''Smile Kid'' (stylized as ''Smile Kid シ'') is the second studio album by American
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 ...
band
We the Kings
We the Kings is an American rock band from Bradenton, Florida. The band's eponymous full-length debut album, released in 2007, included the platinum single "Check Yes Juliet", and went on to sell over 250,000 copies in the US. The group's secon ...
, released through
S-Curve Records
S-Curve Records was founded in 2000 by former Mercury Records executive Steve Greenberg. It is based in New York City. In 2001 the label established a distribution and licensing agreement with EMI Records. Among the hits released by S-Curve be ...
on December 8, 2009.
The album title comes from a lyric in the song "The Story of Your Life".
Background
Travis Clark said "Everything had an anthemic sound to it."
[ The lyrics Clark wrote for ''Smile Kid'' "were just so in-depth and meaningful to me personally".]
Release
"Heaven Can Wait" was released as a single on October 13, 2009 and charted at number 18 on the ''Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
'' Heatseekers Songs
Top Heatseekers are "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The Heatseekers Albums and the Heatseekers Songs charts were introduced by ''Billboard'' in 1991 with the purpose of highlighting the sales by new an ...
chart and at number 32 on the Pop Songs
Pop Airplay (also called Mainstream Top 40, Pop Songs, and Top 40/ CHR) is a 40-song music chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' Magazine that ranks the most popular songs of pop music being played on a panel of Top 40 radio stations in the Un ...
chart. Actress and singer Demi Lovato
Demetria Devonne Lovato ( ; born August 20, 1992), known as Demi Lovato, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. After appearing on the children's television series ''Barney & Friends'' (2002–2004), Lovato rose to prominence for pl ...
was also announced to be contributing guest vocals on album's song "We'll Be a Dream" which is the second single off the album. The band undertook a tour of the United States to support the album.[ ] Between mid-October and early December, the band went on a US tour alongside All Time Low
All Time Low is an American rock band from Towson, Maryland, formed in 2003. Consisting of lead vocalist/rhythm guitarist Alex Gaskarth, lead guitarist Jack Barakat, bassist/backing vocalist Zack Merrick, and drummer Rian Dawson, the band too ...
, Hey Monday
Hey Monday was an American rock band from West Palm Beach, Florida, formed in 2008. They released their debut album '' Hold On Tight'' in 2008, which produced the singles "Homecoming" and "How You Love Me Now". The album was followed up with the ...
and the Friday Night Boys
The Friday Night Boys was an American rock band from Fairfax, Virginia. The band consisted of lead vocalist and guitarist Andrew Goldstein, guitarist and backing vocalist Mike Toohey, bassist Robby Reider, and drummer Chris Barrett. The band was ...
.
The artwork for the album was released on November 8, 2009. Following the release of a false track listing in October, the official track listing was announced on November 17, 2009. The album was also originally scheduled to be released on November 17, but was corrected to be released on December 8, 2009.Take Action Tour
The Take Action Tour is an annual spring tour that not only hosts several bands, but also tries to get people alerted about the issues with teen suicide, and ultimately tries to prevent it. The tour was created by both Sub City and Hopeless Record ...
. "We'll Be a Dream" was released to mainstream radio
Contemporary hit radio (also known as CHR, contemporary hits, hit list, current hits, hit music, top 40, or pop radio) is a radio format that is common in many countries that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by ...
on March 2, 2010, and released as a single on July 16. Between late June and early August, the band performed on Warped Tour
The Warped Tour was a traveling rock tour that toured the United States plus three or four stops in Canada annually each summer from 1995 until 2019. It was the largest traveling music festival in the United States and the longest-running touring ...
.
Reception
''Alternative Press'' reviewer Scott Heisel rated the album 3/5, saying that "Fans of We the Kings' debut will undoubtedly find something to hold on to with ''Smile Kid'', but for those who were less than enamored with the band's pop-punk blend will likely stay that way." He said although the band "have expanded their previously narrow sound", he was still dissuaded by the band's failure to branch out musically; "Until the band are willing to step further outside the musical box, and Clark is willing to belt it out, We the Kings will remain good, not great--and still on the verge of pop-punk royalty."
Track listing
References
External links
''Smile Kid''
at YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
(streamed copy where licensed)
{{Authority control
2009 albums
We the Kings albums
S-Curve Records albums
Albums produced by S*A*M and Sluggo