It has been almost a decade since the southern California, alternative-rock band, The Neighbourhood released the song and music video that would become their breakout hit, “Sweater Weather,” trailblazing the band into mainstream music.

The band formed in 2011, consisting of lead vocalist, Jesse Rutherford, guitarists, Jeremy Freedman and Zach Abels, bassist, Mikey Margott, and drummer, Brandon Alexander Fried. They released the lead single, “Sweater Weather,” off their 2013 debut album I Love You.

The song, which Abels recalls, began being produced while he was in high school, and was inspired by Failure’s, “Another Space Song,” which was the first song the band wrote according to Margott.

“I think with the lyrics at the time we wanted the song to feel like the area we grew up in and wanted to put the listener in our world,” said Abels.

For the song and music video's nine-year anniversary, the band and one of their music video directors, looked back at the making of the video, and the impact it had on the band and its fans as part of the Vevo Footnotes series.

Co-directed by Daniel Iglesias Jr., who has directed 12 of the band's other projects, recalls the process of making the music video which took three days to film.

“We shot for 3 days: Day 1 at a loft space in downtown LA, where we captured band portraiture and vignettes with a model… Day 2 was driving footage, with the band riding around in an old Mercedes - mainly driving around PCH and Venice… Day 3, was sensory detail and B-roll footage captured by Zack and I around various areas of East LA, Hollywood, and Santa Monica,” says Iglesias. 

Continuing to pay homage to their southern California roots, the video included scenes of beaches, a topped-down car, and drives on the Pacific Coast Highway. To stay true to the band's established dark black and white brand, they also had the entire music video in black and white.

“The band’s subject matter and themes centered around growing up in Southern California, which is usually expressed in a sunny and sweet tone… But the music itself was so dark and melancholic, so we thought it would be interesting to capture the iconic imagery of that area in a way that reflected that - sort of a French film noir California summer,” says Iglesias. 

The video also showcases their infamous flipped, upside-down house symbol at the bridge of the song, spray painted by Abels himself, and then proceeds to show footage cut to the beat of the music, with images that represent the California experience and create a sensory effect.

The band’s iconic video not only inspired a generation of countless Tumblr posts and became an anthem for the Bisexual community, but has also reemerged as a TikTok trend this year. Now with over 500 million views on Youtube, the video continues to captivate its viewers and listeners.

“To look back now, almost 10 years later, and see that the video has amassed over 500 Million views is insane and the song will always hold a special place in my heart,” said Iglesias.

“It’s really hard to believe that the song has gone this far and keeps going! Very grateful for all the fans that have pushed the song as hard as they have and gotten it to where it is!” explains Abels.

Find the “Sweater Weather” music video or learn more about its making on Youtube.