1996 saw its good and bad occurences. The ones that come to mind are the sad exit of the great PfR and the triumphant entrance of their brother band, Believable Picnic. Lead singer of BP just happened to be the older brother of lead singer Joel Hanson from PfR, and coincidentally shared a relatively similar voice. But BP wasn't (and still isn't) a PfR: The Next Generation, and won't be, for they entered the scene with a fun modern rock sound that gathered a following quite quickly. But shortly after their album release, the band was barely heard of, and nearly three years passed by before anything was heard of from this 3-piece band. A new album was scheduled for this March and before long, the release date came and went with no trace of disc. Months passed with no sign, until...
On July 21st, the newest BP member, Nick Ayres, filled us in on their whereabouts, "As far as why it's been so long between albums, there's a lot of story in that too. However, once the album was finally conceived and we decided to do it, the big hold up was distribution. Absolute [Records] had been distributed by WCD (Warner Christian Distribution), and our album was set to drop like March 15th, but WCD closed it's doors like 5 days before our album release. So, since then, there has been a mad distribution scramble, and things are just beginning to work out. In any case, we have actually seen fully completed CDs, so in all likelihood, it should be in stores in the next two weeks."
Since then, we got our paws on a copy of this Picnic's 2nd helping and after many listens, have realized the album was worth the wait. This modern rock disc stretches the boundaries of different styles for one album with everything from killer modern rock ("Shed My Skin") to 70s music ("Easy Chair") to Beach-Boyish surfer music ("Ride the Wave"). 'Fun' sums up this album with the bouncy "New Year's Eve," to the songs that repeat like broken records through your head like "Little Ditty @ 108bpm" or "Easy Chair."
Welcome to the Future is one of the best albums this summer and is a must to check out for all music fans (BP lovers and non alike!)
- Review date: 8/3/99, written by John DiBiase
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Record Label: Absolute Records
Album length: 11 tracks, 36 minutes and 4 seconds
Street Date: 1999
Buy It: Amazon.com
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Kevin Max Black Sheep of the Fold (independent)
