Spring Break
Forecast shines through formula
Dave Goncalves
Issue date: 4/27/07 Section: Arts & Entertainment
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Most bands these days are referred to by what other bands they sound similar to or what they're directly influenced by. If someone listens to any new pop-punk band, they can say that it sounds a lot like Green Day; if someone listens to pop-rock, it'll sound like the Chili Peppers or something along those lines.
The Forecast is no different in that you'll want to say, "This sounds like…" The problem is that, well, The Forecast will leave you scratching your head. There's a familiarity that I can't quite put my finger on. That's just it - it has its influences but doesn't "sound like that band." The Forecast just has that familiar feeling in its style and uses it.
In the Shadow of Two Gunmen begins with a short two-minute track, "Everything We Want to Be," that jumps right into things and kicks the album off with a punk rock style that sounds like it has a backdrop of piano chords. After that comes "And We All Return to Our Roots," which abandons the piano chord slam for a feminine touch in the chorus. The album carries the particular style all the way through. There's no slow down and or speed up - it pretty much stays on a steady path. What you get from the first few songs is what you get from the rest of the album.
What really helps the album out is the singing style in most of the songs, which is the vocalist pretty much yelling - not screaming - yelling. The vocals sound like the singer is trying to yell something to someone across the nation, so there's that hint of a strained voice. This helps the album as it just makes it sound and feel all that much more authentic. Everyone writes songs about love and emotion, but it doesn't always have that feeling of being genuine, just trite. Simply by listening to "Some Things Never Change," or, "A Fist Fight For Our Fathers," the listener can gain a sense of this humility and authenticity.
However, the downside is that they do have this formulaic feel on occasion. Like most pop bands today, it can sometimes just feel rundown and beaten into the ground. But The Forecast redeems itself when it throws in songs like, "Every Gun Makes Its Own Tomb," which has a very twangy southern rock style guitar riff coming at you. It then throws another layer of the same tune, only with distortion to add a heavy rock sort of layer. It all works out very well and to the bands advantage by breaking through those moments where they do sound like a formula band.
Overall, The Forecast is quite capable of crafting a great album of this caliber. It shines through with talented musicians and very genuine sentiments. I stress that only because it's not something you hear much of anymore. The Forecast's In the Shadow of Two Gunmen is a diamond in the rough, so grab it if you spot it.
The Forecast is no different in that you'll want to say, "This sounds like…" The problem is that, well, The Forecast will leave you scratching your head. There's a familiarity that I can't quite put my finger on. That's just it - it has its influences but doesn't "sound like that band." The Forecast just has that familiar feeling in its style and uses it.
In the Shadow of Two Gunmen begins with a short two-minute track, "Everything We Want to Be," that jumps right into things and kicks the album off with a punk rock style that sounds like it has a backdrop of piano chords. After that comes "And We All Return to Our Roots," which abandons the piano chord slam for a feminine touch in the chorus. The album carries the particular style all the way through. There's no slow down and or speed up - it pretty much stays on a steady path. What you get from the first few songs is what you get from the rest of the album.
What really helps the album out is the singing style in most of the songs, which is the vocalist pretty much yelling - not screaming - yelling. The vocals sound like the singer is trying to yell something to someone across the nation, so there's that hint of a strained voice. This helps the album as it just makes it sound and feel all that much more authentic. Everyone writes songs about love and emotion, but it doesn't always have that feeling of being genuine, just trite. Simply by listening to "Some Things Never Change," or, "A Fist Fight For Our Fathers," the listener can gain a sense of this humility and authenticity.
However, the downside is that they do have this formulaic feel on occasion. Like most pop bands today, it can sometimes just feel rundown and beaten into the ground. But The Forecast redeems itself when it throws in songs like, "Every Gun Makes Its Own Tomb," which has a very twangy southern rock style guitar riff coming at you. It then throws another layer of the same tune, only with distortion to add a heavy rock sort of layer. It all works out very well and to the bands advantage by breaking through those moments where they do sound like a formula band.
Overall, The Forecast is quite capable of crafting a great album of this caliber. It shines through with talented musicians and very genuine sentiments. I stress that only because it's not something you hear much of anymore. The Forecast's In the Shadow of Two Gunmen is a diamond in the rough, so grab it if you spot it.
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