Wake Up is the debut album by indie pop bandYoungblood Hawke. It was released on April 23, 2013 exclusively on iTunes and then released to other digital retailers and stores on April 30, 2013.
Background
On February 26, 2013, posted an article containing tour and album information. The album title was inspired by 22-year-old Danny McGuire, a friend of the band members. One day he was riding his bike home and was hit by a drunk driver, putting McGuire into a coma before dying. Youngblood Hawke wrote their song "Dannyboy" for him.
Promotion and singles
"We Come Running" is the first single off of Wake Up, released online August 13, 2012 then on the EP the next day. The song has charted in many different countries, peaking at #7 on the US Alternative Songs chart and #17 on the main Australian music sales chart, as well as many others. "Stars " was released as the second single off the album, accompanied by a music video. A remix EP was released to iTunes on September 24, 2013. The original demo for "Dannyboy" was released as a promotional single on February 8, 2013 and the album version was made available for streaming on April 16, 2013. A music video was released on August 9, 2013 on Vevo.
Critical reception
Wake Up was met with mixed reviews from critics. According to review aggregatorMetacritic, the album received an average review score of 57/100, based on 9 reviews. Matt Collar of Allmusic gave the album 3.5 stars out of 5, calling it an "infectious, bombastic party album perfect for the summer months" filled with "dancey, often hummable melodic pop songs". Paul V. of Frontiers gave the album a positive review, saying " the kind of record you want to blare out of your car windows while breaking the speed limit on the freeway." Robert Johnson of Houston Music Review gave the album a positive review, saying "Wake Up is everything a great album should be. It's dynamic yet consistent, catchy yet complex, and extremely good." Mark Graham of VH1 reviewed Wake Up, comparing the band to Passion Pit and Walk the Moon and said, " is chock full of shimmery, upbeat, immensely positive tracks." Kevin Catchpole of Popmatters gave the album a 6/10 score, calling it "mostly satisfying" and saying that "style-studious feel permeating this album points out how it is both a great beginning and a bit derivative". Paul Mardles of The Observer, in a 3-star review, called the band "relentlessly chirpy and inclusive" but said "strip away the euphoria and there's not much going on". Harriet Gibsone of The Guardian echoed these sentiments in her two-star review, saying "Youngblood Hawke's debut rings loud with euphoria, but has little emotional impact."
