"Problems" is a song by Australian musician

Matt Corby Matthew John Corby (born ) is an Australian singer-songwriter. He achieved his commercial breakthrough with his fourth EP, ''Into the Flame'' (2011), which peaked at No. 3 on the ARIA Charts, ARIA Singles Chart, and by April 2012, was certi ...

, released on 3 November 2022 as the lead single from his third studio album, '' Everything's Fine'' (2023).

Background and release

"Problems" was written within a week of Corby and his family losing their home caused by the 2022 eastern Australia floods. His heavily pregnant partner had to be whisked to safety in a small dinghy. Corby returned to the studio with renewed focus to rebuild and move forward with clarity. Lyrically, Corby explained "It's about how funny humans are creating our own problems and issues that we then have to solve. Or creating problems so difficult we then can't solve, and how people talk so much shit and don't do anything – how we're setting ourselves up for failure. People want to point the finger but nobody wants to carry anything themselves." The song was first played on

Triple J Triple J is an Australian government-funded national radio station founded in 1975 as a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). It aims to appeal to young listeners of alternative music, and plays far more Australian conten ...

on 2 November 2023 and released the following day.

Music video

The Murli Dhir directed music video was released on 22 November 2022. Dhir said "When I first heard 'Problems', I knew I wanted to make a bright and funny video that showed someone grooving completely oblivious to their problems around them". A live at Rainbow Valley Studios version was released on 13 December 2022.

Reception

Sose Fuamoli from '' Double J'' said "'Problems' demonstrates a refined sense of identity when it comes to Matt's hold on arrangement and individual style. Though this song feels decidedly different to 2018's '' Rainbow Valley'' album, 'Problems' still prominently has the stamp of being a Matt Corby joint." Alex Gallagher from '' Music Feeds'' said "Building on the songwriter and producer's underlying R&B tendencies, it's layered with grooving bass, woozy electronics and in-the-pocket drums, foregrounding Corby's smooth croon." Robin Murray from '' Clash Magazine'' said "'Problems' is – almost in spite of its title – a curiously laid back jammer, soaked in West Coast synths and soulful sense of pop song writing." Conor Lochrie from ''

Rolling Stone Australia ''Rolling Stone Australia'' is the Australian edition of the United States' ''Rolling Stone'' magazine devoted to music, politics, and popular culture, published monthly. The Australian version of ''Rolling Stone'' was initially published in 197 ...

'' noted the "bubbling R&B-influenced production ndwoozy keys and groovy bass skim". Ellie Robinson from ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'' called the song "silky and groove-laden".

References

{{Matt Corby 2022 singles 2022 songs Matt Corby songs