I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful yet So Unaware of It is the second studio album by English band
the 1975. It was released on 26 February 2016 by
Dirty Hit and
Polydor Records.
Exploring the role of
digital communication and the internet in contemporary life, A Brief Inquiry into Online Relationships is a
concept album connected by several over-arching threads. The album serves as a cautionary political statement, questioning the implications of
society's relationship with technology and its impact on
millennials. It marks a shift in Healy's portrayal of heroin addiction, embracing sincerity and honesty to speak on the desolation it causes. Eschewing metaphors and ambiguity, the album utilises
black humour, simple lyrics and straightforward storytelling, covering dark topics such as
nihilism, suicide,
depression, anxiety,
dissociation, trauma,
cynicism and death, among others.
The musical style of I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful yet So Unaware of It, which Slant Magazine's Jonathan Wroble deemed an homage 1980s pop music,[1] is categorised as pop,[2]synth-pop,[3]funk,[4]rock,[5][6]experimental[7][8][9] and
R&B.[10][11][12] Andrew Unterberger of Spin commented that "the album... shapeshifts unrecognizably about a half-dozen times", incorporating various genres and influences such as
dance-rock,[13]ambient house,
acousticballads,[14]gospel,[10][15]new wave,
synth rock,
shoegaze,
ambient and
alternative R&B.[16]AllMusic's Matt Collar wrote that the album contains a distinctive 1980s
adult contemporary aesthetic,[13] with Ryan Leas of Stereogum describing its "John Hughes throughline", synth-pop ballads and "robotic Bowie gyrations" as anchoring its "more severe departures".[17] Unterberger analysed and aggregated the number of 1980s musical artists referenced in reviews of the album;
INXS was the most-frequently cited act, followed by
Duran Duran,
Prince and
My Bloody Valentine.[18] Laura Snapes of Pitchfork asserted the album contains a more distinct sound than the 1975's debut album, exemplified by its incorporation of the "effervescent [and] percolating polish" of early-1980s
Billboard Hot 100 pop music.[19]Spin writer Winston Cook-Wilson also observed a musical deviation from the record's predecessor, writing it abjures the "guitar-thrashing" in favour of larger
choruses.[20]
Ben Neisen of Atwood Magazine opined that the record is composed of three acts, beginning with eclectic and "frenetic" funk.[10][15] Wroble described the first third as "astonishingly busy", characterised by "instruments moving at lightning speed to work dozens of hooks and countermelodies into otherwise-straightforward pop songs".[1] The record then transitions into an
impressionistic experimental middle section, which The Line of Best Fit writer Grant Rindner categorises as
electronica.[10][15][21]God is in the TV's Jonathan Wright stated that this section of the record commences with the instrumental "Please Be Naked" and concludes with the title track.[21] Eschewing the funk and
electro-influenced
indie rock of the 1975's debut,[15] the record deviates from the "short [and] sharp"
song structures of its predecessor in favour of an experimental sound, according to Alex Green of Clash.[22]Exclaim! writer Ian Gormely commented that Healy disguises this experimentation—which Pryor Stroud of PopMatters attributes to the album's longer length—by the use of hooks and
crooning, while also saying it "distils the [1975's] disparate influences" into a cohesive statement.[11][23]
I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful yet So Unaware of It is composed of ambient soundscapes, "shorter [and] tighter tracks", instrumentals, near-instrumentals and interludes.[22][24] The
maximalist songs are characterised by their electro experimentation,[11] horn fills,[25] tribal drums, full choirs,[22] funk-pop grooves, brass flourishes,[26] echoing keys,[27] distended vocal samples, guitar interjections, near-theatrical guitar riffs, electro-acoustic polyrhythms and sharp synth leads.[7][20] The album utilises
dynamics and restraint, incorporating spatial variety within the
grooves while pairing frenzied arrangements with moments of quiet introspection.[1][20] Despite the album's varied style, the songs contain familiar features and details attributable to the band, building off of one another to achieve a cohesive sound.[20]Annie Zaleski of The A.V. Club commented that the album's cohesion is rooted in the album's sequencing and Healy's vocal progression, with the singer modulating his voice to match each track's emotional timbre.[24]
Lyrics and themes
Songs
