WE ARE SCIENTISTS: TOP 5 TRACKS
- May 11, 2017
- 6 min read
We Are Scientists frontman, Keith Murray, celebrated his birthday yesterday, so to mark this annual festivity we decided to put together our TOP 5 WAS tracks for you all. Now, let’s be clear, five songs is a difficult task at the best of times let alone with a band of this calibre SO cut us some slack when reading will ya’. We could have picked all five from With Love and Squalor with our eyes shut but where’s the fun in that? We’ve tried to spread these selections across albums as much as we possibly can so enjoy!
These types of blogs are my favourite, you get the opportunity to waffle on and profess your love for some of your favourite bands. Digging through their back catalogue and listening to those songs that were once an integral part of your life but have since decomposed into the deepest, darkest and dampest crevice of your musical mind.
This one’s been a real hoot, We Are Scientists are among an elite collection of my all-time favourite bands. They’ve had a great deal of impact on my life so far and my journey through music and time! I’ve lost count of the amount of times I’ve been to see them live, it’s nearing the number of years I’ve been alive and breathing on this planet for sure. Everytime they’re touring I’ll snap up one or two tickets, relentlessly travelling up and down the country to see them. Back in my hay day, on a boisterous uni open day tour with my mates, I saw We Are Scientists at the O2 Academy in Oxford. I still remember the date it was 25th June 2010, beautiful sunny day on the Cowley Road. At this point I had no idea I’d be spending the next four years of my life living on said road at University! Maybe WAS had a part to play in me choosing Brookes as my first choice, who knows! At the gig whilst the support band, who god forbid I don’t remember, were playing a fresh faced young me happened to take a glance over his shoulder to notice the man, the myth, the legend himself Keith Murray stood behind soaking in the sounds like a suave double agent. We managed to cop a quick pic with him on an old Blackberry, which ended up being the fuzziest piece of shit in the world BUT it didn’t matter; the angsty little shit bag I once was had just met one of his music heroes.
We Are Scientists were the musical personification of friendship for me back then, albums like “With Love and Squalor”, “Brain Thrust Mastery” and, the then newly released, “Barbara” were mutually loved and appreciated by a large portion of my pals. We’d get disgustingly fucked up and mosh around like wild animals, singing every single lyric awfully. Seriously, if it was a silent disco we’d be getting a knock on the door from the murder squad it was that bad. The sound and style of those albums was exactly what I wanted and needed and, to this day, still is. Since the release of those classic albums I’ve continued to follow WAS as their sound adapts, grows and changes into new pastures to the present day with their latest release ‘Helter Seltzer’. It’s been an absolutely impossible task to pick my top five WAS tracks and to be honest I’m already second guessing my selections but nevertheless here they are in all their indie rock glory! ENJOY
WORTH THE WAIT
We’ll kick it off with one I’m sure none of you were expecting, just so we’re clear “Nobody Move, Nobody Get Hurt” and “The Great Escape” didn’t make the cut so if that’s what you’re here for you’ll end up going home empty handed I’m afraid. Don’t get us wrong, they’re both banging tracks! Without doubt some of their best work hence the popularity but for us there’s so many diamonds in the rough when it comes to WAS. “Worth The Wait” is a taste of We Are Scientists at their funky fresh best, oozing with cool this track is the epitome of what their debut album was all about, mesmerising riffs, sharp overdriven chords and a solo that quite frankly makes me weak at the knees. If I was told I could listen to one song before being fed to a vicious flesh eating monster this song would be among the few tracks circulating around my mind whilst that impossible decision was made. It’d probably be the bookies favourite aswell. Give it a listen and tell me it doesn’t deserve its place in this list, go on I dare you! Whilst doing that try to keep your face from involuntarily smiling, your hips from uncontrollably shaking and your foot from tapping its way onto the nearest dance floor. Best served with a pint of your finest lager, an empty field, a sky full of sunshine and an army of mates to dance with. You’re welcome!
