What a lovely name for a band. The quartet from Provo, Utah, signed to Mercury Records thanks to The Killers’ drummer Ronnie Vanucci, Jr., released their debut album Habits last year in the U.S and just last February in the U.K. Lead single Animal created tons of buzz for the band when it was released due to the track being anthemic.
The lead single Animal which appears as the third track in the 37-minute-long effort sounds poppy especially when compared to the rest of the tracks of the album. The track is definitely catchy with lyrics that are easy to sing along with. Energized guitars do help intensify the atmosphere in the already pleasurable track.
There is no doubt that the band loves feeding energy into its tracks. In every track, present is a dose of passion and high intensity that eventually disintegrates any chance of boredom seeping into the effort. Love and Affection has riffs that may remind the listener of Bloc Party though the repetition of the phrase ‘love and affection’ may be grating on the listener’s ears.
1983, with its irresistible hooks, may remind the listener of those punk rock tracks that they love to play through those blasting speakers of theirs. Sins of My Youth begins with a rather interesting monologue which actually seems to be where the album got its name. Though a bit generic, the track epitomizes music coming from pop/rock bands which people will really love.
How does Habits end up then? Neon Trees definitely have something going on with the kind of music that they play. People who normally do not dig the type of music that the band plays will actually love the tracks in the album. However, it needs to be said that the tracks in the 37-minute-long effort are quite generic. They obviously are not tracks that you have not heard before. You will really love the effort but at some point, you will forget about it and just move on.
Best Track: 1983
Also Listen To: Animal, Sins of My Youth, and Love and Affection
Date Released: March 16, 2010 (U.S)/February 18, 2011 (U.K)
Label: Mercury Records
