Newbury Park, CA · alt-rock · dark pop

The Neighbourhood

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Monochrome California moodiness — 'Sweater Weather' and a decade of slow-burn alt-pop, reunited for a generation that streamed them into legend.

The Neighbourhood came together in Newbury Park, California in August 2011 around singer Jesse Rutherford, guitarists Zachary Abels and Jeremiah Freedman, bassist Michael Margott and drummer Bryan Sammis. The band chose the British spelling of "neighbourhood," on their manager's advice, to distinguish themselves from an existing act using the American spelling, a choice that carried over into their song titles.

After two independently released EPs, I'm Sorry... and Thank You,, the band signed to Columbia Records and released its debut album, I Love You., in 2013, which reached No. 39 on the Billboard 200. Its third single, "Sweater Weather," became the only song from the record to chart on the Hot 100, peaking at No. 14, then found a much wider audience nearly a decade later through radio airplay and streaming; the band's following has skewed heavily toward listeners who discovered it online rather than on the radio.

The band's music paired alternative rock guitars with hip-hop-influenced rhythms and a subdued, R&B-leaning vocal delivery, presented for years behind a strict black-and-white visual identity across artwork and videos. Later singles including "Afraid," "Daddy Issues," "Softcore" and "The Beach" extended the same moody, mid-tempo approach across the albums Wiped Out! (2015), a self-titled third record (2018) and Chip Chrome and the Mono-Tones (2020).

In February 2022 the band announced an indefinite hiatus after drummer Brandon Fried, who had joined the lineup, was removed following sexual misconduct allegations involving María Zardoya of the Marías. Rutherford had already begun a solo career in 2016, signing to Atlantic Records in 2023. The Neighbourhood signaled a return to recording in August 2025, with Fried rejoining the band.

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alt-rockdark pop