It’s been 2 years since the debut of The Neighbourhood with the album “I Love You.” which included the viral hit “Sweater Weather.” On October 30, the band released their second album “Wiped Out!”

The Neighbourhood is known for their emotional and dark brand of pop. The band’s sound is defined by an underlying ambient tone topped with cleanly intertwined bass and guitar riffs and electronic effects. At the same time, the bright light of pop music dimly shines through from lead singer Jesse Rutherford’s soprano and boyband-esque voice. The dark and the light elements of The Neighbourhood work in harmony on “Wiped Out!”

On this album, the new down-tempo sub-genre of electronic, that has been making waves by artists like ODESZA and Ryan Hemsworth, is incorporated well. It enhances the ambient element of The Neighbourhood while maintaining the convoluted jollity.

Somehow, The Neighbourhood manages to sound melancholy and light-hearted simultaneously. The lyrics of Neighbourhood songs are usually centered around ex-girlfriends, current girlfriends, or future girlfriends. This does cause each song to sound fairly similar to the next but still somewhat intriguing.

Frankly, some tracks give off a pretentious vibe, not to mention the silent 30 second track at the beginning of the album entitled “A Moment of Silence.”

Regardless, the music as a whole is very easy to connect to on a basic aesthetic level.

Some stand out tracks include “Prey,” “Cry Baby,” and “Single.” I give this album 3.5 out of 5 stars because the music is invariably an enjoyable listen but does not take any risks or expand The Neighbourhood’s range.