Fatcat Records

Forget the Night Ahead is the second studio album by Scottish indie rock band The Twilight Sad, released by FatCat Records on 22 September 2009 in the US, and on 5 October 2009 in the UK. The album was produced by guitarist Andy MacFarlane and recorded and mixed by Paul Savage at Chem19 Studios in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Scotland. The album features the singles "I Became a Prostitute", "Seven Years of Letters", and "The Room". The recording sessions for Forget the Night Ahead also yielded the EP The Wrong Car, which followed the album in September 2010.

'Forget The Night Ahead' is possibly a darker set even than it's hallowed predecessor 'Fourteen Autumns and Fifteen Winters', James Graham's portentous knack for unsettling lines, forcefully delivered in his own Caledonian burr remaining very much on point. Speaking to The Skinny at the start of the year James cautioned; "We have definitely moved on from 'Fourteen Autumns and Fifteen Winters', musically and lyrically. One thing that I can promise is that the lyrics are very dark, but you might have to look into them a bit to realise [that]. They are mainly based around things that have happened to me over the past two years, revolving mainly around losing people and being none too proud or happy with myself about my antics and situations I've found myself in. So if you're looking for a record with a lot of hope and happy songs then f*ck off, 'cause you won't find it here with us! "

The band entered the studio in January 2009 to begin recording new songs. About the recording process, guitarist and producer Andy MacFarlane said, "The recording was approached differently this time. We made a point of staying home to write. Writing on tour is a bad idea, so we stayed in Scotland for the full process. It let us go home after sessions – if we weren't getting snowed-in the studio – and we had more time to experiment and develop the ideas we had. We'd make a lot of use of an old, half-working, Roland Space Echo that we'd plug the vocals, noise strings and piano through, that would get an out-of-tune effect, like some of the early krautrock recordings. All the reverbs are natural, which were done by mic'ing up inside the studio walls and rooms on the other side of the building to get the drum sound. Three bass heads were blown up [in the process]. There are no big, long delayed guitars, just a lot more noisy ones and there were a few songs that maxed out the desk because of the amount that's on there!"

About the different production style, Graham said, "We didn't want a polished pop record. The music just didn't lend itself to that style. Peter Katis did a great job mixing the first record, but we didn't want to repeat the sound. It's not being deliberately contrary to go darker, it's a broader record too."

The album features a guest appearance by My Latest Novel's Laura McFarlane, who plays violin on "The Room" and "That Birthday Present". She had previously collaborated with the band on the EP Here, It Never Snowed. Afterwards It Did. The album's title comes from a lyric in the song "Made to Disappear". "Made to Disappear" features the album title in its lyrics. Graham said, "The album title is autobiographical. It got to the stage where I just wanted each to day to end as quickly as it could, and I'd get drunk so I wouldn't have to face the night's reality."

On 13 May 2009, "Reflection of the Television" premiered as a free download on Pitchfork.com. On 3 August 2009, "I Became a Prostitute" was released as the first single in the UK. The video premiered on 3 July 2009 on The Line of Best Fit's website. The album's second single was "Seven Years of Letters", released on 19 October 2009, and "The Room" was released as the third single on 5 April 2010.

"The Neighbours Can't Breathe" first appeared as a live version on the 2008 compilation Killed My Parents and Hit the Road, under the title of "Untitled #28". It's the band's first song to have its title taken from a line of its lyrics. An acoustic version of "The Room" was also included on the same compilation, with the title of "Untitled #27".

In September 2009, The Skinny published a track-by-track recount by guitarist Andy MacFarlane that included notes about the writing and recording process, as well as the inspiration behind some of the song titles.