Growing Up (The Linda Lindas album)

Growing Up is the debut studio album by American rock band the Linda Lindas. Epitaph Records released the album on April 8, 2022. It was produced by Carlos de la Garza, the father of band members Lucia and Mila de la Garza. Recording sessions for Growing Up took place at Music Friends in Los Angeles from June to October 2021. Growing Up is a punk rock album, with lyrics that focus on themes of growing up, discovering oneself, and anxieties that arise in adolescence. The album was written during the COVID-19 pandemic, limiting the band's ability to write together.

Growing Up received generally favorable reviews from critics and appeared on multiple 2022 year-end lists. The album peaked at number 19 on the US Top Album Sales chart by Billboard. It also charted internationally, peaking at number 49 on Japan's Oricon Albums Chart and number 4 on the UK Independent Album Breakers Chart. Skateboarder Ray Barbee and Bikini Kill singer Kathleen Hanna made cameos in the music videos for the four singles released from the album: "Oh!", "Nino", "Growing Up", and "Talking to Myself". To promote Growing Up, the Linda Lindas embarked on a tour in late 2022, performing with Japanese Breakfast, Bacchae, and Yeah Yeah Yeahs.

Background
The Linda Lindas formed in 2018 as a part of a pickup band for Kristin Kontrol. The band's name comes from the 2005 Japanese film Linda Linda Linda, in turn named after the Blue Hearts' song "Linda Linda". The Linda Lindas consists of Bela Salazar (guitar), Eloise Wong (bass guitar), Lucia de la Garza (guitar), and Mila de la Garza (drums).

The Linda Lindas started out as a cover band, playing music from multiple bands such as the Go-Go's and Le Tigre. The Linda Lindas released their debut extended play (EP), The Linda Lindas, independently in December 2020. In 2019, the Linda Lindas opened for a Bikini Kill show, and actor Amy Poehler was in the audience. Impressed by their performance, Poehler invited them to make a cameo for her 2021 film Moxie. The band subsequently released an EP containing covers of Bikini Kill's "Rebel Girl" and the Muffs' "Big Mouth".

In May 2021, the Los Angeles Public Library posted a video of the band playing "Racist, Sexist Boy" at an Asian American and Pacific Islander Month event. The video became a viral social media hit, earning praise from Rage Against the Machine's Tom Morello, Red Hot Chili Peppers's Flea, Thurston Moore, Bikini Kill's Kathleen Hanna, and Kid Cudi. Author Viet Thanh Nguyen said "'Racist, Sexist Boy' is the song we need now". On May 22, Epitaph Records announced that it had signed the Linda Lindas, in a deal which they had been working on since before the video went viral.

Writing and recording
Most of Growing Up was written during the COVID-19 pandemic, which limited the Linda Lindas' ability to write together. The band members had to attend school remotely and were unable to see each other often. They felt that writing about their "feelings of loneliness and confusion" was a relief. Though the song "Oh!" was written by the band as a whole, many of the songs were written by only one or two band members. Salazar described the pandemic as "super overwhelming", and noted that the band would wear masks and practice outside. She said that practicing "helped [her] mind to think about something else" and made it easier to put her emotions into a song.

In March 2020, near the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Mila had what she described as her first experience of racism. She had an encounter with a boy at school who backed away from her upon discovering she was Chinese; he had been told by his father to stay away from Chinese people. Mila subsequently met with Wong on a five-hour Zoom call, during which they wrote "Racist, Sexist Boy".

Growing Up was recorded and mixed at Music Friends, Carlos de la Garza's backyard studio. Recording sessions lasted from June to October 2021.

Lyrics
Growing Up consists of 10 standard songs and a cover of the Blue Hearts' Japanese-language song "Linda Linda" on the bonus edition. The Linda Lindas split songwriting duties, with each member contributing to the writing. The album is centered on themes of growing up, discovering oneself, and anxieties that arise in adolescence. At the time of its release, each band member was under 18. The first song, "Oh!", is about feeling unheard. Rolling Stone editor Lisa Tozzi says the title track "celebrates the intense friendships [...] and simple pleasures of youth, but also nods to the very normal desire to speed through the scary and awkward parts of adolescence". The song "Talking to Myself" has been described as an "anxiety spiral", however, its lyrics express resilience against severe anxiety. Salazar wrote "Nino" about her cat of the same name; she felt that Nino was jealous that she had previously written a song about her other cat, Monica, which appeared on the Linda Lindas' eponymous EP (2020). Feeling that Nino also wanted a song, Salazar wrote the song "Nino" for him. The Spanish-language "Cuántas Veces", while centered around feeling left out, also has a theme of acceptance. "Racist, Sexist Boy" is an anti-racist song.

Music
Growing Up genre has been classified as punk rock, pop-punk, and power pop. Critics have compared the album's sound to riot grrrl, such as The Skinny editor Tony Inglis who says that it "channel[s] riot grrrl fury and [...] catchy garage pop melodies". The opening track, "Oh!", has been compared musically to the soundtrack of the film Josie and the Pussycats (2001), as well as Joan Jett and Ramones. The song "Nino" contains elements of power pop and is similar to the music of La Luz and Blondie. "Cuántas Veces" has been noted for its bossa nova influences. "Racist, Sexist Boy" has commonly been compared to riot grrrl sound.

