Masculine

"Masculine" is a song by American alternative/indie pop band Curriculum. Written by members Gregory Preston Olivier, Phillip Mandelbaum, and Wyatt van Cleef and produced by member Dana Breckenridge, "Masculine" was released as the fourth single from the band's sophomore album Sophomore on 17 November 2014.

Sonically, "Masculine" is an alternative song with strong rock influences with hints of pop and dubstep, carrying what is considered to be an "aggressive" vibe to it. Lyrically, the song details the characteristics and personality of a tough warrior as he prepares to go to war.

The song received generally positive reviews from critics who complimented the band's change in direction from their usual style and venturing into a more "aggressive" and "masculine" vibe into the single. Olivier's vocal performance and the production was highly praised by critics.

Promotion for "Masculine" was highly controversial as it was overshadowed by the internal conflicts within Curriculum between Mandelbaum and the rest of the band, which received heavy press coverage. "Masculine" also received controversy for replacing the band's song "Vice City 1986" as the fourth single choice ("Vice City 1986" was later released as the fifth single instead).

"Masculine" became commercially successful in the UK and internationally. In the UK, "Masculine" became the band's first number one single and was eventually certified Platinum by the Urapopstar Recording Association Phonographic Society. Internationally, the single reached the top two in the US, Canada, Ireland, Australia, and others.

Background, writing, and composition
"Masculine" was written and recorded in 2013 after band member Gregory Preston Olivier had finished reading about Trojan and Spartan warriors in Ancient Greece. The song was written by Olivier, Phillip Mandelbaum, and Wyatt van Cleef and produced by Dana Breckenridge.

Lyrically, the song details the characteristics of a "tough and mighty" warrior who fearlessly is preparing to go to war. Sonically, the song is an alternative song that takes on an "aggressive" rock sound to it. Olivier sings in his high upper chest register throughout the song while van Cleef and Mandelbaum provides backing vocals throughout the song. van Cleef also provides speaking ad-libs throughout the song. In order to achieve the raspy sound during the chorus, Olivier's voice had to be manipulated to sound somewhat distorted; van Cleef also had to sing over him in the chorus to make him sound raspy.

According to the band, the song's title is a reference to the supposed "general interpretation of masculinity", with member Breckenridge stating that "most people listening to the song would describe the tough warrior that we're singing about as 'masculine'. So that is why we named the song 'Masculine'."

Promotion
"Vice City 1986", which was described as a fan favorite from the band, was originally supposed to be released on 17 November 2014. A few weeks before its release, however, the band switched the single choice from "Vice City 1986" to "Masculine". Though "Masculine" was also considered to be a fan favorite, fans showed more favor towards "Vice City 1986" and were somewhat angered by the band's choice to switch singles.

The promotion of "Masculine" received attention due to the fact that the press kits surrounding the single often included a list of random sentences that all started with "Real men...", as to depict what "real men" would or would not do, focusing more on the title than the subject matter of the song. The random "Real men..." sentences went viral online and helped raised awareness about the single. The promotion of "Masculine" was also controversial due to the rising internal conflicts in the band between Mandelbaum and the rest of the band.