I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful yet So Unaware of It opens with "The 1975", an ambient instrumental that features wind chimes and arcing,[1][28][29] distorted guitars.[30] The song is followed by the
art pop-influenced "Love Me",[31] a funk and electropop track that criticises overinflated egos and admonishes individuals who are unable to remain connected with reality on the basis of self-absorption.[1][32][33] "Ugh!", a funk,[34][35] R&B and synth-pop ballad,[19][36][37] utilises disco and art pop influences in its tropical production,[12][38][39] while the lyrics revolve around Healy's
cocaine addiction.[40] A
melancholic song that deals with falling out of love,[28] "A Change of Heart" is an electropop and synth-pop power ballad with elements of ambient pop,[41][42][43][44] chillwave, yacht rock and indie rock.[45] The album's fifth song, "She's American", a funk,[46] pop and synth-pop song about the cultural differences between the British and Americans,[47][24] features a saxophone solo and elements of disco and yacht rock in its composition.[48][5]
"If I Believe You" is an electronic R&B and gospel slow jam,[49][29][19][24] containing a breathy tone, furry keyboards, a flugelhorn solo, elements of glitch-soul, a gospel choir, a jazzy trumpet,[47][24] thick and steady drums, neo-soul keyboards, atmospheric whooshes of noise and ecclesiastical synth washes.[1][19] In the song, Healy finds strength and solace in uncertainty and vulnerability, wondering: "If I’m lost, then how can I find myself?"[47][24] Healy repeats the couplet throughout the song's final minute, accompanied by muted organs and a dreamlike harp.[1] "Please Be Naked" is an ambient-influenced
avant-garde electronic and experimental instrumental interlude,[49][29][21][7] containing an emotional piano motif, a dripping piano,[1] ambient noises,[47] synth murmurs, a New Age piano,[20] oceanic sound effects, music-box percussion, a cascading piano and influences of post-rock.[24] A near-entirely instrumental, "Lostmyhead" is composed as an experimental and electronic song that combines ambient,[49] synth-pop, post-rock, dream-pop and shoegaze music.[20][21] Containing ambient noises and hushed vocals,[47] the track begins as a shoegaze song before transitioning into post-rock in the climax.[50][51] "The Ballad of Me and My Brain" is an experimental song featuring clattering synths,[21] brittle drums, caustic
pop-soul guitars and snapping drum pads.[47][52] The lyrics use black humour to deal with the effect of fame on Healy's mental state.[52]
A melancholic house,[53][54] funk and chillwave-influenced slow jam,[50][55][56] "Somebody Else" is an electronic,[57] R&B and synth-pop power ballad that recounts the pain of seeing a former lover with a new partner.[24][58][59][60] "Loving Someone" is an experimental R&B track containing an electronic production and
spoken word elements,[7][61][62] while the lyrics are centred on
youth culture and discuss themes of conditional love and
homophobia.[63][64] A largely instrumental interlude composed in an experimental and electronic style,[63][21][7] "I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful yet So Unaware of It" draws from ambient house,[65] post-rock,[66] synth-pop,
rave,
UK garage and ambient music.[50][49][67] The song begins as a minimalist electro ballad that combines minimalistic melodies with hypnotic, "bubbling" beats, wind chimes and an ethereal production.[29][68] As the track's textures build, it incorporates blithe electronics and elements of glitch.[24][51] A house,[46] pop,[28] disco and synth-pop song,[69][6] "The Sound", incorporates aspects of funk,[70] R&B and gospel music,[71][23] while the lyrics detail a relationship struggling with deceit.[63]
Incorporating elements of funk and jazz, "This Must Be My Dream" is an art rock,[28] R&B and synth-pop song containing a "sparkling" melody,[63] brass flourishes,[26] synths and a funk-influenced saxophone solo.[24][49][7]
Old songs
"Nana" is an ode to Healy's deceased grandmother.[52] "Paris" contains influences of R&B.[24] "She Lays Down" is an acoustic folk song,[29] featuring only Healy's vocals and a guitar.[52] The lyrics reference his mother's postnatal depression in lines such as: "She’s appalled by not loving me at all".[52]
Critical reception
Accolades
Critical rankings for I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful yet So Unaware of It
^Tharpe, Frazier; Ortiz, Edwin; Frydenlund, Zach; Scarano, Ross; Klinkenberg, Brendan; Jackson, Lauren; Khal; Turner, Gus; Cadenas, Kerensa; Kim, Kristen; Diaz, Angel (5 December 2016).
"The 50 Best Albums of 2016". Complex. Retrieved 7 June 2021.