''As If!'' is the debut

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

(EP) by American singer and songwriter

Sky Ferreira Sky Tonia Ferreira (born July 8, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter, model, and actress. As a teenager, Ferreira began uploading videos on Myspace of herself singing songs she had written, which led to her discovery by producers Bloods ...

. It was released on March 22, 2011 by

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...

, in place of her frequently delayed debut studio album, which eventually became ''

Night Time, My Time ''Night Time, My Time'' is the debut studio album by American singer Sky Ferreira, released on October 29, 2013, by Capitol Records. The album was originally set to be released in 2011, following the singles "17", " One", and " Obsession". Howe ...

'' (2013). Its lead single "

Sex Rules "Sex Rules" is a song by American singer Sky Ferreira from her debut extended play (EP), ''As If! (EP), As If!'' (2011). It was released on March 1, 2011, by Capitol Records as the lead single from the EP. The song was written by Ferreira, Greg Ku ...

" was released on March 1, 2011.

Background

Ferreira, who had been in contact with music from an early age, started recording professionally when she was 14. This move was done by Ferreira after going to a

Daft Punk Daft Punk were a French electronic music duo formed in 1993 in Paris by Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo. Widely regarded as one of the most influential acts in dance music history, they achieved popularity in the late 1990s as p ...

concert, which she credited with having "changed erlife"; she also started going to

nightclub A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...

s and listening to

dance music Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement. In terms of performance, the major categories are live dance music and recorded danc ...

. From there on, Ferreira began making several

demos Demos may refer to: Computing * DEMOS, a Soviet Unix-like operating system * DEMOS (ISP), the first internet service provider in the USSR * Demos Commander, an Orthodox File Manager for Unix-like systems * plural for Demo (computer programming) ...

with friends on audio-specializing program GarageBand, and uploading them onto her Myspace account. Ferreira also featured a remix of the song "Teen Lovers" by American band

the Virgins The Virgins were an American indie rock band formed in 2006 in New York City. The band split up in November 2013. History 2006–2007: Formation Frontman Donald Cumming began writing music by himself in his New York apartment. He then recruited ...

, produced by the Shoes and gained attention online peaking atop the Hype Machine chart. After the

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

duo

Bloodshy & Avant Bloodshy & Avant are a Swedish songwriting and production duo consisting of Christian "Bloodshy" Karlsson and Pontus "Avant" Winnberg. They have worked with many prominent artists, including Britney Spears, Kylie Minogue, Ms. Dynamite, Madonna, ...

noticed them, Ferreira was introduced to several "major" record labels which became interested in signing her, as well as producers who wanted to work with her. That interest led to a bidding war between several labels, who according to Ferreira, viewed her as a "way of making money". Due to promises that she would have "creative freedom" and control, Ferreira ultimately opted for

EMI EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British Transnational corporation, transnational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in March 1 ...

. Six months after, she realized that those claims were false, as the executives at the label largely controlled her creative decisions. While recording, Ferreira started working with independent producers, such as

Paul Epworth Paul Richard Epworth (born 25 July 1974) is an English record producer, songwriter, musician, and remixer. He has worked with artists including Adele, Florence and the Machine, Rihanna, and Maxïmo Park, among many others. He is a member o ...

, however the label suggested collaborations with more known musicians—for example,

Dr. Luke Lukasz Sebastian Gottwald (born September 26, 1973), known professionally as Dr. Luke, Tyson Trax, and Made in China, is an American record producer and songwriter. His professional music career began in the late-night television sketch comedy ...

—as part of a process which was described as "mould ng Ferreira "into the perfect little pop robot".

Release and promotion

Ferreira released two songs in 2010, titled "17" and " One". While the former did not chart, the latter managed to peak at number 64 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. " Obsession" was announced as the lead single from her planned debut, and scheduled for US radio release in September of that year. Simultaneously, the album was announced for a January 11, 2011 release. "Obsession", however, was not able to enter any record chart with the exception of the US ''Billboard'' Hot Dance Club Songs. After EMI lost money on promoting Ferreira, the label reduced her budget "dramatically", ultimately leading to the cancellation of the album. However, the album was postponed and ''As If!'' was announced for release on March 22, 2011 by

. Prior to the extended play's release, "

" was issued as a

promotional single A promotional recording, or promo, or plug copy, is an audio or video recording distributed free, usually in order to promote a recording that is or soon will be commercially available. Promos are normally sent directly to broadcasters, such as ...

on March 1, 2011. Ferreira and "Sex Rules" were concurrently featured in the advertisement campaign for

Calvin Klein Calvin Richard Klein (born November 19, 1942) is an American fashion designer who launched the company that would later become Calvin Klein Inc., in 1968. In addition to clothing, he also has given his name to a range of perfumes, watches, and ...

