January 26, 2021
UPC presents virtual concert by Neon Trees featuring 3OH!3
It's a new beginning. After several years out of the spotlight, multiplatinum genre-busting alternative quartet Neon Trees is back. Union Program Council presents Neon Trees featuring 3OH!3 in a live virtual concert at 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 5. Rescheduled from spring 2019, UPC will bring back this throwback concert in a virtual format. Visit kstateupc.com for details on accessing the virtual event.
Songs may contain some explicit language. Photography, recording and videotaping are not allowed.
About Neon Trees:
A confluence of personal and shared experiences awakened Neon Trees in 2019. Following four years out of the spotlight, the multiplatinum genre-busting alternative quartet — Tyler Glenn, lead vocals, piano, keys; Chris Allen, lead guitar; Elaine Bradley, drums; and Branden Campbell, bass — reignited the spark. The musicians summoned the same rock spirit, pop universality and disco ball-drenched grooves that millions of fans fell in love with while infusing a lot of wisdom and a little more wit earned along the way.
"As proud, excited, and grateful as I am for our first decade, I'm so eager to draw a line in the sand," Glenn said. "The initial era was meaningful and captured one period of time, but our new music is so much more reflective of the person I am. I don't feel any chains at all. It almost feels like our first record again. We had no pressure. Honestly, it all never really stopped. We just turned the lights off in a public way. We're turning them back on now. It's not just another chapter; it's the start of a new era for Neon Trees."
The first chapter introduced a sizzling signature sound cast in synth soul and rooted in robust guitars. The group began a rapid ascent to the forefront of popular culture fueled by 2010's Habits. Its lead single "Animal" scored a double-platinum certification from the RIAA and took home Top Alternative Song at the Billboard Music Awards. In 2012, Picture Show spawned the quadruple-platinum "Everybody Talks," which soared to No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100. 2014 saw "Pop Psychology" bow at No. 1 on the Billboard Top Rock Albums Chart and No. 6 on the Top 200 in addition to producing the gold hit, "Sleeping With A Friend." Along the way, the quartet garnered acclaim from Rolling Stone, Entertainment Weekly, USA Today, and performed countless sold-out headline gigs. After a successful 2015 headliner, Neon Trees took a well-deserved break. As Allen, Campbell and Bradley took time out with their respective families, Glenn released a solo offering titled "Excommunication" and made his Broadway debut in "Kinky Boots" during 2018. Around the same time, a rush of inspiration overtook the frontman.
"I never felt finished with the band creatively," he admits. "My bandmates were building families. Life was happening. The Broadway show came at the perfect moment because we were ready to go full speed ahead. The show took me out of my comfort zone in an amazing way and gave me my groove back. I missed playing with everyone. I took all of the momentum and confidence from the show, went right to L.A., and got to work on Neon Trees. The time and space to do other things rejuvenated why we continue to do this. It just feels like the band I started in my early twenties with my friends."
This feeling courses through the single "Used To Like." Touched by a glimmer of keyboards, sunny guitars and a danceable beat swing toward the buoyant, bright, and bold chant, "Let's go to extremes … get back to what you used to like about me."
"At the end of my last relationship, the song was my last sort of plea," he elaborates. "Let's bring it back to that bliss period when everything was right. I hear a lot of joy, but I hear a lot of sadness. We've always compared dark lyrics to anthemic music though. I ended this codependent relationship last year and was able to write what happened after and break away from the negative things. The song got us going."
Signed to a new deal and readying their long-awaited fourth album for a 2020 release, these four friends take full advantage of this new beginning together.
"I like that our single is called 'Used to Like,'" Glenn said. "We've been gone for a minute, so we're reminding our fans of what they liked about us. There's something very pure about Neon Trees right now. I hope listeners hear the sincerity."
For more information, visit kstateupc.com or call 785-532-6571.