Concert: We Are Scientists 
Venue: Glasgow Saint Luke’s
Date:  01 December 2021

There are, of course, many great venues in Glasgow but few can match the majesty and ornateness of Saint Luke’s. Formerly a working church dating back to 1836, it has been completely refurbished in recent years and is now a vital music venue, bar and kitchen in the East End of the city. 

So it would take a special performance in the Grade B listed building to meet the demands of the Glasgow crowd who packed in to see We Are Scientists on the Come On Get Huffy tour and boy, did they deliver!

Getting the balance right between new material (to promote recent album release Huffy) and more known tracks, is always a difficult balance for artists, but the Californian/NYC rockers mixed their set well in what was an energetic 90 minutes or so. 

Half way through their set, bass player Chris Cain introduces the dance-laden Rules Don’t Stop as a stone-cold classic … and it is. But long before we get there, opening track You’ve Lost Your Shit is already shaping up to be another stone-cold classic,  the band taking their cue from drummer Keith Carne’s on-point pummeling while guitarist/singer Keith Murray is a blur of energy, using every bit of space on stage. A real presence. 

Recent single Contact High is also played early on, the track allowing Murray’s vocal to take centre stage, hitting the high notes as the band bop and the crowd bounce. Bonding together in communal reverence. 

Elsewhere, tracks such as Your Light Has Changed and The Great Escape really showcase the band’s musicianship, the former with great drums and shredding guitar while the latter sees the band totally wig out part-through, before coming back in with that infectious groove that makes the song. It’s A Hit starts with a rumbling bass line, the sound soon swirling round the room. Melodic guitar and far reaching vocals underline a band on form. Electric. 

Between songs, there is plenty of banter between Cain and Murray, often at each other’s expense and it helps add to the occasion. 

Hard to pick a highlight (so many), though I Cut My Own Hair has to be up there. It’s unadulterated indie funk with a motoric guitar and touches of reverb which attack the senses, setting off involuntary dance moves in all bar none in the crowd. 

Sentimental Education slows matters down but not for long as the band launch into fan favourite Nobody Move, Nobody Get Hurt followed by a blistering and rock heavy No Wait At Five Leaves. 

After Hours closes the set. At this point I can only describe the crowd as going nuts as the siren like guitar pierced through in a sensory overload, all restraint now out the window with crowd surfing left, right and centre. 

A four song encore duly followed, the country-tinged Bought Myself A Grave saw Cain on lead vocal duties before the track segued into a space age, rocksteady dance kinda vibe. I didn’t know where it was going but it was captivating and reminiscent of Alabama 3. Nice Guys rounded off the set nicely. 

With a new album out, Huffy that stands up against anything they’ve released to date and with a red hot live set, go check them out. Keep up to date with We Are Scientists via their website here. 

John Welsh
@welshjb

Links:

Twitter: @wearescientists

@SonicPRmusic

Facebook: wearescientists