To start with, please give us a short introduction on THE FORECAST and its band members.
The Forecast is Dustin Addis, Shannon Burns, Tony Peck and myself, Matt Webb.
How is it going so far for THE FORECAST this year?
Everything is going really well for us so far this year. We have had a great time touring with some of our good friends. We can't wait for our cd to be released and just see what happens next.
Im quite interested in how you guys met each other and decided to become a band. What story lies behind THE FORECAST?
The Forecast has been a band now for about three and a half years. After several line-up changes, Dustin is the only original member. Shannon and I were in a previous band together and when the bass player and guitar player quit The Forecast we were the first two to take their place. Tony was also in another band and when Dustin heard that he had quit he asked him to try out and everything just worked out. The chemistry between us is awesome and I couldn't ask to play with better people.
You've just signed to Victory Records, what do you expect from the deal and why did you choose Victory?
It's hard to know what to expect, but I think we are just really excited to have an opportunity like this. Victory Records has amazing people to stand behind us and support us.
Victory is constantly signing upcoming bands of different music styles these days. How does THE FORECAST as an indie-rock/emo-pop band fits into the roster of Victory Records?
I think it's hard to categorize us sometimes, but I think that works to our advantage. We are able to bring something a little different to the table. As far as fitting into the roster, I'm not sure. I think we are going to leave that one up to everyone else.
For all those people who don't know THE FORECAST yet, please describe the sound you play.
I would have to say we sound like an indie-rock band mixed with some alt-country at times. We have male/female vocals which add something different as well.
I would say the man/female vocals are pretty characteristic for THE FORECAST. Did you always have it that way that Dustin and Shannon sang together or how did this evolve?
Yeah. Dustin and Shannon always sang together. That is something that is at the core of The Forecast. That dimension of the band has always been there and will always be.
Which bands did and do influence THE FORECAST?
We listen to a lot of classic rock and country music. Johnny Cash, Neil Young, Uriah Heep, Bruce Springsteen, but at the same time grew up with bands like Planes Mistaken For Stars, Braid, American Football. so its pretty eclectic.
You have already released an EP called "Relationships Ruin Friendships" via Thinker Thoughts Records this year. Where are the differences between "Relationships Ruin Friendships" and your full length "Late Night Conversations" which is going to be released may 17th?
The EP consists of one song from Late Night Conversations and the rest of the songs on the EP are songs that we felt didn't quite fit with the record as a whole.
Lets talk about "Late Night Conversations". Were the songs for the album already completely written and ready for recording when you entered the studio or did you rearrange and change a lot of parts once inside the studio? How was the recording process in general?
For the most part everything was ready to be recorded except for a few
parts here and there. Really, the only thing we changed were some of the
vocal harmonies and little things like that. The recording process was
awesome. We were fortunate enough to work With AJ Mogis and Presto Studios
and he did an amazing job. He is an awesome guy and did an amazing job.
Your new album is full of male-female vocal harmonies and wonderful
melodies. What kind of stories do you basically tell with this outfit?
The stories are simple, but honest. The songs are based on where we live
and grew up. They tell our real life story of life and love. We write what we know and what we have seen. Hopefully that comes across on the record.
You're all from Peoria, Illinois. How is the music scene there? I don't know a lot of bands hailing form Peoria, Illinois. Is there a lot to expect from in the near future?
The scene is really good. There are a lot of good bands and good people
involved in the scene here. The scene tends to go through cycles. Recently
it's been better than ever. The kids who come out are amazing and so supportive. We are definitely fortunate to have such a great home town. I
think in the future things are just going to get better. It's been so awesome to see so many of our friends and even people we don't know show so
much support for us. We couldn't ask for more.
What are you guys basically doing if not making music? Any interesting
hobbies etc?
We usually just hang out with friends. Peoria is a small town and not a
whole lot to do. I don't think we have any interesting hobbies. We are
pretty boring people when we aren't playing music.
What's on the schedule for THE FORECAST this year?
Touring, touring and more touring. We are going to try to get our music
out there as much as possible.
Are you guys planning on touring Europe?
That is definitely something that we would love to do more than anything.
Hopefully we will be able to do it sometime soon.
Thank you very much for your time. Do you have any final comments?
We can't wait to tour in Europe. Hopefully we will see you all soon.
