It was 2003. "The Reason" was literally everywhere. You couldn't go to a grocery store, turn on a car radio, or watch MTV for more than twenty minutes without hearing Doug Robb’s earnest belt. It was a massive, culture-shifting hit that turned a group of guys from Agoura Hills into global superstars almost overnight. But then came the follow-up. When Hoobastank Out of Control hit the shelves in 2006, it felt like a cold bucket of water to the face of the mainstream public.
People expected another ballad. They wanted "The Reason 2.0." Instead, they got an aggressive, riff-heavy, and surprisingly dark record that most people didn't know what to do with.
Honestly, it’s one of the most interesting "post-fame" albums of the 2000s. It wasn't just a collection of songs; it was a desperate attempt to prove they weren't just a "chick-flick soundtrack band." They wanted to be loud. They wanted to be heavy. They wanted to reclaim the post-grunge identity they'd started with back on their self-titled debut. Looking back twenty years later, the record stands as a fascinating case study in what happens when a band tries to outrun its own shadow.
The Massive Pressure of 2006
Imagine the stress. You’ve sold millions of records. You’ve been nominated for Grammys. Your label is breathing down your neck because they want another billion-stream (in today's terms) hit. But you? You're tired of being the "sensitive guys."
When the band hit the studio with producer Howard Benson, the goal for Hoobastank Out of Control was clear: get back to the rock. Benson is a legend—he’s worked with everyone from My Chemical Romance to P.O.D.—and he knew how to polish a heavy sound. But the industry landscape was shifting. Emo was taking over. The "O.C." era of indie rock was bubbling up. Straightforward post-grunge was suddenly in a weird spot.
Doug Robb has mentioned in various interviews over the years that they weren't trying to alienate people. They just wanted to play what felt natural at the time. "Born to Lead" and "If I Were You" were the lead singles, and while they did okay on the rock charts, they didn't have the universal, "everyone’s-mom-loves-this" appeal of their previous work.
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Why the Sound Shifted So Drastically
If you listen to the track "Out of Control" itself, it’s basically a panic attack set to music. It’s fast. It’s jagged. It features guest vocals from Ian Watkins and Jamie Oliver of Lostprophets (which, obviously, has aged terribly due to Watkins’ later horrific crimes, but at the time, it was a huge "alt-rock" collaboration).
The album felt more like the music they grew up on. They were influenced by the California skate-punk scene and the heavier side of the 90s. When they released the self-titled album in 2001, tracks like "Crawling in the Dark" had a specific energy. Hoobastank Out of Control was an attempt to recapture that lightning, but with the cynical edge of guys who had seen the ugly side of the music industry.
- The guitars were tuned lower.
- The lyrics moved away from "I'm sorry" to "I'm frustrated."
- The production was denser, less airy than The Reason.
It’s a loud record. Like, really loud. It’s the kind of album you play when you’re driving too fast on a freeway at 2 AM.
The "Sophomore Slump" That Wasn't
Technically, this was their third major-label album, but in the eyes of the general public, it was the follow-up. The "sophomore slump" is a cliché for a reason, but for Hoobastank, it wasn't a lack of quality. It was a mismatch of expectations.
Critics were weirdly harsh. Some called it generic; others felt it was too much of a pivot. But if you actually sit down and listen to "The First of Me" or "Inside of You," the songwriting is tight. It’s melodic. It just isn't "pretty."
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The commercial performance was a bit of a reality check. While The Reason went double platinum in the US, Everyday Catholics... wait, sorry, Every Day (the 2001 record) and The Reason set such a high bar that Hoobastank Out of Control moving "only" a few hundred thousand copies felt like a failure to the suits at Island Records.
But talk to any die-hard fan today. They usually rank this album in their top two. Why? Because it feels honest. There’s a grit there that disappeared from mainstream rock shortly after.
Dissecting the Key Tracks
"If I Were You" is arguably the standout. It’s the closest thing to a bridge between their old sound and the new one. It has that mid-tempo drive, but the lyrics are biting. It’s about people who judge from the outside without knowing the struggle. You can tell they were feeling the heat of the spotlight.
Then you have "Born to Lead." It’s an anthem. It’s got that soaring chorus that Hoobastank is known for, but the instrumentation is much more aggressive. It feels like a song written for a sports montage, but in a good way. It’s about taking charge of your own life, which is exactly what the band was trying to do by steering their sound away from balladry.
The title track, "Out of Control," is the wild card. It’s chaotic. It’s almost nu-metal in its delivery. It’s the sound of a band breaking things in the studio.
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What Most People Get Wrong About the Era
People think Hoobastank "disappeared" after 2004. They didn't. They just stopped being a "Pop" band and went back to being a "Rock" band.
There’s a misconception that Hoobastank Out of Control was a "flop." In reality, it debuted at number 8 on the Billboard 200. That’s a massive success for almost any other band. The only reason it felt like a step back was because the previous record was a statistical anomaly—one of those once-in-a-career moments that no one can ever truly replicate.
They also dealt with internal changes. Josh Moreau came in on bass for the tour, replacing Markku Lappalainen. Changing a founding member right when you're trying to redefine your sound is like trying to change a tire while the car is going 80 miles per hour. It adds a layer of tension that you can actually hear in the recordings.
The Lasting Legacy of the Record
Twenty years later, the "Out of Control" era is being revisited by people who grew up on the Guitar Hero and Rock Band soundtracks. There’s a certain nostalgia for that specific mid-2000s production—that Howard Benson wall of sound.
It also serves as a reminder of a time when rock bands were allowed to be "uncool." Hoobastank was never the "critically acclaimed" darling like Radiohead or The White Stripes. They were a blue-collar rock band. They wrote big hooks for people who liked loud guitars. Hoobastank Out of Control is perhaps the purest expression of that identity. It’s unpretentious. It’s loud. It’s a bit messy.
Actionable Steps for Music Fans
If you want to actually appreciate what they were doing, don't just stream the hits. You have to look at the album as a reaction to fame.
- Listen to the album start to finish: Do it without skipping. Notice how the energy shifts from the high-octane "Born to Lead" into the more reflective "The First of Me."
- Watch the live performances from 2006: The band was at their technical peak during this tour. Doug's vocals were incredibly strong, and the band played with a chip on their shoulder.
- Compare it to the self-titled debut: If you listen to "Crawling in the Dark" and then "Out of Control" back-to-back, you'll see the through-line. They didn't change; they just evolved.
- Ignore the "one-hit wonder" labels: It’s a lazy take. A band with three platinum singles and a top-10 follow-up album isn't a one-hit wonder. They are a staple of an era.
The record is a document of a band trying to survive their own success. It’s loud, it’s angry, and it’s a lot better than the critics gave it credit for in 2006. Give it another spin. You might be surprised at how well it holds up in a world where rock music has largely lost its edge.