Forever for Now (LP album)

Background

LP released two independent studio albums, Heart-Shaped Scar (2001) and Suburban Sprawl & Alcohol (2004), which were commercially unsuccessful. After that, she started writing songs for other artists, most notably for Rihanna ("Cheers (Drink to That)"), Backstreet Boys, and Christina Aguilera.

Following a record deal signed with Warner Bros. Records in September 2011, LP recorded a song titled "Into the Wild", which was prominently used in a Citibank TV commercial in the end of 2011. In April 2012, LP released an extended play Into the Wild: Live at EastWest Studios, and "Into the Wild" was released as a single in May 2012. LP started touring, which pushed the release of her major-label debut album back. Initially, the album was going to sound as "a bit more of an acoustic thing," however, LP and producer Rob Cavallo started adding more layers to the songs, and eventually their sound grew bigger.

Promotion

The first official single to promote Forever for Now, "Night Like This", was released on March 28, 2014. "Someday" was released as the second single on June 3, 2014.

On June 17, 2014, LP performed on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, broadcast by CBS.

Critical reception

Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic rated the album four out of five stars, and wrote that "there's a sharp, stylish gleam to the very sound of Forever for Now, a combination of LP's savvy pop sensibility and the cool commercial instincts of Rob Cavallo." He added that Cavallo "accentuates and accessorizes the contours of her [LP's] songs without diluting the eccentricities. He gives her plenty of space to roam, allowing her to soar as high as a skyscraper on 'Tokyo Sunrise' and 'Salvation,' but also knows when to keep things intimate, as on the haunting coda of the title track."

American Songwriter's Jim Beviglia wrote that "Forever for Now is filled with sprawling pop songs that soar to heights meant to maximize the impact of Pergolizzi's unreal voice," which he compared to a cross between Ronnie Spector and Florence Welch. However, he commented that the album's main drawback is the fact that almost every song seems to be "meticulously crafted and ready for radio airplay," as listening to the entire album "reveals a certain sameness in approach: Quiet, atmospheric opens, cloud-bursting choruses, and a few of LP's wordless banshee wails thrown in for good measure."

Personnel

Credits adapted from AllMusic.