Wiki
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Release Date
24 October 2010
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Length
12 tracks
Young the Giant is the debut album by American indie rock band Young the Giant. It was released digitally by the Roadrunner record label on October 26, 2010, and was followed by a physical CD and vinyl release in the United States on January 25, 2011. The album was released in the United Kingdom on May 2, 2011.
The band began work on the album with producer Joe Chiccarelli, engineers Lars Fox and Ian Kirkpatrick, and mixer Michael H. Brauer in early 2010. Young the Giant lead singer Sameer Gadhia described the album as having a "summery, kind of an Orange County sound." Songs on the album include the U.S. single "My Body", which reached the top five of Billboard's Alternative Songs chart; "Apartment", the first international single; and "Cough Syrup", which was originally recorded for the 2008 EP Shake My Hand when the band was known as The Jakes.
Following the departure of keyboardist Ehson Hashemian in late 2009, rock group The Jakes changed its name to Young the Giant. Lead singer Sameer Gadhia said the new band name did not have any specific meaning, but that it epitomized the band they had become. "I was thinking about what we want to portray," Gadhia said. "We are still youthful, but when we aren't, we still want to have that exuberance in our music."
In early 2010, Young the Giant began work on its debut album with Grammy-winning producer Joe Chiccarelli. The album features live track recordings, which the band had never previously attempted. Drummer Francois Comtois noted that working with Chiccarelli for the sessions "was incredibly intimidating, but he kicked our asses into shape." Gadhia also recalled the experience: "We were criticized in ways we had never even thought of, and were constantly pushed to reach the next level. Looking back on it, he shaped us into better musicians, performers, and songwriters. It was also great fun hearing his stories about Bono, Jay-Z, and Elton John.
An underlying theme of the album, according to Gadhia, is the "feeling of isolation and almost surreal happiness with a lover." Much of the album was inspired by the beach, Gadhia said. "It is summery, kind of an Orange County sound. When we first started doing this seriously and living together, Newport was just like eternal summer for us. We did draw from a lot of that." In particular, the track "Strings" is an attempt to showcase the sounds of the beach. Gadhia described that the band wanted to "have the arrangements cascade together and, tonally, we all worked hard with Joe to recreate the fervor and wetness of splashing waves."
Gadhia said the track "My Body" is an embodiment of the band: "a combination of youthful energy and slightly naive but optimistic determination. It captures a sense of passion, urgency, and excitement that we've felt throughout the writing and recording process over the past two years." Another song, "Cough Syrup", was co-written by former bandmate Ehson Hashemian and dates back to the 2008 EP "Shake My Hand", when the band was still known as The Jakes.
Three tracks - "My Body", "I Got" and "Strings" - were leaked individually prior to the album's October 26, 2010 digital release. Young the Giant was released on CD and vinyl in the United States on January 25, 2011. It debuted and peaked at number six on the Billboard Top Heatseekers albums chart. The first U.S. single "My Body" peaked at number eight on the Alternative Songs chart. The album was released on May 2 in the UK, with "Apartment" as the lead international single. The album peaked at number 83 on the UK Albums Chart.
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