We Are Scientists - With Love and Squalor

We Are Scientists
With Love and Squalor
Virgin Records
Grade: A-

With the wave of British music press hype and dancey pop rock anthems, you can easily be forgiven for believing that We Are Scientists are British; hell, even Harry Potter said in a recent interview they were his favorite band. Yet, the three-piece of Keith Murray (guitar, lead vocals), Chris Cain (bass), and Michael Tapper (drums), actually call NY home and add fervor to sometimes dreary NY days. Working, playing, and recording for the past five years or so, With Love and Squalor is We Are Scientists big, major full-length release; the record to officially welcome the band to the world. There is little question that We Are Scientists are instantly pop appealing while maintaining high integrity rock. Bits of new wave vocal inflection ramble in from time-to-time, but you wouldn’t really link them the new wave revisionists (e.g., “Textbook” and “It’s a Hit”). With that in mind, the twelve songs on With Love and Squalor are nearly a string of fun singles. Songs that you’ve surely heard already and are down with include the opener “Nobody Move, Nobody Get Hurt,” “This Scene Is Dead,” “The Great Escape,” and the excellent closing of “Lousy Reputation.” These boys should be getting you to move for some time to come.