''The Reason'' is the fourth EP by American rock band X Ambassadors, released on January 27, 2014. It spawned the single "

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" and also includes the track " Unsteady".

Composition

Musically, ''The Reason'' has been described as an album with elements of

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and

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, with "a

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vibe to it". X Ambassadors member Sam Harris cited rock singer

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as a big influence on the album. In an interview with '' The Emory Wheel'', the band commented on their inspirations: "We've always tried to write songs for anyone who feels marginalized, underrepresented: eoplewho feel like they're different or are unable to speak up for themselves. A lot of the songs off of '' VHS'' and our previous EP, ''The Reason'', were written with that in mind." According to Craig D. Lindsey of ''

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'', the running theme through the EP is Sam Harris' struggling with self-doubt. On January 30, 2014, X Ambassadors posted a message on their

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account about the goal of the EP. They stated that ''The Reason'' is their attempt to tell a story "about someone who gave up chasing a dream and who had the courage to start over."
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Promotion and release

On January 23, 2014, the band released a three-minute preview of the upcoming EP.

Critical reception

Jeffrey Howard of '' Campus Times'' described it as a "pretty interesting" album. Tina Roumeliotis of Buzznet wrote a positive review about the EP, stating " e bravery runs rampant in this release and it has me quite inspired".

Composition

Promotion and release

Critical reception

Track listing

Charts

References