The Neighbourhood's Identity Crisis

The Neighbourhood, a genre-less amoeba of a band, has released their latest album, creatively titled The Neighbourhood. The album as a whole showcases a lot of versatility within the band, including lead singer Jesse Rutherford’s impressive range and the catchy and clever lyrics that fill every song. From start to finish, the album lacks a lot of continuity, and to me, a self-titled album should showcase the artist’s identity, but The Neighbourhood struggled with their status from the start of their career and their album. Individually, each song has its uniqueness and strengths, but in the alternative rock genre, the album concept is really important and failing to improve from their previous album, Wiped Out! has shown that the band may be past their peak.

The album starts off with the track “Flowers,” an odd disco instrumental breaks into an upbeat chorus with typical sappy lyrics that we all know and love from the band, and an autotune-filled bridge following the chorus. The song is not my favorite simply because of its overwhelming autotune that they somehow worked into every part of the song.

The second song and single of the album, entitled “Scary Love,” is similar to “Flowers” with its pop style could easily be a radio hit with a catchy repetitive chorus. Compared to other tracks on the album, “Scary Love” is far from the best song, but it continues the vibes from the opening track to set the theme for the album.

Following the upbeat songs, “Flowers” and “Scary Love,” is a slowed down track called “Nervous.” This track is completely different from the first two songs, and the band finally showcases their songwriting ability. Isolating Rutherford’s vocals forces focus on the meaning of the song and the message that the band has been trying to push throughout the album: they are not making music for critics. This album is self-entitled because it was what they wanted to make, not what other people wanted them to make. This song is my personal favorite on the album because not only does it convey a straightforward message, but the band did not go crazy with the autotune or instrumentals. It was raw and simple, and it describes a defeating moment in their career and how they came back. This song is Sarah Wheeler approved.

The album will not be as popular as I Love You, or Wiped Out! simply because those albums were filled with radio hits. The Neighbourhood lacks the uniformity and continuity that their previous albums held, but their style is consistent with Wiped Out! Their first studio album, I Love You, had an alternative rock feel, but the more music the band has made, the farther away their style is from its original alternative rock genre. The album as a whole lacks uniformity, and their sound is inconsistent. Reflecting on the past five or so years of the band’s music, the band seems to be struggling to find their constant sound and niche within the industry. Luckily for the band, trying out different genres has expanded their demographics and fan base, and for now, being genre-less has honestly worked for The Neighbourhood. In a way, the band has contributed to a new wave of alternative, a combination of R&B, rock and pop. From their start as an alternative rock band to their hip-hop debut in #000000 & #FFFFFF, the band seems to still be testing their sound. In this day and age, genre-blending is popular and widely accepted. However, if their next album remains genre-less and lacking in continuity, they should expect harsh criticism and backlash from their fans.