Rock with heart

(Morning Star, Friday 03 November 2006)

LIVE: We Are Scientists, Mandela Hall, Belfast

In a music world full of pomposity, KIRSTIE MAY senses a breath of fresh air in the pithy lyrics and good-natured rock tunes of We Are Scientists.

There's a nauseating tradition of comedy in music, but it's long been accepted that there's a happy medium between the insanity of Tenacious D and the inanity of Coldplay.

Herald the happening of New York's We Are Scientists, a sensible three-piece who have cut their teeth playing well-crafted rock with heart, but with a nice line in pithy lyrical couplets and amusing videos.

Their debut album With Love and Squalor is composed of the sort of new wave-tinged, tuneful angst that'll give the proggy leanings of the recent trend of "emo" rock music short shrift.

Their website gives the lie to the doubted US understanding of irony and, in point of fact, the very ethos of "funny."

Sold out and packed to the rafters, the crowd grows restless during their support act The Blood Arm, a worryingly shambolic approximation of a band about whom the best thing is their song I Like All the Girls and even that tires quickly. Frontman Nathaniel Fregoso will hopefully one day front a great band, but The Blood Arm is not it.

For the main event, the lights dim and up comes the anthemic Against All Odds by Phil Collins.

As Keith, Chris and Michael bound onstage, they take over from Collins to massive cheers, flashing bright US teeth in recognition of the enthusiastic reception.

We Are Scientists' very catalogue lends itself to thrashing through all the hits, with an average song length of around two-and-a-half minutes.

Tearing from Collins's choice through Cash Cow, Lousy Reputation and the inimitable Nobody Move, Nobody Get Hurt, the trio are as demonstrative of their intelligence and humour live as on record.

Keith responds to calls to remove his shirt with "This is art, people," clearly making the most of a feverishly giddy audience.

The interplay between the band is fun to watch and their comments about the crowd have also a humanising impact on proceedings. They're cool guys, yes, but they like playing live and seem happy to acknowledge that, without these fans, they would be nowhere.

There are a few new tracks on show tonight and they sit well with what fans know already, all angular guitars and melodious harmonies from Keith and Chris.

The last three tracks are a blistering run of With Love and Squalor's most enduring hits This Scene is Dead, Inaction and single The Great Escape.

A swift goodbye and they're off, but an encore sees the boys return, replete in suit jackets and ties for an R'n'B a cappella classic Boyz II Men's The End of The Road.

Joined by The Blood Arm for the last verse, there's a great deal of laughing and back-slapping, but a distinct lack of smuggery, which is all anyone has come to expect of We Are Scientists.

Truthfully, there's a lot going on on their album, which comes out a lot better live. The energy and good nature of the performance makes them an immeasurably better band and one for whom success seems assured.

In the meantime, their comedic routine is a breath of fresh air for music fans so used to pomposity and sincerity being wrung out of every note, but there's an element of world-weary heartbreak shot through these songs which give them a weight and wisdom that doesn't weigh heavy on the listener and that translates perfectly between record and stage.

As they make their final bows, it's an unspoken pledge to the fans going mental from the pit down the front right up to the balcony.

The pledge is "trust us - We Are Scientists."