We Are Scientists: 'After Hours'

Music and comedy tend to be uncomfortable bedfellows. Whether it's Goldie Lookin' Chain mixing hip-hop with chav culture or The Darkness dropping double entendres like the Carry On movies never went out of fashion, it never takes long for the gag to wear thin. We Are Scientists were a rare exception to this rule on 2005's With Love And Squalor LP - they seemed as comfortable performing stand-up routines as they were knocking out punchy power-pop anthems like 'It's a Hit' and 'Nobody Move, Nobody Get Hurt'.

Alas, three years on, having shed a member (drummer Michael Tapper), the band have begun to write tunes about the monotony of late-night drinking ("This door is always open, no one has the guts to shut us out"). Unsurprisingly, this isn't laugh-a-minute stuff. While lyrically the guys seem to be borrowing ideas from a House of Commons bill on 24-hour boozing, musically they've ditched the snappy guitars and screaming vocals for grander, more sophisticated fare. A mixture of early Killers grooves and The Libertines at their most melodic, 'After Hours' is likely to leave old fans bemused. Nevertheless, it's a pleasant enough ditty - sure to get plenty of radio spins and the inevitable approving nod off Jo Whiley.


> Click here for our review of We Are Scientists' Brain Thrust Mastery album