We Are Scientists
Brain Thrust Mastery (Virgin)
By John S.W. MacDonald
Published: May 21st, 2008 | 2:49pm
It’s not an argument I’ve ever thought held much water — that LPs are the result of some conspiracy foisted on us by the record industry to get us to pay more for the singles we love. What about Daydream Nation, Slanted and Enchanted, or Zeppelin I through IV? There are hundreds more… it’s idiotic and insulting. But where We Are Scientists and their Brain Thrust Mastery are concerned, the cynics have a point.
The Brooklyn trio’s sophomore effort is a decidedly middling affair – its hooks vaguely melodic, its rhythms vaguely danceable, and its pastel synths vaguely nostalgic. Ten of the album’s 11 tracks are the kind of pleasant, yet entirely innocuous pop-rock – think Hot Hot Heat covering late Cure – that can be heard drowning out conversations in bars from the West Village to Westwood.
“After Hours” is a different story. In four glorious minutes, We Are Scientists nails the bittersweet romance of those same crowded bars – the helpless thrills of too much liquor and too many friends. Over an adamant kick drum and a piercing guitar line, guitarist Keith Murray sings, “We’re fine and drunk enough / We’re fine and soaking up the hours that everyone else throws away,” before the rousing chorus: “One final, final round ’cause time means nothing / Say that you’ll stay!” that has Murray’s sharp tenor rising to the top of its register. There’s no better argument for staying out past your bedtime.
There’s a good reason why Brain Thrust reached #11 in the U.K. after its first week of sales: “After Hours,” the record’s lead-single, is simply the American counterpart to Pulp’s classic “Common People” – its got the some narcotic propulsion, the same fist-pumping hooks, the same quotable lines.
Too bad the same can’t be said for the rest of the record. “After Hours” isn’t worth Brain Thrust’s hangover. For once, you’re better off buying the single. The rest – as music-industry cynics love to say – is just filler.
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We Are Scientists' Web site.
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