Boys Like Girls is the debutstudio album by American pop rock band Boys Like Girls. It was released on August 22, 2006 by Columbia Records and Red Ink. The album garnered a mixed reception from critics. Boys Like Girls reached number 55 on the Billboard 200 and spawned three singles: "Hero/Heroine", "The Great Escape" and "Thunder". To promote the record, the band toured across North America and the UK as support for various pop punk acts, with appearances at music festivals and amusement parks.
Background
Boys Like Girls formed in late 2005 when vocalist/guitarist Martin Johnson, previously of the band IDK, wrote a few songs that he wished to record. He subsequently brought in bassist Bryan Donahue and drummer John Keefe, both of whom Johnson had played with in local acts Lancaster and The Bends. Keefe in turn recruited guitarist Paul DiGiovanni. They posted a handful of demos online, and by the end of the year, were attracting a following and noticed by booking agent Matt Galle and producer Matt Squire, who of whom wanted to work with the band. In February and March 2006, the band supported A Thorn for Every Heart on their US tour. Following its conclusion, the band went to record their debut album with Squire.
Composition
According to a lyric feature written by the album's principal songwriter Martin Johnson, the lyrical content of the songs is semi-autobiographical.
Release
On July 24, 2006, Boys Like Girls was announced for release in the following month. It was released on August 22 through Red Ink and Columbia Records. The album's lead single was "Hero/Heroine", which was followed by "The Great Escape", and the re-release of Hero/Heroine and then "Thunder". In October, the band went on tour with Lostprophets. Following this, the band went on tour with Spitalfield, Punchline, Valencia and Over It in November and December. In February and March 2007, the group supported Cartel on their tour of the US. On March 13, "The Great Escape" was released to mainstream radio. From early April to early June, the band supported Hellogoodbye on their Two Months Of Spring Break Tour '99 tour of North America. From late June to late August, the band went on the 2007 edition of Warped Tour. Starting in late September, the group headlined the Tourzilla tour. The first part ran from late September to late October and featured All Time Low, the Audition and We the Kings, while the second part ran from late October and continued into November with All Time Low, the Audition and Valencia. During this tour, a deluxe edition of Boys Like Girls was released. The CD came with enhanced content which consisted of a photo gallery, videos of the group's AOL Sessions performance, as well as live footage of "Heels Over Head" and "The Great Escape". The CD features new mixes of "Hero/Heroine" and "Heels Over Head", done by Tom Lord-Alge, and an acoustic version of "Hero/Heroine" as bonus tracks. On October 16, "Hero/Heroine" was released to mainstream radio. From early March to early May 2008, the band supported Avril Lavigne on her The Best Damn World Tour in the US. "Thunder" was released to top 40 radio stations on May 6. In July and August, the group went on a co-headlining US tour with Good Charlotte, with support from Metro Station and the Maine, dubbed the Soundtrack of Your Summer tour. In between dates on this tour, the band performed at various Six Flags locations as part of the mtvU Video Music Awards Tour. In September and October, the band went on the Verizon College tour with Cute Is What We Aim For and Lights. In January 2009, the band went on a tour of the UK with Metro Station. In 2016, the band went on tour for the tenth anniversary of the album and played the record in its entirety.
Reception
Corey Apar from AllMusic commended the band's musical abilities under the emo pop-rock subgenre but felt they lacked a unique quirk to separate them from similar acts that have "the overwhelming catchiness of the All-American Rejects or the unbridled enthusiasm of the City Drive." He concluded that "Regardless, those looking for a quick fix will surely eat up the likes of Boys Like Girls." IGN's Chad Grischow highlighted the band's penchant for "solid vocals and pop sensibilities " and gave note of their credentials in the emo genre, but found the rest of the album sounding too similar to Jimmy Eat World and The Postal Service, along with an overabundance of sappy lyrics sung with auto-effected vocals, concluding that "Boys Like Girls are not a groundbreaking band by any means, but despite the occasionally heavy-handed borrowings and lazy lyrics, there are enough glimpses of promise within their debut to make it worth checking out." The album has been certified Gold by the RIAA for over 500,000 units shipped. By May 2008, the album had sold 532,000 copies.
Track listing
Personnel
Adapted credits from the liner notes of Boys Like Girls. ;Boys Like Girls
