''Forever'' is an album by

Sleep ∞ Over Sleep ∞ Over is an American indie rock and experimental pop project founded by Stefanie Franciotti. The project began in 2010 when Franciotti released a self titled tape on Night People Records with collaborators Christa Palazzolo and Sarah Bro ...

released on the label

Hippos in Tanks Hippos in Tanks was a record label founded in 2010 by Barron Machat and Travis Woolsey. The label specialized in electronic music. It was named the best label of 2011 by '' FACT''. Following the death of Machat in 2015, ''The Fader'' praised the ...

in 2011.

Background

Sleep ∞ Over formed in 2009 as a trio of musicians Stefanie Franciotti, Sarah Brown and Christa Palazzolo. They produced and released various singles on the labels Light Lodge and Forest Family before Brown and Palazzolo left the project to form the group Boy Friend. Thus, Franciotti was left on her own to create Sleep ∞ Over's debut studio album.

Composition

Critic Guy Frowny suggests ''Forever'' is an "unfolding" of a "dark baby land," "a realm somewhere between heavens “turning by themselves,” populated by flying saucers, and the

lifeworld Lifeworld (or life-world) (german: Lebenswelt) may be conceived as a universe of what is self-evident or given, a world that subjects may experience together. The concept was popularized by Edmund Husserl, who emphasized its role as the ground o ...

-bound closed doors and tears that can reference either romance or depravity;" the unfolding is done by the vocals of Franciotti, symbolized as a spiritual guide. ''Forever'' is an

ambient Ambient or Ambiance or Ambience may refer to: Music and sound * Ambience (sound recording), also known as atmospheres or backgrounds * Ambient music, a genre of music that puts an emphasis on tone and atmosphere * ''Ambient'' (album), by Moby * ...

electropop Electropop is a hybrid music genre combining elements of electronic and pop genres. Writer Hollin Jones has described it as a variant of synth-pop with heavy emphasis on its electronic sound. The genre was developed in the 1980s and saw a re ...

record that is "downcast, introspective, and melodic," wrote Patrick McDermott of '' The Boston Phoenix''. In comparing ''Forever'' to the works of Peaking Lights and

Sun Araw Cameron Stallones, better known as Sun Araw, is an American musician. Previously a member of the band Magic Lantern, he has released several albums of experimental music, including a collaboration with Jamaican reggae group The Congos. He has als ...

, reviewer Zach Kelly categorized it as a

shoegaze Shoegaze (originally called shoegazing and sometimes conflated with "dream pop") is a subgenre of indie and alternative rock characterized by its ethereal mixture of obscured vocals, guitar distortion and effects, feedback, and overwhelming volu ...

record with a more "dynamic" and less "aimless" and "soupy" version of the noise-heavy, "highly textured" pop sound that was prevalent on Sleep ∞ Over's previous releases. According to Kelly, two types of tracks are prevalent on the record: slow-tempo new wave dance music and

experimental music Experimental music is a general label for any music or music genre that pushes existing boundaries and genre definitions. Experimental compositional practice is defined broadly by exploratory sensibilities radically opposed to, and questioning of, ...

with moods that range from

and majestic to harsh and avant-garde. '' Popmatters'' reviewer Zachary Houle wrote that the album alternates between two types of tracks: slow-paced "melodic keyboard pop" and experimental

psychedelic Psychedelics are a subclass of hallucinogenic drugs whose primary effect is to trigger non-ordinary states of consciousness (known as psychedelic experiences or "trips").Pollan, Michael (2018). ''How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of ...

noise pop instrumentals similar to songs on The Moody Blues album '' On the Threshold of a Dream'' (1969). Castor Green spotlighted the record's "full" sound, consisting of "meaty basslines, banks of drums and at times, drawn-out crescendos that recall more experimental recent albums by Julia Holter or Roly Porter." Writer Austin Powell labeled ''Forever'' in the same league as the works of Pure X and Neon Indian in that it was "redefining Texas

slowcore Slowcore is a subgenre of alternative rock and indie rock. The music of slowcore artists is generally characterized by bleak lyrics, downbeat melodies, slower tempos and minimalist arrangements. Slowcore is often used interchangeably with the t ...

for the chillwave generation." Critic Guy Frowny categorized the tracks into three types of styles: guitar-heavy drone music, ambient

industrial music Industrial music is a genre of music that draws on harsh, mechanical, transgressive or provocative sounds and themes. AllMusic defines industrial music as the "most abrasive and aggressive fusion of rock and electronic music" that was "initiall ...

and slow-tempo, lo-fi

synthesizer 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 ...

songs; he labeled the album's alternation between and combination of these styles to serve as its

hegelian dialectic Dialectic ( grc-gre, διαλεκτική, ''dialektikḗ''; related to dialogue; german: Dialektik), also known as the dialectical method, is a discourse between two or more people holding different points of view about a subject but wishing ...

that attempts to lead to an "unrealized" solution. There are "moments where the synth lines bend and distort, purposefully disfiguring the music’s beauty for a moment both fleeting and fearful." Frowny suggests that Franciotti sings in a manner where ''Forever'' involves a voyeur who listens to her "private" lullabies, and the listeners are "overhearing" these lullabies rather than Franciotti singing to the listeners. Franciotti's vocal performance garnered comparisons to the works of Laurel Halo, My Bloody Valentine and ethereal vocals present in the 1990s works of acts like

Love Spirals Downwards Love Spirals Downwards was an American, California-based band, that incorporated ethereal wave, dream pop, drum and bass and electronica. History Love Spirals Downwards was begun by multi-instrumentalist Ryan Lum and then-girlfriend Suzann ...

from journalists. Kelly analyzed Franciotti's vocal performance to range from "approachable and human" to "unremarkable, ..like a slurry Hope Sandoval trapped in a bell jar." Lyrically, Kelly described the songs as "frozen lullabies" consisting of problems that are figured with only an unsuggested tad bit of unsolved detail.

Critical reception

Reviews of ''Forever'' were generally favorable. Green called the LP a "strong" debut, writing that its songcrafting is what made it unique from most underground lo-fi 1980s-synth-music-influenced acts in the 2010s. In a mixed review, journalist Zachary Houle called ''Forever'' a "schizophrenic lo-fi keyboard-based version of early Sebadoh in its fractured sense of unity." He mainly criticized the record's "padded" and "formless" instrumentals but praised the "fragility" of the vocals that gave the album "structure."

Track listing

#Behind Closed Doors #Romantic Streams #Porcelain Hands #The Heavens Turn By Themselves #Casual Diamond #Crying Game #Flying Saucers Are Real #Stickers #Untitled #Don't Poison Everything

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Forever (Sleep Over album) 2011 albums