"Trouble" is a song by American

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

band

American Authors American Authors (formerly known as The Blue Pages) is an American rock band based in New York City, currently signed to Island Records. The band consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Zac Barnett, bassist Dave Rublin, and drummer Matt Sanche ...

. The song was written by band members Zachary Barnett, David Rublin, Matthew Sanchez and James Shelley with producers

Aaron Accetta Aaron Accetta is an American New York–based multi-platinum record producer, songwriter, and musician. He is currently co-owner of Dirty Canvas Music, a full scale music production company focused on artist development. The first artist signed t ...

and

Shep Goodman Shep Goodman is an American New York–based multi-platinum record producer, songwriter, and musician. He got his start in the music industry, by fronting the Elektra Records signed rock-act, Coward. After the disbandment of the band, he start ...

and originally recorded for the band's debut studio album '' Oh, What a Life'', appearing as the fifth track on the album. The track was released by

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it is ...

and

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, an ...

as a promotional single on February 18, 2014.

Composition

"Trouble" has been described as a

folk rock Folk rock is a hybrid music genre that combines the elements of folk music, folk and rock music, rock music, which arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the American fo ...

song, borrowing musical elements from

Mumford & Sons Mumford & Sons is a British folk rock band formed in London in 2007. The band currently consists of Marcus Mumford (lead vocals, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, drums), Ted Dwane (vocals, bass guitar, double bass), and Ben Lovett (vocals, ...

The Lumineers The Lumineers are an American alternative folk band based in Denver, Colorado. The founding members are Wesley Schultz (lead vocals, guitar) and Jeremiah Fraites (drums, percussion, piano). Schultz and Fraites began writing and performing to ...

and

Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros is an American folk rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 2005. The group is led by singer Alex Ebert. The band's name is based on a story Ebert wrote in his youth, about a messianic figure named ...

. Driven by the

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and usually made of plastic, or occasionally animal skin. Early forms of the instrument were fashi ...

as the lead instrument in the song, the track makes use of the voices of all four band members to create a

crowd Generally speaking, a crowd is defined as a group of people that have gathered for a common purpose or intent such as at a Demonstration (people), demonstration, a Sport, sports event, or during looting (this is known as an acting crowd), or ...

-like cheer that is used in the song's chorus and latter verses, an effect similar to the one used in " Best Day of My Life".

Reception

While most critics compared the song to " Best Day of My Life", the song was well received nevertheless by critics. Justin Stanford of music website Indie Trendsetters wrote that "It isn’t massive like "Best Day of My Life" but it is nice and low key, a little more intimate and personal. No doubt it is a buildup to something huge in their new album". Anna Murphy of music website ''

Earmilk ''EARMILK'', sometimes stylized in all caps, is a North American online music publication. Launched in the late 2000s by Montrey Whittaker, Blake Edwards and Eric DeFazio, ''Earmilk'' publishes on a variety of music genres, often covering hip h ...

'' also wrote positively of the song, stating "this song will be a hit. Enjoy it in its first fresh week before it's making the rounds on syndicated airwaves & your little sister's surround sound". The line "I knew she was trouble from the first kiss" indirectly refers to

Taylor Swift Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. Her discography spans multiple genres, and her vivid songwriting—often inspired by her personal life—has received critical praise and wide media coverage. Bo ...

's 2012 smash hit "

I Knew You Were Trouble "I Knew You Were Trouble" is a song by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, from her fourth studio album ''Red'' (2012). She wrote the song along with the track's producers, Max Martin and Shellback. A dance-pop, pop rock, and teen pop song ...

Track listing

Personnel

Adapted from ''Oh, What a Life'' liner notes. ;American Authors * Zac Barnett –

lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of th ...

, guitar *James Adam Shelley – lead guitar, banjo *Dave Rublin – bass *Matt Sanchez – drums ;Technical personnel *

– production *

Michael Goodman Michael Goodman (born 1954, New York City) is an American photographer. Work Michael Goodman is an international construction photographer. As Chief Contributing Photographer to Engineering News Record from 1988 to 2008 Goodman has had over 135 M ...

– production

Charts

Release history

References

{{American Authors 2014 songs 2014 singles Island Records singles Mercury Records singles American Authors songs Songs written by Shep Goodman Songs written by Aaron Accetta Song recordings produced by Aaron Accetta