Courtesy of Mercury Records

July 26, 2024

TEST SPINS | Neon Trees: ‘Habits’

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When one thinks of pop-rock band Neon Trees, their mind likely goes in one of two directions: either they think of “Everybody Talks,” the 2011 smash hit single off Picture Show, or “Animal,” the catchy track about trying to turn a friendship into something more (with disturbing cannibalistic overtones) off debut album Habits. I fall into the former category, but recently heard “Animal” on the radio, which got me thinking; I haven’t quite forgotten about Neon Trees over the years — I’ve heard both the aforementioned songs countless times, and experienced a brief period of time when Habits’s “1983” and the 2015 single “Songs I Can’t Listen To” were on my playlist — but despite enjoying a few of their songs, I’ve never really felt compelled to dive into their discography. This week, I decided to listen to Habits to figure out why the rest of the album hadn’t reached the same level of success as “Animal” and whether I had been missing out.

The record starts out with “Sins Of My Youth” which establishes the album’s theme pretty quickly with the opening line, “I’ve got these habits that I cannot break.” It’s an upbeat, typical pop-rock track, but I can’t help but feel that the lyrics don’t match this buoyant sound. Here, singer and keyboardist Tyler Glenn confesses the things he did when he was younger to his partner, hoping they will stay together post-reveal. Despite this apparent mismatch between the lyrics and overall sound, it’s definitely one of Habits’s catchier songs.

“Love And Affection” is next, beginning with a fun percussive intro and transitioning into a very angsty track about craving something from another person that you aren’t getting and feeling like you’re giving love to someone who won’t give it back but giving it to them anyway. It has an easy-to-sing chorus — a staple in traditional pop-rock — and hits in a way “Sins Of My Youth” isn’t quite able to achieve. “Animal” is the third track on Habits and is a necessary addition to the album — there’s more variation in Glenn’s voice here than in any other song, as he switches between a more conversational tone and his usual poppy sound.

Habits reaches its lowest point with “Your Surrender,” which lacks both sonically and in meaning. The repeated “ohs” sound like every other early 2000s song, and it’s yet another song about wanting to be with someone, clearly illustrating that there are limits to Neon Trees’s creativity.

“1983” has a very summery lead-in and an earworm of a chorus. I’ve always thought it was an underappreciated Neon Trees song. As articulated by Glenn, “that song is more about return to innocence in love and in relationships.” While it does still demonstrate a restricted range in terms of content, it’s an enjoyable listen nonetheless. It’s followed by “Girls And Boys In School,” a forgettable track that also falls short with its shallow meaning.

“In The Next Room” is snappy, and does early 2000s pop-rock right unlike “Your Surrender”; although it’s also not particularly unique in terms of theme, the lyrics feel less perfunctory, less like filler, than in the rest of the album and actually contribute to the song by making it more convincing. “Our War” begins with a spoken intro, which connects the song back to the theme of youth first introduced with the opening track. Truthfully, it’s the only different song in terms of theme — this one focuses on breaking up and trying to be your own person. It has more emotional value than its predecessors, and while the album would have benefitted from a thematic variation earlier in the tracklist, it makes sense to end with a breakup song.

I feel the need to clarify — I do not think every song needs some deep, life-altering meaning. Songs don’t always need to be poems with backing tracks. They’re allowed to just be fun, sad or angry with their sound rather than their words. But within the scope of an album, meaning often adds richness, and it can be difficult to achieve a feeling simply with sound. Neon Trees missed the mark with Habits because while they’ve thoroughly conquered the more generic pop-rock sound, they didn’t make me feel — not with their words nor with their instruments.

Test Spins is a weekly throwback column reviewing and recommending classic and underrated albums from the past. It runs every Friday.

Sydney Levinton is a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences. She can be reached at [email protected].