LET’S SEE IT
Back in the day We Are Scientists were all about funky basslines, tempo drumming and incredible riffs. Times change and so have they, it’s important for bands to adapt their style from album to album and these devilishly charming chaps are a shining example of just that. Their second studio album Brain Thrust Mastery hit the shelves almost a decade ago back in 2008 when smart phones were still a revolutionary piece of tech and the UK had a labour government……. those were the days! This album had glimmers of its older sibling with a touch of dazzling pizazz heard on tracks like “Let’s See It”. I’d hate to know how many times I’ve played this song, let’s just say if it was a pair of shoes my feet would be bleeding, worn down to bare bone and immune to gravel by now. Wrap your ear buds round this delicious riff, again all you’re gunna wanna do it grab a partner and throw some shapes.
TEXTBOOK
We’re gunna slow shit down and get real with you all now! This song is a beautiful piece of work. Guitar, bass, drums and vocals all in a time warp of harmonious synergy; intertwining with each other meticulously in what is arguably the bands best attempt at a love song. This one hit’s me right in the feels, I’m getting an overwhelming flurry of nostalgia right now it’s too much to handle. I think I need to take a quick five minute break in a dark, silent room and just appreciate the fuck out of this song. Eerie tremolo and reverb creates an alluring atmosphere as the drums maintain that ‘textbook’ upbeat funky sound we’re used to hearing from WAS (see what I done there). This really is Keith and Chris at their very best. Bravo gentlemen!
NICE GUYS
I can hear you all now “why’ve you chose Nice Guys there’s so many other great songs you could have picked” well I can’t go through this whole TOP 5 blog picking songs from only two albums can I? When drafting the shortlist this made the cut so voila, ere’ it is. Deal with it! This song’s a certified banger, guaranteed to make you smile even when you’re in the foulest of moods. If listening to the song still hasn’t helped turn that frown upside down then get up the music video on YouTube and that’ll sure do the trick. A song about the cliché dating rule of thumb where it’s argued that being the “Nice Guy” doesn’t work. We Are Scientists say HELL to that, if you’re a nice chap then you do you boo. We get more of those delightful power chords, before a beautifully intricate little waterfall of notes that leads into the chorus. You’ll be singing this song for days and days on end; it’s imprinted in your brain now.
INACTION
This track is a BIG, FAT, JUICY slice of 00’s indie rock. It kicks of instantly with a rush of funky adrenaline as the fuzzy bass riff creeps in like the build-up to a crafty punchline. Keith slices through with the rhythm with those signature sharp chords screaming from his trusty Telecaster. It’s got a cheeky chappy vibe about it, you’ll wanna strut down the road clicking your fingers and bopping your shoulders. Definitely one of the best from an album that is essentially flawless. It’s another typically weird video from the band, distinctive of their odd but charismatic sense of humour! A baby gets rudely awoken from his peaceful slumber by the loud pop of a toy gun, Keith et al try to sooth the baby back into his dreamland. This is a track they rarely play live but definitely fucking should, imagine a room full of people jiving around the airy remains of the designated ‘moshpit territory’ like a 50’s school disco. I’d love a bit of that.
We’ve reached the end………… it’s here, no going back on our decisions now. It’s so bloody hard though, i’d literally prefer taking another stab at my A-Level Economics exam. We can’t possibly leave it like this! Fuck it, we’re gunna include three extra song choices that made our shortlist, we just can't leave them unmentioned.
Sitting on the bench for the We Are Scientists 5 a side were: DINOSAURS, IT’S A HIT & TONIGHT; three tracks that’ll be sure to put hairs on your chest and a fire in your belly. I hope this TOP 5 post has inspired you to either listen to WAS for the first time (if this is really the case….. where the fuck have you been?!!) or crack open a cold one, get ya’ dancing shoes on and stretch the capabilities of your vocal chords. Have some fun kids XX
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