A Vibrant Debut Album

With less than 200 monthly listeners on Spotify and only six songs, Neon Trees is undoubtedly a hidden talent few are familiar with, but many may grow to like following the release of their newest album, Day Late and A Dollar Short. Consisting of frontman, vocalist and guitarist, Brett Miller, Dan Stern on the drums, lead guitarist Donny Dinero, bassist Quinn Murphy, and Kramer Sanguinetti on the pedal steel, this 2020 band returns to the music scene after two years, ready to add 13 new songs to their previous six.

In 2025, in an interview with The New Pine Plains Herald, they discussed their music style as a “loose ship;” Brett Miller claims that, “It doesn’t have to be right. It just has to sound good.” This sentiment can definitely be felt throughout their whole project, but is especially prevalent in their third song, “She Just Came to Dance”. In this song, Miller sings about a woman who comes into a bar, not to pick up any guy or garner any attention, but simply to dance and have fun. While dancing to herself, however, she still gains the attention of other patrons in the bar. This message is reminiscent of the band itself. They want to enter the music scene, not for the attention or notoriety, but to simply have fun and make music, leaving it up to the general public to decide whether or not they enjoy the result and want to give it their attention.

In the fourth installment of this record, “Crazy,” Miller sings about his obsession for his lover and how his infatuation goes beyond surface level appreciation. He loves more than just the simple things about his partner, he loves her actions and how she makes him feel. The following song, “Don’t Tempt Me Satan” tells a shallow love story of “love at first sight.” In the track, the lead singer details his fixation on this woman whom he’s only seen from afar, singing about all the things he wants to do with her despite not even knowing her name.

While highlighting joy to be found every day, the album also tackles the sadness and despair that comes with daily life. The opener and namesake of this release, “Day Late and a Dollar Short,” tells the all too familiar story of one never fully accomplishing their goals, despite all their hard effort. Neon Moons comes to the sobering decision that there is always something missing and never enough time to fix it. “At the Bottom”, the ninth song in the record, deals with feelings of depression that, unfortunately, many experience at some point in life.  This song completely juxtaposes its predecessors, both in tempo and meaning as Miller sings about the emptiness of his life. This track is one of the strongest on the album, showing that although life is full of happy moments, there are still times where gloom seeps in through the cracks and makes one want to retreat from everything.

As the final track, “On Down The Road,” closes out the album, the lead singer becomes introspective as he sings about his excitement to return home to his family and friends after his long journey on the road. Circling back to the band’s vision of their career, this song is a befitting conclusion to their first album. They remind listeners that no matter the trajectory of their music career, they’ll always remember and be grateful for their humble origins. With this conclusive song, the group cements themselves as understandable, regular people that listeners, both current and future, can admire, enjoy and relate to.