Tuesday 15 June 2010

'We Are Scientists', Barbara...? Really....?


A lot of hype has been gathering around the new We Are Scientists album ‘Barbara’. Just this week I have seen billboard after billboard in all the ‘right places’, (will anyone ever stop targeting this shit at the population of Shoreditch?). Stop me if I am being too judgmental here, but naming an album Barbara as a general rule of thumb doesn’t bode too well for me. The name alone gives me rushed images of some receptionist working in an office in southern California, whose only perks in life involve Oprah and microwave dinners. Unfortunately, the new album only solidifies my preconceptions. Having said that, not all is doom and gloom.

Perhaps I am being a little harsh, as there are some songs on the album that are worth mentioning. For instance, ‘Rules Don’t Stop Me’ uses many of the trademark drum fills we have grown accustomed to, whilst Murray sings in his familiar, ‘the world is out to get me’ voice (which really does something for me). However, it is clear that the band has taken to a new sound. It’s happier, more bubblegum sweet and vintage. It’s not my bag at all. No, I like my ‘Scientists’ angry and perverse, with lyrics that match such sentiments.

To conclude, this album is the type of thing an MGMT fan would salivate over, only to end in some sort of lo fi ‘moshing’ frenzy. Lets face it, that sounds about as much as fun as genital warts.

In the past, vintage has been described to me by one wise soul as almost ‘smelling ones own farts.’ Sorry to say ‘Scientists’, but I ain’t into that shit. Literally.

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