Talking Is Hard is the third studio album by American rock band Walk the Moon, released on December 2, 2014, by RCA Records.

The band chose to work with Tim Pagnotta to produce an album that would explore different influences and sounds to differentiate it from their self-titled major label debut (2012).

Lead singer Nicholas Petricca stated to Billboard that the band had "a bag of songs that are in different degrees of completion" and were looking "to go in the studio sometime in the spring and get started".

Drummer Sean Waugaman primarily used a 1965 Ludwig black oyster pearl drum kit with Paiste 602s, Signatures, and Zildjian Constantinople cymbals.

Guitarist Eli Maiman spoke with Alternative Addiction about their experience working with Pagnotta, saying that he "very quickly became part of [their] family" and "made the whole process easy and fun" due to how natural the fit was.

[7] During the photo shoot, the band was having fun improvising with the photographer to explore a new look for them "that was not all wild colors and tank tops and Peter Pan".

[8] Regarding the album's title, Petricca said to Fuse that "[t]alking is the way that [everyone] communicate[s] everyday, all day, to each other, but words just don't fully convey everything that you have inside," which is "why [they] have music" to express "[a]ll those thoughts and feelings".

[2][11][12] Petricca told Rolling Stone that the band pulled from a multitude of different eras, especially from "stuff that has a hint of weird".

Petricca said that it "has a lot of elements [that] tie [the band] to where [they] came from" with "semi-embarrassing, true story lyrics" and "some of [his] favorite bass stuff on the whole record".

[16] The eighth track, "Work This Body", employs a worldbeat element with a lot of Latin American-influence; the rhythm and percussion is said to have "a very Zamba vibe".

[8] "We Are the Kids" is a slick, R&B-infused anthem about survival that takes a darker vibe, inspired by Michael Jackson and Tears for Fears.

[13] "Come Under the Covers", the penultimate track, is a power pop song that started off as a guitar riff that Maiman played for a soundcheck in Austria.

[26] The band revealed the track list for Talking Is Hard on their Facebook page, along with individual artwork for each of the songs, on November 10, 2014.

[11] James Christopher Monger of AllMusic reviewed the album positively, describing it as "a 12-track slab of twisty, pulsating, yet always melodious Phoenix-, Jukebox the Ghost-, Bleachers-, and Foster the People-inspired indie pop that's as clever as it is tooth-decay inducing".

[44] In a more mixed review, Mitchell Bozzetto of Renowned for Sound thought that the album is "a step backwards rather than forwards", saying that it "lacks the excitement and energy" heard on Walk the Moon and finding a majority of the songs "borderline cheesy".