
3. First Full Band Performance of Restless. Youtube. Archived May 25, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
4. Switchfoot 'Restless' Video Premiere and Exclusive Photo Gallery. AOL Music Blog. Published October 31, 2011
5. New Music With Soul. Air1. Published July 18, 2011 (retrieved July 23, 2011)
6. "Switchfoot Chart History (Alternative Digital Song Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved September 13, 2021.
7. "Switchfoot Chart History (Hot Christian Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved September 13, 2021.
8. "Switchfoot Chart History Rock Digital Song Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved September 13, 2021.