The Neighbourhood

About The Neighbourhood

The Neighbourhood formed in Newbury Park, California in 2011, which makes them part of that wave of Southern California bands who figured out how to make moody alt-rock sound cinematic without losing the garage band edge. The core lineup settled around Jesse Rutherford on vocals, guitarists Jeremy Freedman and Zach Abels, bassist Mikey Margott, and drummer Brandon Fried.

They got attention almost immediately with "Sweater Weather" in 2012, which is one of those rare songs that somehow became both a radio hit and a genuine cultural moment. The track was quietly massive, peaking at number one on the Alternative Songs chart and basically living on every playlist about rain or feelings for the next decade. It's funny how a song can be simultaneously overplayed and still hold up.

Their debut album "I Love You" dropped in 2013 and established their aesthetic pretty clearly: black and white visuals, atmospheric production, hip-hop influenced beats meeting rock instrumentation, and Rutherford's distinctive voice floating over everything. Songs like "Afraid" and "Let It Go" showed they weren't interested in being just another indie rock band. They pulled from The Cure, from hip-hop production, from beach culture and noir films all at once.

"Wiped Out" came in 2015 and went for a fuller, more ambitious sound. Tracks like "R.I.P. 2 My Youth" and "The Beach" leaned into their cinematic tendencies. The album felt more polished, less raw, which some people loved and others didn't. That's usually how second albums go.

By 2018's self-titled record, things got weirder. Rutherford was experimenting more with his visual presentation and the music fragmented into different directions. "Void" and "Scary Love" showed a band willing to mess with their formula, even if it meant alienating some fans who wanted "Sweater Weather" part two forever.

They followed with "Chip Chrome & The Mono-Tones" in 2020, a shorter project that came with an alter ego concept for Rutherford. The whole thing felt more experimental and less concerned with commercial expectations. Then "Hard to Imagine the Neighbourhood Ever Changing" arrived in 2022, completing a trilogy of sorts, though by this point they were making music for themselves and their dedicated fanbase rather than chasing hits.

The band announced an indefinite hiatus in 2024, which feels about right for a group that spent over a decade constantly touring and releasing music. Rutherford has been doing solo work under his own name and the "&" moniker, exploring different sounds without the band framework. Whether The Neighbourhood comes back or stays dormant, they left a pretty specific mark on 2010s alternative music. "Sweater Weather" alone guaranteed that, but the deeper catalog shows a band that kept pushing rather than coasting on one massive song.

Their shows are intimate even in bigger venues—lots of phone cameras, swaying crowds, people mouthing every word to 'Sweater Weather' despite the song's ironic detachment. Energy is moody rather than explosive, with moments of real tension during the heavier tracks.

Known for Sweater Weather, Daddy Issues, Alligator, Hell, Softcore

See The Neighbourhood Live