''Night Time, My Time'' is the debut studio album by American singer

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 Bloodsh ...

, released on October 29, 2013, 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 ...

. The album was originally set to be released in 2011, following the singles "17", " One", and " Obsession". However, they became commercial failures and caused her label to postpone the album repeatedly. As a result, many recording sessions were held for the album; some of which went towards two

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.

s (EP), '' As If!'' (2011) and ''

Ghost A ghost is the soul or spirit of a dead person or animal that is believed to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to rea ...

'' (2012). The final result includes work from Ferreira and producers including

Ariel Rechtshaid Ariel Rechtshaid ( ;) is an American record producer, audio engineer, mixing engineer, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter. His accolades include three Grammy Awards for music production. Rechtshaid was the lead singer and guitarist of the ska ...

, Justin Raisen, and

Dan Nigro Daniel Leonard Nigro (born May 14, 1982) is an American musician, songwriter, instrumentalist and record producer. He was the lead singer and guitarist of the indie rock band As Tall As Lions. Nigro has produced, written and co-written songs ...

, which marks a departure from her previously released material. Musically, it is an

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

and

synth-pop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a subgenre of new wave music that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s ...

album that explores 1980s pop music, 1990s

grunge Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is an alternative rock genre and subculture that emerged during the in the American Pacific Northwest state of Washington, particularly in Seattle and nearby towns. Grunge fuses elements of p ...

, and various styles of

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

, while its lyrics convey themes such as failure, love, and anger. The album cover, shot by film director

Gaspar Noé Gaspar Noé (, ; born 27 December 1963) is an Argentine filmmaker based in Paris, France. He is the son of Argentine painter, writer, and intellectual Luis Felipe Noé. In the early 1990s, Noé along with his wife Lucile Hadžihalilović were ...

, portrays a

topless Toplessness refers to the state in which a woman's breasts, including her areolas and nipples, are exposed, especially in a public place or in a visual medium. The male equivalent is barechestedness, also commonly called shirtlessness. Expose ...

Ferreira in a shower. ''Night Time, My Time'' received positive reviews from music critics, who praised its sound; it has been recognized by numerous media outlets as one of 2013's best albums and was ranked by ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to th ...

'' as number 43 in a list of the 200 best albums of the 2010s. It was a modest success commercially; it debuted on the US ''Billboard'' 200 at number 45 and on the

Australian Albums Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...

at number 40. ''Night Time, My Time'' was preceded by the digital release of its lead single "

You're Not the One "You're Not the One" is a song by American singer Sky Ferreira from her debut studio album, ''Night Time, My Time'' (2013). The song was written and produced by Ariel Rechtshaid and Justin Raisen, with additional songwriting provided by Ferreir ...

", accompanied by a music video. Capitol Records also issued "24 Hours" and "

Boys A boy is a young male human. The term is commonly used for a child or an adolescent. When a male human reaches adulthood, he is described as a man. Definition, etymology, and use According to the ''Merriam-Webster Dictionary'', a boy is "a ...

" as free digital

promotional singles 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 ...

, and although it was not released as a single, a music video was filmed for the album's title track.

Background and development

After releasing the tracks "17", " One", and " Obsession", Ferreira announced that her debut studio album would be released on January 11, 2011. However, Ferreira's budget was dramatically reduced which led to the cancellation of the record; such release was substituted with the extended play (EP) '' As If!'', which was released on March 22, 2011. In November 2011, Ferreira announced that her debut studio album would be released in 2012, with a lead single planned to precede its release that February. The following month, she revealed that she was currently in the studio, working in her debut album with

Jon Brion Jon Brion is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, and composer. He performed with the Excerpts, the Bats, 'Til Tuesday and the Grays before becoming an established producer and film score composer. Brion has ...

throughout 2012, and "possibly" with

Shirley Manson Shirley Ann Manson (born 26 August 1966) is a Scottish musician and actress. She is best known as the lead singer of the American alternative rock band Garbage. Manson gained media attention for her forthright style, rebellious attitude, and di ...

and

Greg Kurstin Gregory Allen Kurstin (born May 14, 1969) is an American record producer, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter. He has won nine Grammy Awards, including Producer of the Year, Non-Classical in 2017 and 2018, and written and produced four songs t ...

