We Are Scientists
I arrive at Rescue Rooms a little damp and cold, but soon warm up in the midst of Twentysomethings nursing their beers and eagerly awaiting We Are Scientists’ return. After much anticipation they take to the stage, and address the audience as if they haven't been away.
The trio are very generous with the older hits from albums including Love and Squalor and Brain Thrust Mastery, a move that proves very successful with the audience. For myself, it strikes a halfway point of satisfying my love of their earlier music but also of seeming a little insincere about their newer material. A gaggle of energetic teenagers at the front reminded me of myself seeing WAS back in 2010 at Rock City; the aforementioned teens continued to howl throughout the performance, were nicknamed the 'wolfpack' and frequently bullied by Keith. Although WAS may seem a little rusty, and haven’t tackled the bigger stages of Nottingham for a while, their onstage presence and interactivity is brilliant and very endearing.
Throughout their set dominated with self-proclaimed classics, they disperse songs from the new album Helter Seltzer. Buckle, the first song from this album stands strong within their set, creating ripples in the crowd and showing great performances from all members, especially from their drummer who appeared to be having the time of his life. This energy and youthfulness, whether due to it being their first tour date or general attitude really stood out and kept their set strong from start to end. Make It Easy was a throwback to the last album as well as to classic WAS harmonising and time signature screwing breakdowns. They finish with Too Late, one of their newest singles and strongest yet, and as they descend from the stage, Chris wondering about a mystery Red Bull he ended up with, I wonder how the last hour and a half went so quickly.
We Are Scientists performed at the Rescue Rooms on Monday 25 April 2016.
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