I don't know who ever expected a new album from The Scientists to arrive. The legendary Austrlian punk band lead by Kim Salmon had kept a low profile for a few decades. They surfaced not too long ago to drop an EP in the wake of the release of a superb four-disc career overview, but still, was anyone really expecting this in 2021? Thankfully, Negativity, out this Friday on In The Red Records, reminds again how fantastic this lot have always been.
"Outsider" is if Brian Jones hijacked the Stones at their peak and drove them to madness, while "Make It Go Away" is Johnny Thunders-style pain-and-pleasure wrapped up together, and that's just the start of the record. Negativity finds this band firing things up, raising an unholy racket, and creating some of the scuzziest stuff you're going to hear this year. There's nothing "Safe" about this record, to use one of the track titles to make a point, and the whole thing is full of "Dissonance", to use another. Kim Salmon (vocals, guitar), Tony Thewlis (guitars), and Boris Sujdovic (bass), are from the group's key 1981-1985 line-up, while Leanne Cowie (drums) represents the 1986 Weird Love-era. Together, they sound like they're intent on destroying things still.
So much of this burns with bad intent, that it's almost hard to think the band's been away. "The Science of Suave" is as much Afghan Whigs as it is Mick and Keef, while "I Wasn't Good at Picking Friends" is smart and snappy. There's no dud on Negativity, nor does the tempo slacken very much. Kim marches these fellows through dangerous territory and they simply scorch the earth with every step taken. If this album doesn't move your ass, there's really something wrong with you.
Negativity is out on Friday via In The Red Records.
More details on The Scientists via the official Kim Salmon Facebook page.
[Photo: Andrew Watson]