. In early 2012, Ferreira renamed the LP ''Wild at Heart'', and confirmed "24 Hours" and "Swamp Girl" would be included in it. Another song, entitled "Lost in My Bedroom", surfaced online that March. After releasing the music video for the track " Red Lips" in June, she stated that she had renamed the record once again, changing its title to ''I'm Not Alright''. The album was also briefly referred to as ''I Will''. Ferreira began working with

, whom she contacted and met after Rechtshaid had heard "One" and subsequently " liked" Ferreira's Facebook page. After her single "

Everything Is Embarrassing "Everything Is Embarrassing" is a song by American singer Sky Ferreira from her second extended play (EP), '' Ghost'' (2012). It was first premiered online on August 30, 2012, and was later released as a single on April 16, 2013, by Capitol Recor ...

" unexpectedly became popular on

indie Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Gaming *Independent video game development, video games created without financial backing from large companies *Indie game, any game (board ...

-oriented music blogs, Ferreira released another EP, ''Ghost'', on October 16, 2012. In early 2013, Ferreira intended to release an album composed of a mixture of tracks she had written and recorded with Brion and those she had written and recorded with Rechtshaid. After the album experienced more delays, Ferreira decided to keep recording with Rechtshaid and co-producer Justin Raisen in order to make the album more cohesive in sound, dropping the Brion-produced tracks from the record. After her record label refused to fund the album's recording sessions any further, Ferreira did so herself, with money she had earned from her modeling career to cover the costs of recording and equipment for these sessions. A majority of the album's content was completely recorded, mixed, and mastered in just a few weeks during August 2013. On August 29, 2013, Ferreira posted a photograph on her Facebook page indicating that the record was complete.

Music and lyrics

''Night Time, My Time'' is an

and

album, exploring different musical styles of those heard on Ferreira's second EP ''Ghost'' (2012). While the latter had a more "relaxed" sonic atmosphere—featuring

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 ...

, synth-pop and acoustic styles—the album incorporates

1980s File:1980s replacement montage02.PNG, 420px, From left, clockwise: The first Space Shuttle, ''Columbia'', lifts off in 1981; US president Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev ease tensions between the two superpowers, leading to the ...

pop and

1990s File:1990s decade montage.png, From top left, clockwise: The Hubble Space Telescope orbits the Earth after it was launched in 1990; American F-16s and F-15s fly over burning oil fields in Operation Desert Storm, also known as the 1991 Gulf War ...

, while also drawing inspiration from

1970s File:1970s decade montage.jpg, Clockwise from top left: U.S. President Richard Nixon doing the V for Victory sign after his resignation from office following the Watergate scandal in 1974; The United States was still involved in the Vietnam War i ...

art rock Art rock is a subgenre of rock music that generally reflects a challenging or avant-garde approach to rock, or which makes use of modernist, experimental, or unconventional elements. Art rock aspires to elevate rock from entertainment to an art ...

and 1980s

psychedelic rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...

, new wave, and

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-roc ...

. The songs occasionally include guitars and "hard-hitting", as on "I Will" and "

"; however, the album incorporates diverse music genres, including new wave on "Love in Stereo" and "24 Hours", and

ska Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a walki ...

on "Kristine". Amongst other elements in the album's songs, are

arcade game An arcade game or coin-op game is a coin-operated entertainment machine typically installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are presented as primarily games of skill and include arcade v ...

samples. The atmosphere of the album was said to evoke records of

Best Coast Best Coast is an American rock duo formed in Los Angeles, California in 2009. The band consists of songwriter, guitarist and vocalist Bethany Cosentino and guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Bobb Bruno. Cosentino, a former child actress, began w ...

, Garbage, and

Siouxsie and the Banshees Siouxsie and the Banshees were a British rock band formed in London in 1976 by vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bass guitarist Steven Severin. They have been widely influential, both over their contemporaries and with later acts. ''Q'' magazine in ...

with " distorted tracks". Ferreira, who mostly sings in a low register, explores a multitude of lyrical themes. A prominent one is failure, provoked by record label manipulation and oppression. Ferreira stated that the record was her try at getting the listeners to "know er, and further said that in the record, she felt like herself and that she had control over such lyricism. However, another scope of themes is present on the record, such as love, inconstant relationships and

feminism Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

. Her personality is reflected through an array of states of spirit—frustration and anger are contrasted with vulnerability, "redemption" and self-confidence. ''Night Time, My Time'' was named after lines spoken by

Laura Palmer Laura Palmer is a fictional character in the ''Twin Peaks'' franchise. She is portrayed by Sheryl Lee and was created by the series creators David Lynch and Mark Frost. She first appears in the ABC original series ''Twin Peaks''. A high schoo ...

in the film '' Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me'' (1992).

