Boys Like Girls Return After 11-Year Hiatus with “Blood And Sugar” 

It’s been over a decade since Boys Like Girls have graced the airwaves. After an 11-year hiatus, the pop-rock band has stepped back into the limelight with “Blood and Sugar,” a head-bobbing single that displays their iconic sound. 

“Blood And Sugar” is destined to lure listeners in with its catchy hook, but the stirring guitar licks and electronic beats will keep them wanting more. The quarter that rose to stardom in the early 2000s—conveys a narrative about an individual indulging in a toxic situation, despite the predictable consequences. 

It’s like I’m moving in slow motion | And I’m blinded by the sound | See, my body’s in the ocean | But my head is underground | I tried to pin it, but her heart I’ll never win it, so goodnight, sings frontman Martin Johnson. Even though the girl’s a looker | We’re only blood and sugar, right? | No, I never understood her | We’re only blood and sugar, right?

Johnson explains the universal theme that many experience at least once. While many get caught up in unhealthy relationships, he points out that addiction can look different for others.  

​​”Thematically, the song is fairly simple, an empty-calorie relationship that’s so delicious you don’t care. You’re willing to deal with the crash. It continues to beat you down yet you keep coming back for more pain…almost like you’ve learned to love it. Why this obsession? We’re only skin and bone. Humans. Just blood and sugar, really,” he declared in a statement. “I think everyone has an infatuation with something bad for them. Cigarettes. Sports gambling. Porn. Internet validation. Pills that change the way you feel. Buying too many shoes. I know I spend a lot of time trying to fill the empty hole where drugs used to be. I spend most of the time trying to fill that hole with “perfection.” But in the end… nobody’s perfect. Hey. we’re only blood and sugar, right?”

“Blood and Sugar” serves as a preview to their forthcoming album. In a nostalgic video that embodies their success as a band, the hitmakers teased the project and a much-anticipated tour. Johnson shared that they aren’t seeking perfection anymore, but releasing music to connect with the people that made them who they are today. 

“That pulled us back into the studio as Boys Like Girls,” said Johnson, referring to ‘Blood and Sugar.’ “The song we wanna meet you all again with. Sure, we could’ve overworked an album under the enormous pressure of finding perfection. We could’ve made that the impossible hurdle for us to get together to tour to see you again. The fans and friends who grew up with us. New fans just discovering us. That we hope to meet the audience; if that job never gets done, that album never gets released. Lord knows we’ve made several records, that are still rotting in corporate hard drives as I speak. Moreover, perfection was never the goal. So can we just make another f*** record?” 

The group was slated to return to the road in 2020, but the global health crisis halted their plans. The upcoming LP will follow their 2012 album Crazy World and chart-topping successor  Love Drunk. Their biggest hits include – platinum-certified “The Great Escape,” “Hero/Heroine,” “Thunder,” and the Hot 100 duet “Two Is Better Than One” with Taylor Swift. 

Boys Like Girls have yet to confirm the release date for the full-length album or rolled-out tour dates. 

Photo by Matty Vogel / Big Hassle