Packaging
The album cover is a photograph of paper dolls designed by Wong; she cut the dolls freehand, intending for them to represent the band members as cats. The photograph was taken by Zen Sekizawa, a friend of the band, who worked for hours to create the appropriate lighting for the dolls. Cutouts resembling those on the album cover are included as an insert for the vinyl pressings of the album.

Singles and music videos
Growing Up was released on April 8, 2022, by Epitaph Records. The album spawned four singles, "Oh!", "Nino", "Growing Up", and "Talking to Myself". "Oh!" was released as a single preceding the album on July 21, 2021. Its music video for was directed by Ryan Baxley, and featured skateboarder Ray Barbee taking pictures of the Linda Lindas using a Polaroid camera. The second single, "Nino", was released on December 1, 2021. The music video for "Nino" was animated by Rob Fidel, and the storyboard was created by Salazar. It features Nino, Salazar's pet Siamese cat, hunting in the desert. "Growing Up" and "Talking to Myself" would follow as the third and fourth singles on February 1 and March 2, 2022, respectively. Fashion designer Humberto Leon directed the music video for "Growing Up", which features the band playing dress-up. The music video for "Talking to Myself", also directed by Baxley, was inspired by The Twilight Zone episode "Living Doll" and features the band's doll collection. "Why" had a music video release on May 6, following the release of the album. The video, directed by Elizabeth Ito, is a tribute to the film The Decline of Western Civilization (1981). It also features a cameo from Bikini Kill singer Kathleen Hanna.

A live version of "Racist, Sexist Boy" was released as a single on May 27, 2021. It contains material from the Linda Lindas' live performance at the Los Angeles Public Library. The song went on to win Best Punk Record at the 2022 Libera Awards. It was also nominated for Best Song at the 2022 Kerrang! Awards.

Touring
Throughout April 2022, the Linda Lindas performed in Los Angeles and New York City alongside Jawbreaker. Following the release of the album, the band performed a Tiny Desk (Home) Concert at the Los Angeles Public Library, where they had previously performed their live version of "Racist, Sexist Boy". The band also appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, performing their song "Oh!". The Linda Lindas embarked on a tour from June to October 2022, with shows alongside Japanese Breakfast, Bacchae, and Yeah Yeah Yeahs.

Critical reception
Growing Up received generally favorable reviews. Similarly, aggregator AnyDecentMusic? assigned the album a score of 7.8/10 based on 15 critic reviews.

Growing Up has been described as a simple, catchy, and enjoyable album. Jake Richardson at Kerrang! called it an enjoyable album that shows "there is more to come". The Skinny editor Tony Inglis called it "a light-of-foot album" that has simple concepts and fun riffs. Critic Robert Christgau gave the album a one-star honorable mention, saying that on the album, the Linda Lindas "get down to bizness [sic]" and citing "Racist, Sexist Boy", "Fine", and "Nino" as highlights. Neil Z. Yeung of AllMusic called the album a "ridiculously catchy burst of wide-eyed, youthful anthems". DIY editor Ben Tipple commented that with Growing Up, the Linda Lindas show that they are "more than a viral moment", and noted that they put together a political message with fun music. The Line of Best Fit writer Tom Williams calls the album a demonstration of the Linda Lindas' talent, though he notes it may feel rushed due to the band members' eagerness.

The album's production, such as producer Carlos de la Garza, has also been discussed. Loud and Quiet criticized the production quality, calling the combination of the guitar and bass tracks a "mound of sludge". On the other hand, Alan Ranta at Exclaim! praised the album for its production, while also noting that rather than mailing demos to record labels, the Linda Lindas had access to Carlos, as he is Mila and Lucia's father. Quinn Moreland of Pitchfork noted that since Growing Up was produced by the father of two band members, critics may call it nepotism, though Erwann S. of Sputnikmusic said that the Linda Lindas simply took an opportunity they were offered.

Year-end lists
Growing Up appeared on multiple lists in 2022. Good Morning America ranked Growing Up as number 38 on their list of the "50 best albums of 2022." Kerrang! rated it number 48 on a similar list, while No Ripcord rated it as number 34. Lisa Tozzi of Rolling Stone ranked it number 7 in "Best Music of 2022", and Samantha B of Punknews ranked it number 7 on her "Top 10 LP's of 2022". Growing Up also appeared on Loudwire "Best Rock + Metal Debut Albums of 2022" list.

Personnel
Credits are adapted from the liner notes of Growing Up.

The Linda Lindas

 * Bela Salazar – guitar, vocals
 * Eloise Wong – bass guitar, vocals
 * Lucia de la Garza – guitar, vocals
 * Mila de la Garza – drums, percussion, vocals

Additional musicians

 * Lil' Dude – piano on "Nino"

Technical personnel

 * Carlos de la Garza – producer, engineer, mixer
 * Dave Cooley – mastering
 * Sergio Chavez – engineer
 * Matt Maroalakos – engineer
 * Alec Wingfield – engineer

Packaging

 * Wendy Lau – design
 * Eloise Wong – cover paper art
 * Zen Sekizawa – cover photo, sleeve background photos
 * Albert Licano – photography
 * Alice Baxley – photography
 * Humberto Leon – photography
 * Batsheva – outfits
 * Opening Ceremony – outfits
 * Thy Mai – hair
 * Valerie Vonprisk – cat eye makeup
 * Littlerock Nia – additional hair, makeup
 * Michael Meeks Silva – additional hair, makeup