Dream… or nightmare? That’s the underlying question posed on New Town Dream, the second LP from Bay Area trio Neutrals, as guitarist/vocalist Allan McNaughton’s lyrical narratives expand on the world first built on the band’s 2022 EP Bus Stop Nights, offering snapshots of mundane lived realities in the “New Towns” that proliferated in the UK during the ’60s and ’70s. While New Town Dream conceptually voices the psychic tension of that era, of being pushed toward the margins and becoming just another cog in a deeply broken machine.

The band’s musical touchstones are squarely situated in the timeline of doomed Thatcherism that followed from the late ’70s to late ’80s. “Wish You Were Here” and “The Iron That Never Swung” jangle with a razor-edged rapid strum to rival The Wedding Present; “That’s Him on the Daft Stuff Again” and “Travel Agent’s Windows” nod to the Television Personalities’ naive, kaleidoscopic mod melodies streaked with cynicism; “Steven Proctor Bus Conductor” slowly unfolds from verses in the dark, rhythm-forward spirit of Josef K to transcendently Pastels-esque pop choruses with sugary-sweet backing vocals from bassist Lauren Matsui. Perfect C86 sounds for often hellish C24 times!

Upcoming Live Dates

June 1 – San Francisco, CA – Edinburgh Castle – album release show w/Hits
June 6 – Oakland, CA – Stork Club – Oakland Weekender
July 19 – Oakland, CA – Unimatrix Zero w/Collate & Nucler Blud
July 20 – Sacramento, CA – V-Street House w/Collate & Seablite
Aug 9/10 – Olympia & Seattle TBD
Aug 11 – Portland, OR – Swan Dive w/Collate & Big Top

Order New Town Dream HERE.