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.
Something Someone Jr.
The Growlers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I can't find peace in a form of speech
My views change color red hot, ice cold
Black ain't a color happiness ain't gold
It's hard for me to feel normal easy to feel free
It's hard for you to understand if you can't feel me
I ain't in a western in a way I can grasp
I try to hold on to something that is fast
Then a name is just a way of being visible
My name is someone junior
Who is my dad
Mama is a Catherine Anne Hoover and she's all that
And a bag of crypt
I'm a municipal and the mundane
I try to keep weird keep away from the same
I haven't read an outline on how to pass youth
Rather than get passed I pass doobs
I'm out I'm in it's hard to live in this given culture
All the hers and hims
All of the rats, snakes, and youth vultures around
My heart's out of shape and my head's in a cast
I try to hold on to something that is fast
If something is a way of saying you don't know
Then a name is just a way of being visible...
The Growlers’ song "Something Someone Jr." paints a hauntingly beautiful picture of the confusion and struggle that comes with being a young, disillusioned person in the world. The opening lyrics, “My spine just squinted and my eye is weak / I can't find peace in a form of speech” immediately establish the feeling of unease, disorientation, and struggle present throughout the song. The singer’s views change quickly, and it’s hard for them to feel normal or at ease.
Later in the song, the singer reveals that they are “someone junior,” but the identity and influence of their father is unknown. The singer’s mother, Catherine Anne Hoover, is more present in their life, but the singer seems to be searching for a way to define their identity outside of their parents’ influence. They try to “keep weird” and stay away from the “mundane,” but they are struggling to navigate a culture that is full of “rats, snakes, and youth vultures.”
The repeated refrain, “If something is a way of saying you don't know / Then a name is just a way of being visible,” drives home the idea that identity is fluid and often uncertain. The singer is searching for a way to understand and define themselves, but the answers remain just out of reach.
Line by Line Meaning
My spine just squinted and my eye is weak
I am physically and emotionally vulnerable, unable to find strength in myself.
I can't find peace in a form of speech
I am unable to find comfort in words alone, I need more than that.
My views change color red hot, ice cold
My beliefs and opinions are not set in stone, but rather they fluctuate with my emotions.
Black ain't a color happiness ain't gold
Things are not as simple as they may seem, there is nuance to everything.
It's hard for me to feel normal easy to feel free
I struggle with conforming to societal norms, but I find liberation in being myself.
It's hard for you to understand if you can't feel me
If you cannot empathize with me, it will be difficult for you to comprehend my perspective.
I ain't in a western in a way I can grasp
I do not fit into a traditional mold or framework that I can fully comprehend.
I try to hold on to something that is fast
I desperately cling to stability amidst the chaos of life.
If something is a way of saying you don't know
If there is a way to express ignorance or uncertainty,
Then a name is just a way of being visible
then naming or labeling something is simply a way to make it tangible and visible.
My name is someone junior
I am named after my father, someone who came before me.
Who is my dad
I question my identity and my relationship with my father.
Mama is a Catherine Anne Hoover and she's all that
My mother's name is Catherine Anne Hoover and she is everything to me.
And a bag of crypt
And she keeps secrets, things that I may never fully know or understand.
I'm a municipal and the mundane
I am ordinary and unremarkable in many ways.
I try to keep weird keep away from the same
I strive to be unique and authentic, avoiding conformity whenever possible.
I haven't read an outline on how to pass youth
I don't have a guidebook for how to navigate growing up and coming of age.
Rather than get passed I pass doobs
Instead of allowing life to pass me by, I indulge in smoking marijuana to momentarily escape reality.
I'm out I'm in it's hard to live in this given culture
I am sometimes present and sometimes withdrawn, finding it difficult to exist within the constructs of our society.
All the hers and hims all of the rats, snakes, and youth vultures around
I am surrounded by people and situations that feel dangerous, predatory, or otherwise toxic.
My heart's out of shape and my head's in a cast
I am emotionally drained and weary, I feel emotionally and mentally wounded.
I try to hold on to something that is fast
I search for stability amidst the chaos of life.
If something is a way of saying you don't know
If there is a way to express ignorance or uncertainty,
Then a name is just a way of being visible
then naming or labeling something is simply a way to make it tangible and visible.
Contributed by Grayson O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@aratharredondo6422
My spine just squinted and my eye is weak
I can't find peace in a form of speech
My views change color red hot, ice cold
Black ain't a color happiness ain't gold
It's hard for me to feel normal easy to feel free
It's hard for you to understand if you can't feel me
I ain't in a western in a way I can grasp
I try to hold on to something that is fast
If something is a way of saying you don't know
Then a name is just a way of being visible
My name is someone junior
Who is my dad
Mama is a Catherine Anne Hoover and she's all that
And a bag of crypt
I'm a municipal and the mundane
I try to keep weird keep away from the same
I haven't read an outline on how to pass youth
Rather than get passed I pass doobs
I'm out I'm in it's hard to live in this given culture
All the hers and hims
All of the rats, snakes, and youth vultures around
My heart's out of shape and my head's in a cast
I try to hold on to something that is fast
If something is a way of saying you don't know
Then a name is just a way
@penguinz0078
This song gives me rockabilly vibes
@aratharredondo6422
My spine just squinted and my eye is weak
I can't find peace in a form of speech
My views change color red hot, ice cold
Black ain't a color happiness ain't gold
It's hard for me to feel normal easy to feel free
It's hard for you to understand if you can't feel me
I ain't in a western in a way I can grasp
I try to hold on to something that is fast
If something is a way of saying you don't know
Then a name is just a way of being visible
My name is someone junior
Who is my dad
Mama is a Catherine Anne Hoover and she's all that
And a bag of crypt
I'm a municipal and the mundane
I try to keep weird keep away from the same
I haven't read an outline on how to pass youth
Rather than get passed I pass doobs
I'm out I'm in it's hard to live in this given culture
All the hers and hims
All of the rats, snakes, and youth vultures around
My heart's out of shape and my head's in a cast
I try to hold on to something that is fast
If something is a way of saying you don't know
Then a name is just a way
@filipemarques2826
Thats true
@dscott_
He’s the mystical and the mundane. Mystical = spirit. Mundane = earthly. He’s both. The municipal and the mundane doesn’t make sense
@sybau3247
She's all that and a bag of CHIPS* wtf
I just got annoyed I'm sry 😭😭 you know WTF he's saying and you posted wrong lyrics anyway, got mfs out here saying whatever and farting on a perfect song x''''DD gottafight
@Sick_Grim_World
The Growlers brought me here 💞
@trademarkjoe8879
In live this song is a intense
@iamroza0723
This one will be forever in me 🖤
@skullhound41
It’s Scarred Me For Sure 🤙
@camilocantu1997
I remember when this came out I feel old asf😂 still dope