Smiles Are Out Of Style

"Smiles Are Out Of Style" is the second single from Amy Marshall's third album Morbid Lullabies and her eleventh single overall. The single was released on March 10, 2008.

Background and writing
Written and produced by Marshall herself, the lyrics describe a day in the life of a narrator who observes how everyone in the world around her is generally depressed. She notices how the people of the working class are tired of the endless routine of their dead-end jobs, the unemployed are struggling to get a break, and the media consistently obsesses over bad news.

Amy wanted to write a song about what she referred to as a "negativity epidemic", and related it to the fashion world, likening depression to a fashion craze. "I don't see many people on the streets smiling, and every time I go out, I overhear conversations like, 'Oh, I'm so fucking screwed up right now, you won't believe it.' And everybody's doing it. It's almost like smiling has gone out of style. And that's basically where the idea for 'Smiles Are Out Of Style' came from, it's like, gloominess is in, euphoria is out."

The song's bridge, which mentions how people are uninterested in "happy songs", was inspired by Luke Ramada's "Erasing Yesterday" from his album Invalid Opinions.

Critics responded with glowing reviews, calling the song one of the album's best moments. It is Amy's personal favorite from the album.

The single is Amy's first single with Wired Records after parting with longtime label Alias in December 2007.

Promotion
The single is best remembered for Amy coming out as a bisexual and her brief tabloid antics with Katrina Regalna of Horrorfilm Horizon. Amy and Katrina spent the last two weeks of January shocking fans and reporters with their antics until it was revealed Amy had a secret affair with Selan. Katrina announced the couple's split on February 3, following her band's debut single charting at #5.

Amy also announced she was pregnant with Carl Reeves' child. This news piled on more drama for Reeves, who had split with longtime girlfriend Emily Henning to begin a relationship with Jack Stevens, who was to be the best man at the Reeves-Henning wedding.

Towards the single's release, promotion dramatically suffered as a result of Amy being kidnapped by flopstar Clarice Smith.

Track listings
CD1 1. Smiles Are Out Of Style 2. Fake Smiles From Hollywood (Live At AOL Sessions) 3. Only Happy When It Rains CD2 1. Smiles Are Out Of Style (Album Version) 2. Smiles Are Out Of Style (Radio Edit) 3. Smiles Are Out Of Style (Nicole's So Last Year Remix) 4. Smiles Are Out Of Style (CARL's Perfect Teeth FixIt!!! Edit) 5. Smiles Are Out Of Style (Indigo Peaks Face Like a Slapped Arse Electro Refix) 6. Miss California Is Out Of Style (Ryan Dawson vs. Amy Marshall) DVD 1. Smiles Are Out Of Style (Video) 2. Making Of Smiles Are Out Of Style 3. Smiles Are Out Of Style (Live Performance)

Chart performance
"Smiles Are Out Of Style" has reached #5 on the Urapopstar Top 40 Singles Chart, selling 40,232 copies in its first week. Like her previous single, she beat everyone on her week except Alesha. In its second week, its sales slightly increased to 47,834. It has sold a total of 202,653 copies in its chart run, earning a gold certification and becoming Amy's third best seller to date. Like her previous single, "Smiles" spent four weeks in the top 10.

The single also became her fifth #1 single on the airplay charts, tying Esmeralda Dimuzio for the record. Dimuzio reached the record, oddly enough, with her collaboration with Amy on "Close My Eyes Forever".