Release and artwork

The artwork for ''Night Time, My Time'' was photographed by Argentine director

at Hotel Amour in Paris, and was unveiled by Ferreira on October 10, 2013. It depicts the close-up of a

Ferreira, whose left breast is exposed and is wearing a

cross necklace __NOTOC__ A cross necklace is any necklace featuring a Christian cross or crucifix. Crosses are often worn as an indication of commitment to the Christian faith, and are sometimes received as gifts for rites such as baptism and confirmation. Com ...

, inside of a green-tiled shower. She originally considered using another picture for the album artwork, and was additionally encouraged by

to choose an older photograph where she was seen with "long blonde hair ..sitting on a bed looking cute ..in a black dress looking pretty". Ferreira ultimately selected the topless image because she felt it more accurately reflected the nature of the record. The artwork for the album on most streaming services is censored and does not show her breasts. The uncensored version is available on the cover of the vinyl release. ''Night Time, My Time'' was released as a digital download through the

iTunes Store The iTunes Store is a digital media store operated by Apple Inc. It opened on April 28, 2003, as a result of Steve Jobs' push to open a digital marketplace for music. As of April 2020, iTunes offered 60 million songs, 2.2 million apps, 25,00 ...

in the United States on October 29, 2013, where it was exclusively available until November 5, 2013. It was additionally made available for

pre-order A pre-order is an order placed for an item that has not yet been released. The idea for pre-orders came because people found it hard to get popular items in stores because of their popularity. Companies then had the idea to allow customers to r ...

on CD and LP formats, although Ferreira publicly criticized Capitol Records when they were unavailable for its initial release and announced that she would self-fund the creation of vinyl versions. Following the launch of her third extended play '' Night Time, My Time: B-Sides Part 1'' in November, her MyPlayDirect store began selling bundles that included a green translucent vinyl pressing, a compact disc, a digital download, and a poster of the album artwork. Ferreira announced that the pre-ordered copies of ''Night Time, My Time'' were shipped on November 27, while Capitol Records released their own vinyl versions of the record on January 28, 2014. A limited edition that included Ferreira's second extended play ''Ghost'' (2012) was also released.

Promotion

" was released as the lead single from ''Night Time, My Time'' on September 24, 2013. Its music video, paying visual homage to 1983 film '' The Hunger'' and set in a high-fashion nightclub, was released on the same day. On November 25, 2013, Ferreira appeared on the program ''

Late Show with David Letterman The ''Late Show with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS, the first iteration of the The Late Show (franchise), ''Late Show'' franchise. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and was produced by ...

'', where she performed the single. "24 Hours" was released as a free

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 the same day of the album's release. A music video for the album's title track, directed by Grant Singer and released on November 27, 2013, sees Ferreira wearing a variety of wigs and lingerie.

Natasha Stagg Natasha Stagg is a writer based in New York City. Early life and education Stagg grew up in Tucson, Arizona. She attended the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, where her writing won a Hopwood Award for nonfiction and the Roy W. Cowden Memori ...

of '' V'' wrote that, in the video, Ferreira "embraces the title she's been deemed by dressing in provocatively infantile accessories" and "cleverly eliversthe junkie role back in her detractors' faces." ''

Consequence of Sound ''Consequence'' (previously ''Consequence of Sound'') is an independently owned New York-based online magazine featuring news, editorials, and reviews of music, movies, and television. In addition, the website also features the Festival Outlook ...

'' named the video among the best of 2013. Though not a single, on December 19, 2014, "Omanko" received a music video, directed by Ferreira's then-boyfriend, DIIV frontman

Zachary Cole Smith Zachary Cole Smith (born November 7, 1984) is an American musician, model and music video director, best known for being the founder, frontman, and principal songwriter of the indie rock band DIIV. He first began playing in bands like Soft Blac ...

