Released May 1, 2012 Recorded 2012 Label Mom+Pop | Format Digital download Length 4:17 | |
Genre Indie rock, electronic rock | ||
"Youth Without Youth" is the first single from Canadian indie rock band Metric's 2012 album, Synthetica. The song debuted at number 1 on the Canadian alternative rock chart and stayed at that spot for a record 16 consecutive weeks. The song tackles the subject of a fraying social state through the eyes of a deprived youth.
Reception
The song has received mixed to favorable reviews from critics. Jon Dolan of Rolling Stone gave the song a mixed review, giving it a rating of 3 out of 5 stars and describing the song as "Glam sugar with a bitter core". Dolan further stated that "Perennial indie crush Emily Haines drops a wasted-youth anthem with scarred poetry like "We played blindman's bluff till they stopped the game," over a bleak- bubblegum stomp."
Jillian Mapes of Billboard praised Haines' songwriting, stating "Lyrically, frontwoman Emily Haines toys with powerful imagery, using phrases like "double dutch with a hand grenade" and "rubber soul with a razor blade" to describe a young life full of malaise and even criminality."