''Louder'' is the debut studio album by American

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre and form of rock music characterized by a strong commercial appeal, with more emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than standard rock musi ...

band R5, which was released on September 24, 2013 by

Hollywood Records Hollywood Records is an American record label owned by the Disney Music Group which focuses on pop, rock, alternative, hip hop and country genres, also specializing in recordings for a more mature audience not suitable for the flagship Wal ...

. ''Louder'' was also released as a deluxe edition, with four extra tracks only available for digital download. As of October 2014, ''Louder'' has sold 150,000 physical copies in the US.

Background and composition

"We wanted to put out a fun album," says Rydel Lynch and Ratliff said "We wanted to make an upbeat and inspirational album you want to play 24/7." ''Louder'' is mainly a

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...

and

record. The album discusses themes such as love, youth and freedom.

Release

A deluxe version was exclusively sold at

Target Target may refer to: Warfare and shooting * Shooting target, used in marksmanship training and various shooting sports ** Bullseye (target), the goal one for which one aims in many of these sports ** Aiming point, in field artille ...

including the song "Wishing I Was 23" produced by Rocky Lynch, a ZinePak exclusively sold at

Justice In its broadest sense, justice is the idea that individuals should be treated fairly. According to the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', the most plausible candidate for a core definition comes from the ''Institutes (Justinian), Inst ...

included stickers and the bonus track as well. A deluxe edition of the album was released in Japan in November, which includes another bonus track, "Crazy Stupid Love".

Chart performance

The album debuted on the ''Billboard'' 200 at number 24 selling 15,000 copies in first week.

Reception

''Louder'' received mixed reviews from critics.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

's Tim Sendra praised ''Louder'' as a "strong, uncluttered and fun modern pop confection." Also, he praised Rydel, who has a vocal feature in "Love Me Like That". Musichel called ''Louder'' R5's impressive "grand entrance into the world of pop music", also adding that "R5's future is set for the sky and beyond." Xinhua of Spin or Bin says the album's "lacks of charisma" but praised Ross', Riker's and Rocky's vocal abilities. Paul Lim, from

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

an newspaper ''

Today Today (archaically to-day) may refer to: * The current day and calendar date ** Today is between and , subject to the local time zone * Now, the time that is perceived directly, present * The current, present era Arts, entertainment and m ...

'', called the album "immature, repetitive" and "even annoying". He also compared ''Louder'' with

Katy Perry Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson (born October 25, 1984), known professionally as Katy Perry, is an American singer, songwriter, and television personality. She is one of the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling music artists in hist ...

and

Justin Bieber Justin Drew Bieber ( ; born March 1, 1994) is a Canadian singer. Regarded as a pop icon, he is recognized for his multi-genre musical performances. He was discovered by record executive Scooter Braun in 2008 and subsequently brought to the U ...

. He concluded saying that the band was "a joke". Megan Phelan from '' Mountain Weekly News'' said, "there is not much to differentiate the band's sound from other trendy pop acts." However, she gave the band "extra credit" for playing their instruments.

Singles

*" Loud" was previously released as the lead single from double releases: the EP '' Loud'' EP and the album ''Louder''. It was released on February 19, 2013. *The second single was " Pass Me By", released on August 20, 2013. *On December 25, 2013, the band released " (I Can't) Forget About You" as the third single. *" One Last Dance" was released as the fourth and final single on May 30, 2014. All singles were accompanied by their respective music video.

Promotional Singles

Love Me Like That was released as the only promotional single on September 16, 2013.

Track listing

All tracks produced by

Emanuel Kiriakou Emanuel Steve "Eman" Kiriakou (born August 16, 1966) is an American songwriter, producer, record executive, music publisher and multi-instrumentalist, based in Los Angeles. He recently co-wrote and produced " Take You Dancing" by Jason Derulo, a ...

and Andrew Goldstein, except where noted. Notes: *All physical copies of the album list the second track as "Forget About You"; upon its release as a single, it was retitled "(I Can't) Forget About You".

Personnel

Credits for ''Louder'' adapted from

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

. *

Evan "Kidd" Bogart Evan Kidd Bogart (born January 23, 1978) is an American songwriter, music publisher, record executive and television producer. He is the son of Casablanca Records founder Neil Bogart and former KISS manager Joyce Bogart Trabulus. Bogart has won a ...

- Composer, Executive Producer *Nathaniel Boone - Composer *Mike Daly - A&R *Chris Gehringer - Mastering * Andrew Goldstein - Composer, Editing, Engineer, Instrumentation, Producer *John Hanes - Mixing Assistant, Mixing Engineer *

- Composer, Executive Producer, Instrumentation, Producer *Jens Koerkeimer - Composer, Editing, Engineer *Denis Kosiak - Assistant Engineer *

Savan Kotecha Savan Harish Kotecha (born August 28, 1978) is an American songwriter and record producer from Austin, Texas. Kotecha is of Indian ( Gujarati) descent. He was also the executive music producer of the 2020 film '' Eurovision Song Contest: The S ...

- Composer *Mark Lynch - Management *

Riker Lynch Riker Anthony Lynch (born November 8, 1991) is an American singer and actor. He was previously cast as Jeff, one of the members of the Dalton Academy Warblers singing group, on Fox's television series '' Glee''. He finished in second place on ...

- Bass, Composer, Vocals *

Rocky Lynch The Driver Era is an American music duo consisting of brothers Rocky and Ross Lynch. Both are former members of the now defunct R5. History 2018–2022: R5 to The Driver Era, ''X'', ''Girlfriend'' and ''Summer Mixtape'' On March 1, 2018, R ...

- Composer, Guitar, Vocals *

Ross Lynch Ross Shor Lynch (born December 29, 1995) is an American actor and singer. He was the lead vocalist of the pop rock band R5 and is one half of the band the Driver Era (with his brother Rocky Lynch). As an actor, he rose to recognition for his ...

- Composer, Guitar, Vocals * Rydel Lynch - Keyboards, Vocals *Stormie Lynch - Stylist *

Tony Oller Anthony Michael Oller (born February 25, 1991) is an American actor and singer. He had roles as Walt Moore on the TeenNick TV show '' Gigantic'', and as Danny on Disney Channel's '' As the Bell Rings''. He appeared in the films '' Beneath the Da ...

- Composer * R5 - Composer, Primary Artist *

Ellington Ratliff Ellington Lee Ratliff (born April 14, 1993) is an American drummer and actor. He is best known as the drummer of pop rock band R5, which was active from 2009 until 2018, and as a contributor to The Driver Era. Early life Ellington Lee Ratli ...

- Drums, Vocals *Andre Recke - Management *Ed Reyes - Keyboards, Vocals *Lindy Robbins - Composer *Anabel Sinn - Art Direction, Design *Dave Snow - Creative Director *Pat Thrall - Editing, Engineer *Mio Vukovic - A&R *Sarah Yeo - A&R

Charts

References

{{Authority control R5 (band) albums 2013 debut albums Hollywood Records albums