If every Monday were as invigorating and infectious as Hey Monday, there’d be no reason to look forward to weekends.

“We liked the name Hey Monday because it’s very contradicting,” says Cassadee, the band’s firecracker of a frontwoman with spunk to spare and an enthusiasm as disarming as it is endearing. “Most people don’t really say they’re happy about a Monday, they view it like it’s the first day of the rest of their week, but Monday can also just be a new beginning…”

Barely out of high school, Cassadee’s new beginning is a dream come true. Discovered at a regional music conference where the teenage siren would sing for anyone willing to listen, she attracted the attention of record label scouts at a time when most of her friends weren’t even old enough to drive. Less than two years later she’s preparing for the release of her band’s first album, Hold On Tight, a joint venture between Columbia Records and Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz’s Decaydance Records. Produced by S*A*M and Sluggo [The Academy Is, Gym Class Heroes, Metro Station], the album is a free-spirited spin through life’s post-adolescent twists, turns, trials and triumphs.

“We have a variety of styles, but they’re all pretty-much fast and upbeat, because we wanted a fast, upbeat and happy kind of record that makes you tap your feet and puts you in a good mood,” explains Cassadee. “There are heartbroken songs, being in love songs, a song about someone who parties too much… If it’s not all about me, then it’s about someone very close to me who I can feel for. I just wanted to tell a story, to make it like a movie where you can really get to know someone. I wanted people to really get to know me through the lyrics.”

Forming a songwriting tandem with lead guitarist Mike Gentile, Cassadee’s vocals pierce Hey Monday’s guitar-driven underbelly like melodic daggers, her lush, vibrant voice spiraling amidst the tracks like an aerobic workout. Forging her musical path, Gentile and rhythm guitarist Alex Lipshaw riff with an infectious sense of urgency and a propensity for hyperactive pop-rock, and bassist Jersey Moriarty and drummer Elliot James elevate the bottom end with a heave-ho so dynamic, it shakes the album at its very foundation.

From the racing guitars that run rampant through the hot summer sun of “Arizona,” to the more anxious styling of “Homecoming” and the empowering ballad “Candles,” Hey Monday deliver an album that embraces the youthful energy of the musicians that created it. Spiteful breakup songs and bitter observations that an ex has moved on mingle with muffled expressions of independence and a quest for one’s self in the world around us.

“I don’t care what anybody says, no break-up is easy,” says Cassadee. “Sure, you’ll be fine after some time, but you can never forget that first break-up, or even just the after effects, like them getting another boyfriend or girlfriend so soon, right in front of your face, and you having no control over it. ‘Candles’ is about that. It’s a sad song, but it’s also in your face and moody, and goes from ‘pity me’ to ‘screw you.’ It has to do with Florida, too, because we’re from West Palm Beach and we get a lot of hurricanes and the power goes out… It’s about sitting there when the candle goes out, but beginning to see the light.”

Hey Monday can see the light, and it is shining bright before them. Who said the weekend needs to end?

--Paul Gargano, 08.08