Singer Brooks Nielsen and music director/guitarist Matt Taylor met in high school in the beach town of Dana Point, California, bonding over surfing, skating, and partying. When offered the chance to perform at a house party, the duo quickly wrote their first six songs in a single day, leading to the first incarnation of the band that would eventually become The Growlers.
After releasing a handful of self-recorded cassettes and CDs, The Growlers issued their first studio album, Are You in or Out? in 2009 on Everloving Records. Aquarium Drunkard described it as “consistent in sound and tone that is as enjoyable straight through or on shuffle… Taken as a whole, the record is a beautiful mix of late 60’s freak-out, folk calmness and surf rock.” Their second album, Hot Tropics, was released in 2010, also on Everloving Records. The band's third album, Hung at Heart, the first to feature Anthony Braun Perry on bass and Jason Kaiser on percussion, was released in 2013. The band originally worked with Dan Auerbach to record the album, but the finished version never saw official release. Instead the band recorded a new version of the album in Costa Mesa, CA with Mike McHugh at his Distillery Recording Studio, to get a more lo-fi sound.
Chinese Fountain, their new "more grown up, well polished" album was released September 23, 2014. This album was produced by JP Plunier at Seahorse Studios in Los Angeles, CA. While touring the album, the band expanded their live band with percussionist Nick Murray.
The band's fifth studio album, City Club was released by Cult Records on September 30, 2016, while they embarked on a supporting tour in the same month. It was the first Growlers album to be credited solely to Brooks Nielsen and Matt Taylor, as opposed to the whole band. Nielsen and Taylor wrote and recorded demos for the album over a span of 2 to 3 months with the help of Kyle Mullarky at his studio in Topanga Canyon, CA. It was preceded by the title track as a single produced by Julian Casablancas, who also owns the label. Neither drummer Scott Montoya nor bass player Anthony Perry feature on the album. On September 25, the band confirmed Montoya's departure from the band and stated that Perry was set to return in the near future. The band toured for this album with Brad Bowers on bass, Adam Wolcott Smith on keyboard, and Richard Gowen on drums. Whether their membership in the band is permanent is currently unclear.
The band released Casual Acquaintances on July 27, 2018, a collection of demos and unused material from the City Club sessions.
Allegations of misconduct
In July 2020, allegations of sexual misconduct surfaced against the band, along with other artists associated with Burger Records and the Southern California surf and garage rock music scene. Arrow De Wilde, the lead singer of the L.A. rock band Starcrawler, shared a personal encounter on her Instagram. In her post, Arrow claims she was assaulted by a male stripper hired by The Growlers while they were on tour together in Australia. In a statement issued via Instagram on July 31, 2020, Growlers singer Brooks Nielsen took "full responsibility and accountability for the behavior of all Growlers' band members, past and present," and announced that Matt Taylor would temporarily leave the band. Additionally, former Growlers touring keyboardist Adam Wolcott Smith admitted to an incident of abuse on his Instagram, while on tour with his band Zen Mother.
Good Advice
The Growlers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
About being, being lonely
But I get so lonely
No one's allowed to hold me, hold me
Funny I can't help me
I know that that sound's ugly
Gimme, gimme sonething I can use
Or leave me alone
If you can't let me, let me get loose
I'm thinking too hard
Or not, not at all
There's nothing as depressing as good advice
Nobody wants to hear how to live their life
There's nothing as depressing as good advice
Nobody wants to hear how to live their life
You think that you know more
About being, being lonely
But I get so lonely
No one's around to hold me, hold me
Funny I can't help me
I know that that sounds ugly
Sleep talking letting secrets out
Blacked out and walking through the cop crowds
Laughing when times the call for
Crying, but you're thinking too hard
There's nothing as depressing as good advice
Nobody wants to hear how to live their life
There's nothing as depressing as good advice
Nobody wants to hear how to live their life
The lyrics of The Growlers' song Good Advice reflect a sense of loneliness and disorientation. The singer is struggling with being alone and dealing with their emotions. The chorus is a powerful assertion that speaks to the emotional state of the individual. The lyrics suggest that the person is dealing with a lot of advice which they do not want to hear but rather be left alone to handle their struggles.
