Sky Ferreira was almost Edie Sedgwick. Like Edie, Ferreira teased with her work, which never quite made it to the public’s eye, until now. Ferreira has been building an underground cult image—it’s Edie all over again with the drug arrest. Yet the distinction between these two beautiful superstars arises with Night Time, My Time.
Ferreira actually delivered a whole album, more than Edie ever managed. It was a timely release, capitalizing on the press surrounding the arrest only days before “You’re Not the One” came out. Preceded by the single, the album is as edgy as a listener expects from Ferreira, but the leather and fishnets of the single are topped with a vintage mink coat in the LP—glamorous and lux.
The opener, “Boys,” entices you in with a trail of electronic flourishes. It’s grungy and contemplative in structure, a constant throughout the album. “Ain’t Your Right” excites with its bass line, making an otherwise fuzzy and ticklish sound gnarly. “24 Hours” is a grand, sweeping staircase bannister leading you uptempo to the jamming middlemeat of the record.
It’s a dance album for those of you who don’t applaud Gaga. PBR, where you at!? “Nobody Asked Me (If I Was Okay)” holds a great beat, and Ferreira’s voice is throaty and commanding.
“I Blame Myself” is the bathroom break to the party. Pure and delicate, Ferreira’s voice overcompensates for the murky “Omanko.” Up next is “You’re Not The One,” a New Wave-y, riff-ilicous single. “Kristine” serves as a modello for “I Will,” which is a Chinese lantern dancefloor catalyst. “Love in Stereo” nominates itself for Summer Jam 2014 with its soft sunlight beat and gentle riffing.
The title track closes. It’s Lost Boys haunting, a scraping winter escape into cool November air that slowly crescendos to silence. The album’s great downfall is its lyrics, which lack poeticism. Regardless, Night Time, My Time is musical ground-down sandpaper with glitter glue, a spore that reproduces exponentially in your mind. Ferreira is our femme fatale reminding us Patrick Bateman ain’t got nothing on her now, even though she had it all along.
Voice’s Choices: “Nobody Asked Me (If I Was Okay),” “24 Hours”
