Fresh off a two-week break after a mid-summer festival run, the East Hollywood indie rock outfit The Neighbourhood looks to resume the latter half of their tour through the East Coast, making a stop here in the River City tonight before continuing onto performances in Norfolk, and New Haven, CT.
The band is touting their latest self-titled release, a 12-song collection that is built more so like a mixtape than an album. Though this isn’t all they are doing. With five other singles and EPs produced within the last year, the band has been keeping a steady pace of content, something that is a growing concern for many bands, especially in today’s music climate. RVA Mag spoke with bassist Mikey Margott before the show to gather some details on what to expect for Tuesday’s performance. “I’m excited for the Richmond-Norfolk back to back, though I wish the National had a jacuzzi.”
Despite the band still riding off the success of their 2011 viral hit “Sweater Weather”, Margott is confident their new material is not just new content but a new direction that is far more inclusive of what everyone wants to be featured in the songs.
“The biggest change is all five of us contributing equally, instead of one or two-mainly, Jeremy {Freeman, guitarist}, and Jesse {Rutherford, vocalist}- at first who started the band and wrote most of the stuff,” he said. “But what will set us apart is the genuine love for one another, it’s the reasons many bands make it or break up, and it’ll be on the album.”
We were all just getting the catchy “Sweater Weather” out of our heads when The Neighbourhood hit us with another great single, “Scary Love,” a groovy, hazy track on the dangers of romance off their latest record, which dropped earlier this year via Columbia Records.
And even with a third studio album under their belts, and all they have produced, Margott and the rest of the Neighbourhood are far from satisfied with their success so far. “It depends on what you want to go for, we’ve grinded out an album and not {been} impressed with it, but I’m sure every artist is that way-like Kanye’s approach, which became our general approach,” he said. While Margott assured there wouldn’t be any covers of “Me and My Bitches”, he insisted the show will be worth the attendance.
The Neighbourhood will go on at The National tonight. Doors open at 6:30 pm, showtime starts at 7:30 pm. Tickets are $28 at the door, although they look to be sold out so hopefully, you can snag some on Craigslist or someone looking to give up their spot.
Photo By: Joe Quigg
Music Sponsored By Graduate Richmond
