Neon Trees— Slick Pop Hooks & Organic Rock

"I wanna shake up your system/I wanna rattle your bones/I wanna take you to the stars/And then I’ll leave you alone." —Farther Down

Like their name, Neon Trees are a combination of slick pop hooks and sturdy organic rock, both melodic and hard-hitting, their anthems of adolescent angst, longing, love lost and found, delivered with the kind of heart-on-the-sleeve passion that only comes from hard work and commitment. Their Mercury Records debut, Habits, produced by friend, singer/guitarist Tim Pagnotta, is a refreshing blast of timeless rock energy and spirit that wouldn’t sound out of place at any point from '60s garage-rock to 2010 dance rock, with the first single, Animal, taking off from a round of weaving, angular guitars into a song equally at home in the arena as on the dance floor, a paean to sexual longing in which singer/front man Tyler Glenn wails, "Take a bite of my heart tonight.," and you have no reason to doubt his sincerity. Take hook-happy new wave, add to it the classic-rock story-telling humanity and leaven with other-worldly charisma, and you begin to understand the palette Neon Trees are working from. "I have this weird, obsessive nature of wanting to be a superhero," admits Glenn, who cites his two favorite performers as the Boss and the King of Pop. "I just want to help my friends and the people I love by saving them, only to realize they’re really saving me by listening to the music. The songs are all about forgiveness, love and passion, which basically sums up the whole vibe of what we’re about as a band, professionally and spiritually."

In the opening Sins of my Youth, Tyler reminisces about a childhood of trial, error and eventual self-discovery. "I've got these habits I cannot break… Call me crazy/I was born to make a mess." Your Surrender takes Roy Orbison’s romantic plaint and sets it up against Phil Spector's Wall of Sound, while Girls and Boys in School speaks for itself, with a playground chant over a dark yet sing-along synth-pop chorus. Chris Allen has a quirky, edgy Johnny Marrr-meets—The Edge guitar playing while drummer Elaine Bradley drums with the intensity of John Bonham adding a heartbeat to the sensuality of the songs.

"We’re all about songs which relate the human experience," says Las Vegas native, bassist Branden Campbell. "The emotion is very important to us. Our logo is a human heart with wings. We try to keep it real, but we’re not afraid to dream, either, work hard and admit we want success."

"We approach the songs from a classic perspective," adds guitarist Chris Allen, who formed the initial group in Southern California with neighbor Tyler, who lived around the corner. "Even from the start, it was all about the music for us. We didn’t even talk, just practice."

"I've always tried to keep my feet on the ground with my songwriting," adds Tyler, a self-taught musician who began composing when he was six. "I try to focus on getting out what I'm thinking and feeling. It's a tool to help me cope with all the weird things that come into my mind. I'm just happy to have found that outlet." When Allen moved to Provo, UT, to attend school, Glenn followed him, knowing he wanted to play music with Allen. "That was a real awkward trip," laughs Chris. "We drove all the way out there and hardly said a word to each other. All we knew was we wanted to play music together." 

Once there, they were soon joined by Campbell on bass and drummer Bradley, a Midwestern Led Zeppelin/Depeche Mode fan, a combination that clicked despite the fact the individual members eventually discovered they were all very different people. "“We are all so fascinatingly different," explains Bradley, who has been playing in bands since she was 14, first as a guitarist then as a drummer. "Tyler's the quirky serious type who is really a goofball. Branden's the musical history encyclopedia. Chris is the manual labor. Being in this band is like an arranged marriage where divorce is not an option, and I'm ok with that." Being signed to a major label hasn't changed Neon Trees one bit. "Our goal and how we play are still the same," insists Tyler. "We've always tried to evoke a larger-than-life feel, even if we're playing to 10 people in a garage. We're just trying to keep our feet on the ground and remember why we started doing this in the first place."

"Music is a sacred act of communion for me, offering hope and love," says Tyler. "That's the heart of this band. Just like in life, though, you need to have fun, too, you have to laugh and dance and sing. The songs that last and get people to feel something are the ones they can sing along to and really identify with. 

"There's so much breath to what we do," adds Elaine. "Every song represents a different aspect of our sound. We don't stick to a single formula. And we have the goods to back it up live."

"Our favorite thing is playing live shows, traveling, seeing new places, meeting new people," adds Chris. "We just want to share that feeling we got from the bands that inspired us, and then We want to pass the torch." With their major label debut, Habits, Neon Trees light the fire...

http://www.fameisdead.com/ or

http://www.myspace.com/neontrees

Hal Leonard Performing Arts Publishing Group continues its pop culture connectivity series If You Like with the newest volume, If You Like Monty Python… (Limelight Editions, $16.99) by Zack Handlen. From its perfectly insane television show to its consistently irreverent and riotous movies, Monty Python has owned the zany and absurd side of comedy since its debut and has a massive following to prove it. But there’s a finite supply of Monty Python in the world, and once you’ve finished going through that supply, what happens next? In a world of dwindling video stores— and instructive video store clerks— If You Like Monty Python… guides you through over 200 films, television shows, books, and other material that will satisfy your Python withdrawal. If you have graduated from the Ministry of Silly Walks and want more, this book is for you.

One thing I have to say right off the bat is how much I enjoy the variety the company is employing here. The Beatles is a pretty obvious choice, but The Sopranos is a little out of left field. And as great as Python were, they are still (at least in the U.S.) considered relatively obscure. One thing I really enjoyed about this book is the way Handlen opens it— with a discussion of the roots of the comedy of Monty Python. While it may not be a stunning revelation that the members of the troupe found inspiration in the Marx Brothers, his mention of Charles Schulz's Peanuts was a tad bit unexpected— as was Bob Newhart's 1960 debut comedy Album LP; The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart.

As the book progresses, Handlen details the history of Monty Python's various works, plus the many other programs and such that they inspired. It is little surprise that Saturday Night Live and SCTV are included. But there are some pretty cool connections the author makes which I intend to look into as well. Although I have seen Stanley Kubrick's A Clockwork Orange (1971) many times, the mention of it in this context is interesting— and provides me with yet another excuse to watch it (as if I REALLY needed one). 

If You Like Monty Python… navigates readers through Python’s influences from Charlie Chaplin to the Flying Circus’s predecessor on British television, At Last the 1948 Show. Handlen also looks at Python’s contemporaries, other works by the individual Pythons, and those inspired in some way by Monty Python including mockumentaries like The Office and satirists like George Carlin. The book also includes useful appendixes like “Famous Monty Python Quotes, and How to Use Them” and “Master Lists of Musts for Python Addicts.” Surprising connections one may not have initially made are what make the If You Like Monty Python... book such a worthwhile read. This is a great series, and I certainly hope that the publisher continues with it.