, consisting of "silly homemade videos of Ferreira spliced with footage of her onstage performances" in a

lo-fi Lo-fi (also typeset as lofi or low-fi; short for low fidelity) is a music or production quality in which elements usually regarded as imperfections in the context of a recording or performance are present, sometimes as a deliberate choice. The ...

quality. The video was later taken off of YouTube by a copyright claim from

Universal Music Group Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...

. Prior to the album release, US tour dates featuring Ferreira alongside

Vampire Weekend Vampire Weekend is an American rock band from New York City, formed in 2006 and currently signed to Columbia Records. The band was formed by lead vocalist and guitarist Ezra Koenig, multi-instrumentalist Rostam Batmanglij, drummer Chris Tomson, ...

and

Smith Westerns Smith Westerns were an American indie rock band from Chicago, Illinois, United States, composed of brothers Cullen and Cameron Omori as well as Max Kakacek, Julien Ehrlich and Hal James. Their musical influences included David Bowie, T. Rex and O ...

were revealed. Due to a vocal injury, Ferreira canceled the tour with three shows remaining. On November 25, 2013, a live concert with Ferreira was held at Rough Trade New York, followed by a signing session. The attendance could purchase the original LP along with its ''Night Time, My Time: B-sides Part I'' EP. In addition to serving as an opening act for several dates of

Miley Cyrus Miley Ray Cyrus ( ; born Destiny Hope Cyrus on November 23, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her distinctive raspy voice, her music spans across varied styles and genres, including pop, country, rock, hip hop ...

's worldwide

Bangerz Tour The Bangerz Tour was the fourth concert tour by American singer Miley Cyrus. It was held in support of her fourth studio album, ''Bangerz'' (2013). The tour visited the Americas, Europe, and Oceania through five legs. It spanned from February 14 ...

, Ferreira also promoted the record at one-off headlining shows and

festival A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival c ...

appearances throughout 2014, punctuated by a five-date run of

West Coast West Coast or west coast may refer to: Geography Australia * Western Australia *Regions of South Australia#Weather forecasting, West Coast of South Australia * West Coast, Tasmania **West Coast Range, mountain range in the region Canada * Britis ...

shows in November.

Critical reception

''Night Time, My Time'' received generally positive reviews from music critics. At

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...

, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an

average In ordinary language, an average is a single number taken as representative of a list of numbers, usually the sum of the numbers divided by how many numbers are in the list (the arithmetic mean). For example, the average of the numbers 2, 3, 4, 7, ...

score of 79, based on 30 reviews. Writing for

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

, Heather Phares complimented the record for being "consistently good", and elaborated that Ferreira successfully blended "her teen pop past with her current interest in indie rock in surprising, creative, and always catchy ways".

Annie Zaleski Annie Zaleski is an American music journalist and author. Career Zaleski is a regular writer for mainstream media outlets such as The A.V. Club and NPR Music, and a columnist at ''Salon''. She is based in Cleveland, Ohio where she has won firs ...

from ''

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...

'' commented that it seemed "like the first release on which Ferreira is truly engaged with the music she's creating", and placed particular praise towards her success in "portraying erselfas a complex person who's successfully discovered her own voice." Lauren Martin from ''

Fact A fact is a datum about one or more aspects of a circumstance, which, if accepted as true and proven true, allows a logical conclusion to be reached on a true–false evaluation. Standard reference works are often used to check facts. Scient ...

'' appreciated that Ferreira "

ells Ells may refer to: * Ell, a measure of length * Ell (architecture) * Ells (surname), a surname * Ells Field, an airport in Mendocino County, California, United States * Ells River, in Alberta, Canada * Euroleague for Life Sciences See also * E ...

personal tales of familiar issues of love, heartbreak and identity in refreshed and engaging ways", which she elaborated was her personal "highlight" from the record. Carrie Battan from ''

'' stated that ''Night Time, My Time'' was "one of the most pleasingly conventional and cohesive pieces of pop-rock to come along this year" for integrating "80s pop sparkle and full-bodied 90s grunge in a streamlined way." Writing for ''

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, fi ...

'', Elias Leight felt that the fact that ''Night Time, My Time'' "

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Background and development

Music and lyrics

Release and artwork

Promotion

Critical reception

Accolades

Commercial performance

Track listing

Notes

Personnel

Musicians

Technical

Artwork

Charts

Release history

''Night Time, My Time: B-Sides Part 1''

Track listing

Personnel

Notes

References