相信大多数人都是从OC里的那首"Forever Young"认识Youth Group的。他们成立于1998年，如今仍坚守岗位的原装成员只剩主唱兼吉他手Toby Martin与鼓手Danny Allen，其他成员来来去去，The Vines贝斯手Patrick Matthews加入后才算底定最后的阵容。Youth Group曾在家乡替The Strokes、Franz Ferdinand暖场，也发行过数张单曲EP，已是颇有知名度的乐队。直到2005年终于被Epitaph看中，于北美发行了首张专辑Skeleton Jar。主唱Toby Martin的嗓音对于英伦音乐的爱好者应该是一听就会爱上的迷药，他让我想起了James于Puressence这两组挚爱的乐队。Youth Group辛苦挣扎的七年时光里，Toby Martin拿到了博士学位，随后他继续共读着Ph.D. in History。如不是新专辑发行使他暂缓了学业，他可能成为摇滚史上少数拥有博士学位的主唱之一。 因此不论Youth Group的音乐或Toby Martin的声音都有种独特的清新气质，有时带点不染尘埃的调调，但大多时候散发着轻松的苦涩。1998年乐队成立后Toby Martin分别经历了父亲过世、失业、被女友抛弃、团员纠纷这些惨事，可对于他来说，最痛苦的阶段往往能创作出最深刻的作品，Youth Group专辑里那些恬淡悲伤的歌就是这么来的。Youth Group常被拿来于Death Cab For Cutie比较，团员则喜欢Jesus and Mary Chain的音乐。虽然与一些Indie Pop乐队相档，Youth Group仍缺乏一击必杀的辨认度，总给人开着拼装车的感觉；但对于新进乐队来说我们必须友善地降低门凯，毕竟能把拼装车开好，也是所有驾驶必须学会的第一件事.Youth Group has its roots in the Canberra indie rock scene, the group was formed in the late nineties by Narrabundah College school friends Danny Allen, Paul Murphy, Toby Martin and Andy Cassell. Andy Cassell being one of three partners in the Ivy League / Winterman & Goldstein group of companies. Of the original members only Toby Martin (vocals/guitar) and Danny Allen (drums) remain. After various configurations, including the temporary membership of versatile Sydney musician, John Lattin of La Huva, the current lineup was finalised in 2004 through the addition of Cameron Emerson-Elliott on guitar (previously a member of The John Reed Club) and former bassist of The Vines, Patrick Matthews.Built around the pure vocals of Martin and clean production of Wayne Connolly, the sound of Youth Group is reminiscent of power pop/indie rock artists such as Matthew Sweet. However it is Martin's insightful and empathetic lyrics which distinguish Youth Group from comparable bands. Able to create vignettes based around the emotional dynamics of his characters, often female, Martin's lyrics are typically unsentimental but rarely unsympathetic.[citation needed]While the band always had a dedicated following in the inner cities of Sydney and Melbourne, their career was unremarkable until a series of chance happenings lead Epitaph Records boss Brett Gurewitz to hear their second album, Skeleton Jar, and release it in the U.S. Despite sounding nothing like the California punk that Epitaph is widely known for, the support of a US label was the break that Youth Group needed to find a wider audience.Although the band had played at the 2003 South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas, and done a small number of dates with The Vines and The Music on their US West Coast tour, including a sold out show at San Francisco's legendary Fillmore, it was the chance to support Death Cab for Cutie in 2005 that saw their profile rise most quickly. In addition, their single "Forever Young", a cover of the song by Alphaville, was used in the television show The O.C.. With the band getting attention in the United States, it spurred Australian acts to reassess the band, raising the band's profile among mainstream audiences in Australia[1]. The song debuted on the Australian charts at #2, and eventually peaked at #1. It was also #1 in the first ever digital download chart. During 2006, they supported Coldplay in their sold-out tour of Australia and have announced their own national tour.In July 2006 the band released their third album, Casino Twilight Dogs, which features "Forever Young", along with their second single, "Catching and Killing". As of July 24, 2006, Casino Twilight Dogs debuted at #10 in the ARIA Album Charts [2].There is a widely-circulated theory in the music community that the band name Youth Group is a clever twist on the name of the Scottish indie rock band Teenage Fanclub, whom vocalist Toby Martin has cited as a major musical influence during his childhood.[citation needed]Youth Group won a 2006 ARIA award for "Break-Though Single" for "Forever Young".