"Back to Life" is a song by American

hip-hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hi ...

duo

3OH!3 3OH!3 (pronounced "three oh three") is an American music duo from Boulder, Colorado, consisting of American vocalists Sean Foreman and Nathaniel Motte. They are best known for their single "Don't Trust Me", which was the lead single from their ...

. It was released on March 5, 2013, as the third and final single from their fourth studio album ''

Omens An omen (also called ''portent'') is a phenomenon that is believed to foretell the future, often signifying the advent of change. It was commonly believed in ancient history, and still believed by some today, that omens bring divine messages ...

'', via

Photo Finish Records Photo Finish Records is an American independent record label founded by Matt Galle in 2006. Based in New York City, the label specializes in alternative rock, pop, and electronic artists. It was first distributed through Atlantic Records, t ...

. The song was written by

Sean Foreman Sean Foreman (born August 27, 1985) is an American singer, songwriter and rapper from Boulder, Colorado. He is a member of the electronic pop duo 3OH!3 with Nathaniel Motte. He has also written and produced for artists such as Ariana Grande, Fitz ...

Nathaniel Motte Nathaniel Warren Seth Motte (born January 13, 1984) is an American recording artist, record producer, songwriter, and film composer from Boulder, Colorado. He is a member of the electropop duo 3OH!3 with Sean Foreman. He has also written and p ...

and

Greg Kurstin Gregory Allen Kurstin (born May 14, 1969) is an American record producer, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter. He has won nine Grammy Awards, including Producer of the Year, Non-Classical in 2017 and 2018, and contributed to five songs that pe ...

Background

On March 3, 2013, the group revealed the release date for their fourth studio album, ''

'', along with an announcement of the third single from the album, "Back to Life". The duo stated they would release the song if fans accomplished a series of tasks suggested by the duo. They eventually streamed the single on their website the following day, before it was released for digital download on March 5.

Critical reception

Matt Collar of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

felt that the track's "results are pretty trite." Kelly Gonsalves of ''The Pop Break'' stated, "this song is highly refreshing, even featuring some pleasant piano chords and just the kind of melody that makes you wanna throw your arm over a friend’s shoulder and wave your cell phone around in the air."

Music video

The music video for "Back to Life" premiered on March 5, 2013, and was directed by Mickey Finnegan. The video sees the duo robbing a fish market at a grocery store which leads them into getting a fight with the butcher.

Track listing

Personnel

Credits for "Back to Life" adapted from album's

liner notes Liner notes (also sleeve notes or album notes) are the writings found on the sleeves of LP record albums and in booklets that come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or cassette j-cards. Origin Liner notes are descended from the prog ...

. 3OH!3 *

– vocals, producer, mixing,

engineering Engineering is the practice of using natural science, mathematics, and the engineering design process to Problem solving#Engineering, solve problems within technology, increase efficiency and productivity, and improve Systems engineering, s ...

, recording *

– vocals, producer, mixing, engineering, recording,

programming Program (American English; also Commonwealth English in terms of computer programming and related activities) or programme (Commonwealth English in all other meanings), programmer, or programming may refer to: Business and management * Program m ...

Production *

– producer, engineering *

Jesse Shatkin Jesse Samuel Shatkin (born 1979) is an American songwriter, producer and engineer. He has worked with Sia, Kelly Clarkson, Jennifer Lopez, Fitz and the Tantrums, One Direction, and Miley Cyrus, among others. Shatkin was nominated in 2014 for G ...

– engineering *

Chris Gehringer Chris Gehringer (born May 27, 1962) is an American mastering engineer at Sterling Sound in New Jersey. Gehringer is known for having mastered recordings by popular artists such as AJR, Dua Lipa, Drake, Ed Sheeran, Gwen Stefani, Harry Styles, ...

– mastering * Recorded at Eden Studios,

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, United States

Charts

Release history

References

{{3OH!3 songs 2012 songs 2013 singles 3OH!3 songs Songs written by Nathaniel Motte Songs written by Sean Foreman Songs written by Greg Kurstin