Neon Trees Time Off to Recharge Leads to a New Perspective and a Colorful Album
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ISSUE #33 MMUSICMAG.COM Q&A A ndrew Zaeh Chris Allen, Elaine Bradley, Tyler Glenn, Branden Campbell NEON TREES Time off to recharge leads to a new perspective and a colorful album SUCCESS CAN EXACT A PRICE. It’S But Glenn was not prepared for the Where did the title come from? something alt rockers Neon Trees learned mounting, unrelenting stress that comes with The record was really written to my mental after scoring with their 2010 debut album success. Eventually he had to take a break, anxiety. It came from a time that I was shaky Habits, powered by their breakout single canceling tour dates following the release of emotionally and mentally. I’d asked to have “Animal,” and their follow-up two years later, Picture Show. “It never felt like I had a moment a break, and we canceled some tours—and Picture Show, which included their first to step away to be Tyler—not Tyler from Neon ultimately put a halt on working on our Top 10 hit, “Everybody Talks.” Trees,” he says. “I didn’t realize how important last record so I could get better. I started Hitting it big brought unexpected that was for my well-being, as I do now.” writing songs during that time. I went back demands for touring and promotion, and Time off allowed Glenn to get his head to writing songs to heal, something I used pressures for a follow-up album. At first, the together so that he and the band—guitarist to do in my teens and 20s. Music was really band’s frontman Tyler Glenn was seemingly Chris Allen, bassist Branden Campbell therapy for me. The title summed that up prepared. “Fortunately, I just continued and drummer Elaine Bradley—could take gracefully. It’s definitely the shiniest, most writing after our first record, so it didn’t on their new album, Pop Psychology. Co- colorful record we’ve done, so it goes with feel as though we were rushing to put out written and produced by Tim Pagnotta, the the imagery of pop art and the aesthetic material,” he says. “We were booking a tour new record pairs the glossy synth pop of we’re going with. Everything we’re wearing and playing on TV as we were finishing the Neon Trees’ earlier hits with Glenn’s new, is very colorful, everything in the artwork second record, so it was almost a continuum.” more personal insights. is very colorful. ‘Something that we really wanted to concentrate on was thoroughly sounding like Neon Trees.’ 36 M mag 33.indd 36 3/5/14 9:08 PM ISSUE #33 MMUSICMAG.COM Do the lyrics reflect that anxiety? them a Neon Trees record, even though there on) The Dock of the Bay.” It was more singer- Since the band took off with our first record, weren’t too many moments with the four of songwriter-esque, but I always envisioned I never gave myself time to breathe or step us in a room writing together. it as a big anthem. I don’t know why, but back. I was learning to perform who I was Madonna’s “Like a Prayer” always came to and things I wanted to say to audiences. What’s it like working with Tim? mind. I loved the use of the gospel choir on I felt like I was playing catch-up with that. Tim discovered us. He got us early contacts that record. We had wanted some choir on Finally it all came to a head, and I realized I and fostered a relationship with us. When a song but never had the opportunity—this wasn’t a happy person, and I had to figure we were about to make this record and seemed like the right opportunity. They were out what makes me happy. A lot of the record choose a producer, I had written so much a professional choir, and it was very cool to is about me running away from a serious with him in the past, it just seemed right to sing in a room with a bunch of awesome relationship. I’ve always avoided anything continue the relationship. Now more than gospel singers. serious because I’ve always used the band ever I feel like we co-produced this album. as an excuse. I feel 100 percent part of it—the result of a Who sings “Unavoidable” with you? good working and writing relationship. Some Our drummer, Elaine. She wrote the chorus How was the band an excuse? of the writing situations I’ve had in the past but was thinking it was a little too teen pop, Ninety-five percent of every year since 2005 haven’t been as fair for me as they could but I thought there was a certain charm to had been consumed eating, sleeping and be. But with Tim, I’m writing all the lyrics, I’m the idea of talking about the unavoidable breathing Neon Trees. Writing music, touring writing the melodies, I’m putting my heart into outcome of falling in love. Everyone’s and booking tours were all we knew to do. it—and he’s helping with the music. personal experience with love is interesting, I didn’t really have an identity outside of it. How’d you find your groove again? It started with the label wanting us to write new music because I had canceled two tours. We never really told them about my situation, because I didn’t want it out there. We were getting pressured to write for a new record if we weren’t going to tour behind the record we currently had out. My writing partner and producer, Tim Pagnotta, encouraged me. He was like, “Maybe we should just take the label money and go on a trip, and if we end up writing music, then we do.” So we took a trip to Mexico and NEON TREES hung out for a few days, and actually started Peter Kramer/NBC/NBCPeter via Getty Images NewsWire making music. It felt really good. Last January Time off to recharge leads to a new perspective and a colorful album we wrote the first batch of songs together, and later we wrote another batch. It was cool to do it in our own time frame, without making an announcement that we were in the studio or setting a date that fans were looking forward to. Tyler Glenn on NBC’s Today Show, 2014 Did you have a direction in mind? Something that we really wanted to How’d the recording go? concentrate on was thoroughly sounding like We’ve started to recognize ‘It’s definitely the Neon Trees. On our previous records there the role each of us plays in the were moments where we nearly paid homage band, and we did this record shiniest, most colorful to artists, rather than taking things that we as an opportunity to learn from liked about those artists and making them the previous stuff we’ve done. record we’ve done’.’ our own. We wanted to concentrate on the There were moments where a really colorful, energetic side of our music. specific band member wanted to play all over the song, and editing needed to and that’s why it’s an easy topic to write What’s your songwriting process? be done and conversations needed to be about, because it’s different for everyone. This record was so different because it had, but it was a pretty easy process once I don’t think I was really in a place to write started from a place where I was really the songs were written. a song called “Unavoidable” because I uninterested in making it. A lot of the record was preventing myself from finding that. was written with just Tim and me together, What’s behind the gospel influence on She had just been married and just had but we’re a band, and it was important the “First Things First”? her first child, and there was a real sense record didn’t sound like a solo thing. The The original demo had an acoustic guitar of honesty in that. band definitely took the songs and made and a beat, but it reminded me of “(Sittin’ –Amanda Farah 37 M mag 33.indd 37 3/5/14 9:09 PM.