Forever In Motion – The Beautiful Unknown

I really like this album, I really do; but I can’t help but feel that The Beautiful Unknown is still missing something – something that would make me go from “liking” to “loving” this record. For you see, Brendon Matthew Thomas has crafted a beautiful and melodic solo record but a record that is ultimately forgettable and passable.

The overall tone of The Beautiful Unknown is a sad one, as it starts off with deep sound effects piano and Drive Till Morning-esque vocals. There is introspection and regret in the vocals, sung smoothly overtop the musical backdrop. However, no matter how hard Thomas tries, the vocals are only truly memorable during a few odd moments throughout the record. While every song and melody flows smoothly from one to another, it also lacks any real depth or differentiation turning it into one solid mass instead of a dozen separate tracks.

Despite the generic traits being a common factor throughout the entire record, Foreverinmotion is able to craft some soulful acoustic ballads. The album is full of moving crescendos, soaring melodies and carefully plucked chords combining for a variation of momentum. From the straight forward acoustic track Turn And Chase The Wind (whose vocals seem to have been recorded in an empty room giving a sort of echoey feedback to them) to the more up tempo Open Eyes And The Boundless Sky with the overlapping/layered vocals, The Beautiful Unknown is diverse enough to keep you entertained the whole way through just not enough to keep you coming back to it.

The definite standout tracks on the album come in the form of The Clothes We Walk In and And The King Would Say because on those tracks Thomas lets himself do all the work. The tracks aren’t bogged down with effects and multiple instruments. Instead what you get is just Thomas, with his vocals being the main focus of the tracks. It is on those tracks, when you get the simple melodies with the powerful, sincere and honest vocals and lyrics that are actually delivered in an catchy and memorable fashion, that you see the true potential of the record.

So while I still say that I enjoy The Beautiful Unknown, there’s still something that is missing in it. If more tracks where like the two aforementioned, then I could see this record getting a higher score; but as it is, the album is good but forgettable. There’s nothing distinct enough in the album to take it to the next level and I can’t help but feel that in a month or two I’ll have forgotten all about it.