When "Forget The Rain" by Shotgun Symphony was released in Europe & Japan, it created a controversy that has yet to die down. On one hand, there were unanimous pans from critics who didn’t want the band to change from the style of their 1^st album. But these criticisms usually showed that these critics had not even bothered to listen to "Forget The Rain". The general consensus was that this cd was made for American musical tastes. On that, they were correct.

"Forget The Rain" was created to push the boundaries of melodic AOR rock into the 90’s and beyond. This was the goal and this is what we feel was accomplished. The reviews that follow are all favorable and generally glowing in their praise. The main reason for this is that these writers all took the time to listen and explore the intricacies of "Forget The Rain"...not something one can do casually and come up with the astute observations that follow. To all of these writers we say thank you. Thank you for validating the work that was put into creating what we feel will be considered this band’s masterpiece.

"Forget The Rain" is available thru Neh Records. Click to hear "Forget The Rain". 

Sometimes big surprises come from small record labels, and the Big Room O' Music has been spinning lately with some great stuff that caught me off-guard. Sha-La Records released an album by Shotgun Symphony that could shape the future of hard rock, if anyone else is talented and daring enough to follow them…

Shotgun Symphony – "Forget The Rain" (Sha-La Records). Sporting a titular suggestion obviously intended for Ithacans, these formidable musicians from New Jersey set out to change the direction of hard rock music and wound up releasing THE album find of 1997 for any hard rock fan. There's really nothing else quite like it out there, which I know doesn't help you readers much, but comparisons really just scratch the surface of the accomplishment of the record. It is a relentless, mature, awe-inspiring combination of the best elements of progressive and melodic hard rock, laced with modern elements of psychedelia and grungy undertones. Charlie Calv's keyboards show power and craft, alternately the foundations and frills of the songs, appropriate but not excessive in the context of the other fine vocal and instrumental performances. 

The band rocks with the power of Dream Theater, but the tunes are what make the album such a success, from the twisted melodicism of "Two Wrongs" to the perfect Pop/Prog/Metal fusion of album-opener "Carousel Of Broken Dreams". Other critics have mentioned their power-pop songwriting sensibilities or their cleverly extravagant song-craft, and both elements are present on the record. One critic even described the performance (in spots) as a mix between The Cure and Yes, a cross-breeding I couldn't even imagine until I heard this record. This is a brilliantly produced and performed album ready to challenge and thrill anyone with an open mind and a taste for aggressive rock. It successfully flies in the faces of conventions I never knew existed before as one of the best, most unforgettable albums I've heard in a long, long time.

…………Eric Aaron / Ithaca Journal 

Tape loops, samples, searing guitars, sudden bursts of colourfully melodic noise.  Not musical techniques you would readily associate with Shotgun Symphony. Not after the fresh flavoured AOR of their debut. But if that debut was their first small step up the stairway, then "Forget The Rain" is one huge leap for these New Jersey Wunderkind.  Dip in anywhere and you'll come up with an exotic, chunky soundbite, muddily fashioned in the image of contemporary rock. Scrape the surface though and you'll uncover the pop sensibilities of a band like Cheap Trick or Enuff Z'Nuff.  Early single release "What If" proved therefore to be a red herring. Certainly, in common with other album tracks "My Escape" and "Two Wrongs" it features a heavily processed sound, set into a solid rhythmic rockface of rough hewn, repetitive riffs and at first brought to mind words like "sell" and "out".  Big mistake. 

In the context of the album it simply represents one aspect of the beefed up techno metal melodifest of "Forget The Rain".  Elsewhere, the album can be divided into two camps, each led from the front by Tom Fletcher's rich varied and imaginative production. On "Carousel of Broken Dreams", "The Line" and "Waiting For The Sun" the band take their original AOR blueprint on a dangerous, exhilarating, helter skelter ride through the primal soup of contemporary rock.  Conversely, "Eyes Of Anger" and "Playing With Fools" are edge of the century technology junkies, playing spaced out space rock, and coming on like zonked out Jellyfish jamming with Hawkwind. Psychedelia for the nineties.  Take a chance. You won't be disappointed.

Highly recommended.    9/10       Brian McGowan             HARD ROXX UK

Finally the long awaited (and much maligned) second album from Shotgun Symphony is out, well in Japan at least. Last year the first single off "Forget The Rain", "What If" got such a lukewarm response that it looked like the writing was on the wall for Tracy White and Co. The new direction coupled with a drastic image change and I mean drastic image change left a lot of furrowed brows amongst the band’s followers. Was "Forget The Rain" worth the wait? Initially I wasn’t convinced but with repeated plays I’m starting to get what it’s all about. This album is a bold and courageous step from a band who are expanding their horizons, and I for one have nothing but admiration for an outfit who are willing to re-invent themselves for the better. Warrant being a classic case in point, Shotgun Symphony in 1997 is about pushing back acknowledged boundaries, exploring different aspects of sound design and in the process creating something new and wholly original. It doesn’t always work but then it doesn’t have to - this is art we are talking about after all, and that should always involve taking chances.

People hoping for "Highway To Tomorrow" part two will undoubtedly be disappointed but the more adventurous will find plenty to hold their interest. From opener "Carousel of Broken Dreams" onto "Playing With Fools" (which sounds like The Cure mixed with Yes!) and the standout "Eyes Of Anger", this is a quality rock album at it’s core.  As I said before, it doesn’t always work. "The Line" (great verse, no hook) and "Two Wrongs", which borrows liberally from Zep’s "Black Dog", are a little over ambitious, but these are countered by "Yesterday’s Gone" and "My Escape" where the balance between convention and invention is spot on. Same goes for "Waiting For The Sun". Heck, even "What If" works when heard in context with the rest of the album.

"Forget The Rain" is not without it’s flaws but Shotgun Symphony can be proud of what they’ve achieved. Creatively it’s miles beyond the AOR-by-numbers of their debut and that’s no bad thing. Album number three will be even better.

7 stars (out of 10)….Mik Gaffney/Frontiers Magazine

(Sha-La CD41022-2)

KKK (out of 5K)

WHILE AOR faces the threat of absolute extinction, New Jersey’s Shotgun Symphony are one of the harder working outfits still slugging it out. "Forget The Rain" is their second studio album and an improvement on their first. This time around, they’ve made a real effort to ignore the rule book combining ‘70s psychedelia with some surprising heaviness.

…………………..Steve Beebee/Kerrang!

SHOTGUN SYMPHONY/WHAT IF...(CD Single)

Sounding every bit like a Spooky Tooth/Stone Temple Pilots union, New Jersey's Shotgun Symphony crank in a most psychedelic way on the edgy, swirling, slightly retro "What If..." The group adds Chili Pepper swagger and Faith No More dramatics to "My Escape" to create a nice blast of radio-ready alterna-sheen--while secret track number three adds a bit of early Soundgarden to the mix. Impressive.

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