Self-Starter

This is the first track to be issued from Florida alt-rock group Anberlin's sixth album, Vital. Drummer Nathan Young, primary composer of the musical end of the record, admitted to Billboard magazine that out of concern that the song was "too different" for the group, he almost held it back. But when vocalist Stephen Christian responded positively to a late-night email of the tune, Young was reassured it would work. "I flipped out. I told him it was like the best demo I'd heard for the album," he said.

The song also features Nashville singer Julia Marie, marking the first time ever that a female vocalist has appeared on an Anberlin recording. Marie is married to Stephen Christian. Two other Vital tracks also sport female vocals.

Regarding the album title, Stephen Christian explained to Billboard magazine: "I wanted this to be just electricity, just vibrant - that's how we came up with that title, Vital. I wanted that almost youthful, energetic energy. Our favorite part of any show is when people are absolutely going mental, screaming at the top of their lungs, dancing along, having the best night. We felt like if that's what gets us off, makes us excited to play, why don't we just wrote a whole record like that. The whole record's not like that, but that was kind of the guiding vision."