June 29, 2005 | Posted by blair at 08:48 PM

Friendly

ain't no mad max
"Friend" by Neon

So, you know here at MFR we often promote the music from our respective backyards (NYC, LA, DC, Philly, Minneapolis, Osaka, etc.) but you also know we're dedicated music nerds that will scour the ends of the earth for a good tune. This often includes Australia, as is the case here: Neon are two guys and a girl (Britt Spooner, Josh Bitmead & Jamie Gurney) from Melbourne, via (for Josh) "the capital of the outback" aka Broken Hill (another great name), near which Mad Max 2 was filmed. No, seriously.

So when Josh made his way to Melbourne, he rounded up the other two and formed the band, they got working on songs, they recorded a demo... then things got interesting. Their demo got passed around and ended up in the hands of both Steve MacDonald (from Redd Kross) and well as Graham Coxon (from Blur) - MacDonald got on with producing them, and Coxon released some of their work in the UK on his Transcopic Records imprint... up to now they've got a couple of EPs and 7"s and such out, but then they got signed to V2, and now their debut self-titled album is coming out soon.

I hadn't really made up my mind about these guys, but I really like this song a lot - I think its got a sweetness that's generally missing from this kind of rock. Yes, it sounds very radio friendly... hell, it might even be OC-ready. But hey, I try not to discriminate in pop music. I'll be the first to admit that Kelly Clarkson's "Since U Been Gone" is a total jam and a pop music gem. I guess my only objection to Neon's sound is that its just a little too polished - I feel like they should sound a little more rough around the edges. I'd like to hear more of Neon's older music, you know? I wonder what their demo sounds like - maybe that's the sound I'm looking for.

I don't know. I still think its worth giving Neon a shot - you can stream the entire album on their site, so give it a listen and report back here with your findings, ok?

Comments

Sounds reminiscent of John Hermanson in Alva Star. Which is odd because I figure there's no way they've even heard of Alva Star.

Posted by: n at June 30, 2005 11:23 AM

This sounds like some major label's idea of "that indie rock all the kids are listening to." Totally underwhelming.

Posted by: angryrobot at June 30, 2005 11:56 AM

This is Mike Camerson, from the New York Mets, and I want to say it here first: I will never play for the Yankees.

Posted by: Daniel Stedman at June 30, 2005 06:57 PM

Well, someone's giving them a pretty big push. Today they're on the front of the entertainment magazine that comes with the Sunday Age (a newspaper in Melbourne), with the title "Band Of The Year?". The argument is that they're on the same label that the Vines and Jet were, so if Ivy League can create two super-bands, then they can create another.
I'm not convinced by their music either - I saw them play a couple of weeks ago and they were ok, nothing special: decent enough that I didn't leave to go and find something better to do, but not interesting enough to stop me chatting with the people around me. I did notice, though, that the singles are way better and catchier than the stuff I was hearing for the first time. Total filler.
But... if someone's getting them put in a paper like the Age and on TV ads, then the kind of people who were at the show probably don't have any say in it. They'll be going for the kids who think they're alternative because they have the OC Soundtrack or the latest Triple J Hottest 100 CD.

Posted by: nooshie at July 2, 2005 09:08 PM

They have haircuts and clothes.

Posted by: Greg at July 4, 2005 02:36 PM

I saw them play the other night and they were good. Noisy riffs and the guitarist is a rock cunt. And girl bass players move like they're humping invisible things instead of doing the chickenhead guff that blokes do.

Posted by: Dung at July 5, 2005 03:47 AM
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