#11 We Are Scientists

Location: Southern California
Genre: rock/pop
# of members: 3
Label: Virgin
Fun Fact: The Video for Nobody Move, Nobody Get Hurt is directed by an SNL writer and member of the comedy group The Lonely Island.
Status: Supporting For Love and Squalor, released in 2006.
link: www.wearescientists.com

Complexity, I think, is one of the most overrated aspects of music. Sure, groundbreaking and experimental sounds are important in helping music progress into a “better” direction, but many times it just falls flat. Sometimes I find myself awed by someone who is particularly proficient with his instrument, but won’t give it a second listen because it does not catch my ear and, therefore, has no staying power.

Adversely, simple music can be underrated. We seem to have become caught up with the emergence of pro-tools layering together umpteen tracks to remember how it used to be before all of that was available. In fact, I seem to recall a time when music was—dare I say—fun.

Enter We Are Scientists.

Will this 3-piece “wow” you with their musicianship? Probably not.

Can I honestly say that they don’t resemble the likes of The Strokes, Block Party and Hot Hot Heat? Again, I can’t.

Will this disc, upon playing, probably make you tap your foot after the shittiest day and not force you, when asked to describe it, with mundane words like “challenging” and “heartfelt”? Your damn right.

The first two tracks, “Nobody Moves, Nobody Gets Hurt” and “The Scene is Dead” are probably the catchiest back to back opening songs on any album I have ever heard since Weezer’s “My Name is Jonas” and “No One Else”. Every song is full of catchy hooks, angular guitars, and a stop/go style to keep you interested until the forty-odd minutes are done. “Textbook” allows the album to wind down into a smooth lament about a relationship gone awry; a hint of seriousness for an otherwise tongue-in-cheek album.

So, just this once, let’s replace our obsession with over-analyzing every note and lyric a band creates with an appreciation for a band writing songs for the sake of a good time. Then, if we are lucky, we won’t fall victim to the never-ending plague of pretentious and elitist criticisms.