In the second verse, the individual is depicted as sleep-talking and exhibiting peculiar behavior. They are experiencing blackouts, seem to be wandering aimlessly, and are emotionally overwhelmed. These actions suggest that perhaps they are self-medicating or engaging in risky behavior to alleviate their emotional distress.
Through the lyrics of Good Advice, The Growlers express the idea that it is important to be able to make mistakes, take risks and learn from them, even if it leads to feelings of loneliness and regret. The song highlights the importance of self-discovery and emotional acceptance while discouraging the unsolicited advice or opinions of others as being useless or even debilitating.
Line by Line Meaning
You think that you know more
About being, being lonely
You believe you have a better understanding of loneliness, its meaning, and its experience.
But I get so lonely
No one's allowed to hold me, hold me
Despite your impressions, I feel deeply lonely and crave physical affection and companionship.
Funny I can't help me
I know that that sound's ugly
I find it humorous that I am unable to help myself despite acknowledging that this sense of dependency is not attractive.
Throw me a bone
Gimme, gimme sonething I can use
Or leave me alone
If you can't let me, let me get loose
If you want to help, provide me with solutions to my problems instead of just offering empty platitudes. Alternatively, leave me be if you are not willing to provide practical assistance.
I'm thinking too hard
Or not, not at all
I am either overthinking about my problems or not thinking about them at all.
There's nothing as depressing as good advice
Nobody wants to hear how to live their life
Receiving general advice about life is disheartening because no one wants to be told how to live their life.
Sleep talking letting secrets out
Blacked out and walking through the cop crowds
Laughing when times the call for
Crying, but you're thinking too hard
I reveal secrets while sleep talking and often find myself in precarious situations while under the influence of alcohol. I laugh when I'm supposed to be serious and cry while overthinking about life's struggles.
You think that you know more
About being, being lonely
But I get so lonely
No one's around to hold me, hold me
You may assume that you understand what it means to be lonely, but you cannot comprehend my profound sense of isolation and need for physical comfort.
Funny I can't help me
I know that that sounds ugly
I am amused by how I am unable to help myself, despite being aware that this trait is unappealing.
There's nothing as depressing as good advice
Nobody wants to hear how to live their life
Receiving general advice about life is disheartening because no one wants to be told how to live their life.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@nuclearnoz
You think that you know more
About being, being lonely
But I get so lonely
No one's allowed to hold me, hold me
Funny I can't help me
I know that that sound's ugly
Throw me a bone
Give me, give me something I can use
Or leave me alone
If you can let me, let me get loose
I'm not thinking too hard
Or not, not at all
There's nothing as depressing as good advice
Nobody wants to hear how to live their lives
There's nothing as depressing as good advice
Nobody wants to hear how to live their lives
You think that you know more
About being, being lonely
But I get so lonely
No one's around to hold me, hold me
Funny I can't help me
I know that that sounds ugly
Sleep talking letting secrets out
Blacked out and walking through a calm crowd
That feel when times ain't call for
Crying, but you're thinking too hard
There's nothing as depressing as good advice
Nobody wants to hear how to live their lives
There's nothing as depressing as good advice
Nobody wants to hear how to live their lives... this song is my life in a nutshell
@90fif
THIS GROUP IS SO DOPE AND I PROBABLY NEVER WOULD'VE HEARD OF THEM IF NOT FOR 1 OF THEIR CD's BEING IN THE CAR I GOT
@tysonmarshall8934
love when that stuff happens
@251Trioxin
Lucky 👍
@emmvee3058
It was fate 🔥
@sol42o
Fuck yaaa !!!!
@dylanreyes1084
What album
@freddiecalderon4665
i have listened to this every day this week
@Regannic
Yeah, same story here
@1DLoverAnnissaMakeup
same lmaoq
@pamelaarguelles878
Freddie Calderon every day for the whole year and I still dance to it like it just came out 😂