The Scientists
Factory Theatre
Sydney, AU
November 18, 2017
The Scientists became a much more influential post-punk band than their minimal commercial success would indicate, lending their influence to what would ultimately become what became labeled as “grunge”, i.e. artists such Mudhoney and NYC’s indie scene of the early 1990s.
The band has built a more than decent fan base in each city and near legendary status within the Australian music scene with their concerts were being raucous affairs, and recordings bringing out their darker inclinations.
Entering the stage and with the classic bill of Kim Salmon, Boris Sujdovic, Tony Thewlis and Leanne Chock, they dished out hear classics from their catalogue as they were written in a manner that paid homage to its original context and seamlessly translated in into a menacing contemporary, energetic and brutal onslaught – a ménage a trois between The Beatles, The Stooges and The Cramps.
Swamp Rock with at time pstchdelic tinges at its finest - dark, murky, brooding, often menacing; with deeper cuts from their earlier oeuvre being more in the style of up-tempo power-pop akin perhaps to The Buzzcocks and Ramones.
This was no sterile reprisal of the glory days of yore but a testament to the importance of a fantastic Australian band.
