Picture Show

Neon Trees are a combination of slick pop hooks and sturdy organic rock, both melodic and hard-hitting, their anthems of adolescent angst, longing, love lost and found, delivered with the kind of heart-on-the-sleeve passion that only comes from hard work and commitment.

"Picture Show," which leads with a half-dozen hook bombs right in a row, including the insistent "Everybody Talks" and the crisply propulsive "Teenage Sounds." The latter's title gets at the jumpy new wave vibe of "Picture Show."

As the band did on its debut, Neon Trees expertly maps the territory separating the Killers, the Strokes and Franz Ferdinand here. Things soften a bit during the album's second half: The lumpy "Trust," for instance, wears out its welcome long before the jam section that carries it beyond the six-minute mark, while "Hooray for Hollywood" sports an ill-advised spoken-word passage that recalls Madonna's "Vogue." Still, Neon Trees flex some impressive songcraft here.

Their music keeps you move but not too much and not too over! Simply perfect! "Picture Show" should end up as one the year's most tuneful rock releases.

Picture Show

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