News & Notes

While the single edit of “Michelle” would not be released until the following year, The Forever Syndrome turns twenty this year. The full and definitive version of “Michelle” (at a radio-unfriendly five minutes and 41 seconds) opens that song cycle, laying out the foundation for the musical journey to follow. Spoiler alert: it’s not a particularly happy trip. However, if one can handle the melancholy and introspection, one may find themself better off for it…maybe.

“Candy hearts to say I love you,” are the first words sung in the refrain of “Michelle.” Indeed the candy conversation hearts are a staple of Valentine’s Day, but they are not much more than simple sugar, lacking any deeper substance. Likewise, the subject of our song finds themselves eschewing potential fulfillment in the life they want instead pursuing the life that’s expected of them. How many of us find ourselves succumbing or being subjugated to the same fate?

We live in the era of streaming media, so an MP3 can seem quaint. That said, with twenty years of The Forever Syndrome in the bag, now would be the wrong time to end the traditional annual 24-hour download. As mentioned previously, the single is only nineteen years old, but it’s best to focus on the album version of “Michelle” anyhow. Also, the “B-side” (actually track 2, because it was released on compact disc) song “Say It In Japanese” was never released on an album nor is it currently available on streaming. Downloading the MP3 is the only way to hear it. So, click that beautiful cover art and get thee some non-streaming digitally encoded music:

Michelle-Say It In Japanese.zip

In addition to the usual Valentine’s Day download, this year there is a special Unhappy Valentine’s Day playlist. Twelve IoJ songs of heartbreak and emotional angst guaranteed to ruin a romantic date night. Consider yourself warned if you listen and find your relationship deteriorating not long after:

“Michelle” was originally released as the opening track to the 2006 LP The Forever Syndrome. A single edit of the song was released in advance of Valentine’s Day the following year. It would be in the year 2012 that the 24-hour Crappy Valentine’s Day download first occurred, becoming a yearly tradition ever since. It will likely continue as such until someone at the department of all things Illusion of Joy finally gets around to clearing the various odds and ends of the discography to appear on streaming services.

Click the link to download the zip file to extract two MP3s:

Michelle-Say It In Japanese.zip

“Candy hearts to say ‘I love you,” – such are the lyrics beginning the chorus of “Michelle,” a cynical examination of someone stumbling through the milestones of life out of a sense of obligation rather than enthusiasm. Are not the majority of us so cursed, though?

“Michelle” was originally released as the opening track to the 2006 LP The Forever Syndrome. A single edit of the song was released in advance of Valentine’s Day the following year. It would be in the year 2012 that the 24-hour Crappy Valentine’s Day download first occurred, becoming a yearly tradition ever since. It will likely continue as such until someone at the department of all things Illusion of Joy overhears a youth ask, “what’s an MP3?”

Click the link to download:

Michelle-Say It In Japanese.zip

Even though this year’s download window has closed, you can still Or just stream The Forever Syndrome: