We Are Scientists @ LMUSU
By Chloe Glover
Once again I found myself racing for the front barrier with roughly half the population of Leeds' High Schools in order to witness what has to be said, one of the most mind bogglingly unhinged extravagancies this city has held in quite some time.
First up it's Foreign born, who hail from the California, American brothers of We Are Scientists. Synth, ambient and rock sounds aplenty, I think we can expect to hear a lot more from these guys in the near future.
ˇForward, Russia! bound into view and there is an instantaneous manic ambience in the venue. "We told We Are Scientists that Leeds has the best crowd, so lets prove them right!" roars frontman Tom into the mic, which in due time will end up embroiled round his neck, leaving some of the horde to believe that they are witnessing some kind of public suicide attempt with added spazmic post hardcore indie rock. Though most of the lyrics are highly undecipherable who needs them when the pounding percussion, serrated guitar riffs and fervid wailing vocals grate against each other to produce stupefyingly impelling sounds. Every hair on my body stands on end as the choruses of each song coil their way into my head, like some brilliant endorphin congested drug, I'm sold on every last delicious note that bleeds from their instruments. If ˇForward, Russia! aren't careful they might just implode in a mass of their identically foot stompingly brilliant songs.
In light of We Are Scientists impending appearance the stage is quickly revamped in order to resemble some dodgy 1990's Halloween party, complete with rubber devils and gravestones-someone had obviously being having lots of fun in the fancy dress stores.
Keith casually struts into the spotlight of the set from the gloom of the wings and begins to play the other band members on stage to the opening riffs of this scene is dead, encouraging the fans to then make sure that the words he sings are simply lyrics, not an observation of the crowd. Unfaltering after unfaltering track, each one producing larger and larger amounts of delirium in the masses and WAS's stage demeanour only adds to it. "It's a hit" is performed with extra oomph to accentuate the angular riffs and the signature track "Nobody move, nobody get hurt" has a mass karaoke effect giving Keith a moment or two to swagger around, promoting more madness every time he steps within a foot of the edge of the stage. Each song is screaming dizzy, audacious and refreshing, yet underneath the emancipating rhythms there are hints of deliciously dark satire and snide remarks which make the whole experience deeply satisfying.
Keith then proceeds to then jump into the crowd allowing himself to be feasted on until he eventually emerges looking slightly battered and one shoe short. I have been told he was very attached to said shoe and as it was his last matching pair any donations would be greatly received.
Is it their quirky anecdotes, eccentric behaviour or the catchiest, original sounds around that whip the audience into a rabid frenzy? Surely it must be a mixture of the three, with the added pizzazz of the band's actual presence, which makes everyone do unhinged head banging and raving continuously for over an hour. However you can't help but feel that these gents could play cover songs from the Teletubbies and it would still bring about as much pogoing madness in the crowd, they are, definitively, the best half musicians/half stand up comics this country has seen in one hell of a long time.
