Release Date: Mar 1, 2011
Genre(s): Pop/Rock
Record label: Universal Distribution
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Review Summary: The weekend had to disappear for these kids to steady the ship.When singer-songwriter Sufjan Stevens announced his "Fifty States Project" in 2003, music pundits worldwide hailed it as the most ambitious concept ever to grace the music industry. First there was 'Michigan' and then 'Illinois', but that is where Stevens stopped. Surely it could not have been difficult to conjure up an album on Utah; Mountains, Mormons and the Jazz falling short should have been sufficient fodder.
When recording tracks for the next installment of their Weekend EP series, the guys in Forever the Sickest Kids were so happy with the songs they were laying down that they decided to chuck the concept and just go ahead and record a full album instead. When you listen to the resulting self-titled record, you can hear why they felt that way, as the songs are the most fully realized of their short career. The pop songs are unapologetically catchy and simple, the ballads are heart-on-the-sleeve emotional, and the sound of the record is shiny, slick (in a good way), and arena-ready.
When Forever The Sickest Kids released The Weekend: Friday in 2009, they planned to follow the mini LP with two companion pieces, appropriately titled The Weekend: Saturday and The Weekend: Sunday. The group quickly abandoned this path after Friday sank under the weight of its kitschy, clumsy lyrics and gallons of Auto-Tuned vocals. The band have thankfully corrected course for their self-titled sophomore full-length, but Forever The Sickest Kids is still a frustrating listen at times.
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