I think I started my review of The Forecast’s last album In The Shadow Of Two Gunmen in exactly the same way; Peoria is a blue-collar working-class town in central Illinois and where The Forecast calls home and the influence of their Midwestern roots is clearly evident in the music. Sometime between then and now The Forecast was dropped by Victory Records and signed on with Eyeball Records for this new self-titled album. There’s no shortage of the energetic and catchy songs here but it all seems a little less dynamic and more slickly produced than it was on their last album. Second vocalist Shannon Burns takes much more of a backseat to frontman Dustin Addis on The Forecast that previously and I kinda miss that the more evenly distributed dual vocals. The slight country/roots influence also found on In The Shadow Of Two Gunmen has been toned down in favor of more straightforward and potentially radio-friendly pop/punk/rock/emo sounds and conventions. The Forecast just isn’t as interesting as I’d hoped it would be. The vocal harmonies are still amazing and the songs still have an earnest and honest feel to ‘em that many of The Forecast’s contemporaries lack. I won’t be spinning this nearly as much as its predecessor, but there’s definitely a place in my collection for this record.
MP3:
The Forecast - Illinois
The Forecast - Snake Charmer
Wow, agree with everything you said! It’s a very good album just not great like the last two. Much more slick and pop sounding but still infectious as always.