The Neighbourhood - ‘Honest'

The Neighbourhood have mastered their own particular brand surging, moody pop with a hip-hop flourish, but it’s when they open up a little and let the light in (see hit single ‘Sweater Weather’) that their music really catches my ear.

‘Honest’ is another stellar example; in the band’s own words, “change can be amazing”, and this change of tone hits all the right buttons. Sure, it’s still about a relationship gone wrong, but this is a parting shot of the positive kind, with Jesse Rutherford offering his best wishes to a lost lover. The chorus is refreshingly clean-shaven and, well, honest, and the dynamics are as tight as ever.

What hasn’t changed, of course, are the sophisticated hooks and the band’s signature black and white aesthetic - the new single has been released as a monochrome lyric video, which may sound tiresome but will surprise you. Therein lies the greatest of these Californians’ strengths: they have taken a few simple elements and forged their own unique sound, and they continually manage to combine those elements in new and exciting ways.

Stay tuned. The Neighbourhood are in form.