On PUSH PULL, the band partnered with producer Matt Wallace (Faith No More, Deftones, Maroon 5, Andy Grammer). As a result, the album nails a bull’s-eye to the group’s underappreciated sweet spot–the large-scale, muscular ‘80s-‘90s alternative rock of U2, Duran Duran, INXS and even Tears for Fears, whose “Heads Over Heels” gets a brawny, Bowiesque take on the new collection. Hoobastank approached PUSH PULL with the swagger and confidence of a band whose first three albums all went either gold, platinum or multi-platinum. “The Reason” garnered multiple GRAMMY nominations for “Song of the Year,” “Best Rock Album” and “Best Pop Performance” for a Duo or Group.

Album highlights include the go-for-broke “Just Let Go (Who Cares if We Fall),” which sums up Hoobastank’s attitude. “At least we get to fly,” sings ROBB. In the title track “Push Pull,” and “More Beautiful,” DOUG unleashes his falsetto, while the funky R&B feel is a tribute to DAN’s early, late–‘90s penchant for Chic and “groove-based” dance music. Songs like “True Believer” and “Buzzkill (Before You Say Goodbye)” show Hoobastank maturing from adolescent to adult relationships, often examining the difficulty of keeping alive the sexuality that fuels them. “We Don’t Need the World” and “There Will Never Be Another” explore the protective bubble and the memories which bind two people together. DOUG’s lyrics to the headphones-worthy “Fallen Star” were inspired by a memory of him watching television one night and seeing a military family of a soldier who had died in combat. It made him think of the brave men and women who serve and even more so now the parents of those who serve.

With PUSH PULL, Hoobastank find themselves looking back to the future, combining the best of what brought them here and establishing their presence in the current pop-rock spectrum.