The indie rock band Neon Trees released their first full-length album, “Habits,” last year, featuring the hit single “Animal.” The band is currently on tour with My Chemical Romance and will be performing at Coachella this weekend. Neon Trees bassist Branden Campbell spoke with Daily Bruin a&e contributor Elia Rogers about the band’s upcoming Coachella performance.
Daily Bruin: How is the tour with My Chemical Romance going?
Branden Campbell: It’s going great. We’ve done about 10 shows now. I’ve always been a fan of them, but I didn’t think that I would love the shows as much as I have. They’re the nicest guys.
DB: What have been some of your best experiences on your rise to fame?
BC: When we were playing in New York City, we had a couple of special guests show up to the show on totally different sides of the spectrum. One was Kevin Jonas from the Jonas Brothers, and the other was Albert Hammond Jr. from The Strokes. It’s cool to have a nod from some of the fellow music makers out there, whether they’re the indie favorites or the pop heroes.
DB: How would you describe your music?
BC: It’s never been a particular band that we wanted to sound like, it’s more of the emotion that some artists put out there. We always like to say post-punk-soul now, because Tyler has such a soulful voice. It’s almost got this R&B flare at times, and the music is more alternative rock.
DB: What can fans expect to hear at Coachella?
BC: As far as what I can reveal, just to have a good time. There seems to be a pretentious vibe sometimes around festivalgoers, especially Coachella. There is a lot of that uber-cool factor. For us, everyone just needs to kick back, have a good time and enjoy some good music. There is such a variety of music at these festivals, and sometimes people forget and create boundaries to new music.
DB: Who are you planning to see at Coachella?
BC: With the little window of time we will have, I would love to see The National. And then, before we go on, The Strokes are playing. That would be a good one to see. Also, earlier in the day if I do get the chance, there is a band called Phosphorescent. They are a cool alternative country band. I really like them because they did a whole album of Willie Nelson covers and dedicated it to him. It was called “To Willie” and they just randomly made this record on their own and put that out there. It was pretty cool.
DB: Have you been to Coachella as a fan before?
BC: I haven’t been to Coachella, but our singer, Tyler, and our guitar player, Chris, have both gone a couple times. In fact, they were telling me the other day that they went five years ago and out in the parking lot, after the show, they were passing out demo tapes they had made. It’s a cool chain of events.
DB: Have you played a festival of this magnitude before?
BC: We did Lollapalooza ““ that was last summer. That was amazing. That was our first run. Plus, some of these have such a great reputation. It’s kind of an institution in and of itself. You start with Lollapalooza and now this summer we get to do Coachella and Bonnaroo. We’re honored.
DB: How does a festival performance compare to an intimate show that is geared more toward your fan base?
BC: Now that we’re getting out there, we will have a variety of people there for us. But it’s still that opportunity to share music with people. Usually, at the beginning of the set, you can tell if someone is watching a new band. If we’re playing in a situation where there are a lot of newcomers, we want to show them a good time.
DB: How are you going to handle the heat at Coachella?
BC: First of all, by not drinking any alcohol. That’s definitely an easy thing to help with battling the heat and dehydration. Maybe some tank tops and really short shorts. Or maybe we’ll just wear swimsuits.
Email Rogers at
erogers@media.ucla.edu.