Concert review: Neon Trees at The Depot

One sure sign of a great pop song is when it’s still stuck in your head the morning after you hear it at a show.

So it goes with Neon Trees’ “Mad Love,” one of the standout tracks from the Provo band’s sophomore album, Picture Show, and a highlight of their sold-out show at The Depot Friday night.

“Mad Love” is one of those songs with a hook so sticky, you’d swear that you’ve heard the song before. And while I’d heard the album version many times before Friday’s show, the live take on it, featuring an excellent vocal from singer Tyler Glenn (as well as a verse taken by drummer Elaine Bradley), was transcendent.

The same can be said for the show as a whole. Even if the dance-pop of the Neon Trees isn’t up your musical alley, there’s no denying the potency of the band as a live entity. The collective energy of Glenn, Bradley, guitarist Chris Allen and bassist Branden Campbell makes every Neon Trees show a worthy endeavor for both diehards and more casual fans, and that energy will surely help the band navigate the changing tastes of the pop world in the future.

Moving back and forth between songs from Picture Show and their debut breakthrough Habits, Neon Trees knocked out a stellar show to an adoring mix of kids on The Depot’s main floor and 21+ folks lurking in the balcony. A dance party is pretty much inevitable when Neon Trees start playing, and songs like “Teenage Sounds” and “Everybody Talks” from the new album, and “Love and Affection” and “Animal” from Habits had the audience enraptured.

Picture Show has only been out for two months, so Neon Trees are just getting started on their work supporting the new album. If they are this tight at the beginning of the tour, you can only imagine how great they will be playing and performing after a few months on the road. And if their experiences together fuel a new collection of songs as solid as the ones the band has released to date, Neon Trees might be playing sold-out “homecoming” gigs for a long time.