's CK One brand.

Composition

Unlike Ferreira's later work, her first EP was heavily pop-centric, relying mostly on

synthesizers A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and ...

and

electronic drums Electronic drums is a modern electronic musical instrument, primarily designed to serve as an alternative to an acoustic drum kit. Electronic drums consist of an electronic sound module which produces the synthesized or sampled percussion sounds ...

, with no acoustic instruments. On the opening track "

", Ferreira sings over a 1980s pop-style beat about

sexual liberation The sexual revolution, also known as the sexual liberation, was a social movement that challenged traditional codes of behavior related to sexuality and interpersonal relationships throughout the United States and the developed world from the ...

, instructing the listener to "Use your god-given tools". "Traces" is a slower

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

produced by Colin Monroe and co-written by English artist

Neon Hitch Neon Hitch (born 25 May 1986) is an English singer and songwriter. She was signed to Mike Skinner and Ted Mayhem's label, The Beats, before it closed down. She was later discovered on MySpace by Benny Blanco, who flew her to New York City to ...

. It contains a dark

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

melody A melody (from Greek language, Greek μελῳδία, ''melōidía'', "singing, chanting"), also tune, voice or line, is a Linearity#Music, linear succession of musical tones that the listener perceives as a single entity. In its most liter ...

, with subtle

strings String or strings may refer to: *String (structure), a long flexible structure made from threads twisted together, which is used to tie, bind, or hang other objects Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Strings'' (1991 film), a Canadian anim ...

hidden behind robotic

dubstep Dubstep is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in South London in the early 2000s. The style emerged as a UK garage offshoot that blended 2-step rhythms and sparse dub production, as well as incorporating elements of broken be ...

whines and beats. "Haters Anonymous" is an abstract

electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductor * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic co ...

thumper where Ferreira reads the lyrics in a low droning voice, speaking about media backlash and the hypocrisy of her critics. "99 Tears" contains a screaming Siouxsie and the Banshees

sample Sample or samples may refer to: Base meaning * Sample (statistics), a subset of a population – complete data set * Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal * Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of s ...

at the

intro Introduction, The Introduction, Intro, or The Intro may refer to: General use * Introduction (music), an opening section of a piece of music * Introduction (writing), a beginning section to a book, article or essay which states its purpose and ...

, followed by more 1980s electropop. Lyrically the song is about revenge on an ex-lover. The closing track "108" tells an abstract tale of a deranged girl in love with an immortal being. The lyrics are stuttered and chanted over

melancholic Melancholia or melancholy (from el, µέλαινα χολή ',Burton, Bk. I, p. 147 meaning black bile) is a concept found throughout ancient, medieval and premodern medicine in Europe that describes a condition characterized by markedly d ...

electronic-pop, with

's signature piano arpeggio's and

vintage Vintage, in winemaking, is the process of picking grapes and creating the finished product—wine (see Harvest (wine)). A vintage wine is one made from grapes that were all, or primarily, grown and harvested in a single specified year. In certa ...

theremin The theremin (; originally known as the ætherphone/etherphone, thereminophone or termenvox/thereminvox) is an electronic musical instrument controlled without physical contact by the performer (who is known as a thereminist). It is named afte ...

samples.

Critical reception

Upon release, ''As If!'' received polarizing responses from

music journalists Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...

. Caryn Ganz of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' provided a positive review for the extended play, awarding it a rating of three and a half stars out of five. Ganz described it as "incredibly fun" and while expounding on Ferreira's Internet hype, she stated that the record proved that "the heat isn't just hot air". MuuMuse's Bradley Stern echoed praise for the disc, deeming it a "rock solid" "perfect pop production" and favoring Ferreira's musicality and personality. Writing for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'',

Jon Caramanica Jon Caramanica (born 1975) is an American journalist and pop music critic who writes for ''The New York Times''. He is also known for writing about hip hop music. Biography Born in Brooklyn, New York, Caramanica received his bachelor's degree ...

typed a more mixed critique—while he highlighted ''As If!''s "inevitability" and its production, he criticized Ferreira's "dry" delivery and the songs' lyricism.

Track listing

Credits adapted from the liner notes of ''As If!''.

Release history

References

{{Authority control 2011 debut EPs Albums produced by Bloodshy & Avant Albums produced by Greg Kurstin Columbia Records EPs Sky Ferreira EPs