Neon epitomise all that is good and righteous in the local Melbourne music scene at the moment. They are like a big karma factory. Even on the rare occasions that they have made mistakes—like the time lead singer Josh Bitmead shattered his guitar head and drummer Jamie Gurney lost his symbols before a show—the stars have consequently aligned in their favour. Boring for us. Great for Neon. In fact, Neon have been so light on in the mistakes department that they scored the enviable gig of supporting The Kills and Hot Hot Heat during their recent Australian tour.
After the band moved to the city a few years ago, as luck would have it, the guys from Rocket Science took Neon under their wing and helped them record a demo (which turned out to be so spot on that they turned it into their debut EP). Rocket Science also introduced them to their record label people and the EP was released on vinyl through Mushroom Group’s new imprint, Slanted Recordings.
The four track release is a catchy blend of power pop anthems (which has been likened to Cheap Trick’s album Dream Police) and manages to put a smile on your face every time. Right now though they are in LA, staying in the hotel which Janis Joplin died in, and recording their new album with Steve McDonald from Redd Kross (who incidentally happens to be one of the band’s biggest fans).
As long as they can avoid the mistake of wearing colourful vinyl pants onstage again, Neon’s future should be just that.
VENTTI CHAMPION
