Huffy

The seventh studio album from indie rock outfit We Are Scientists, 2021s infectious Huffy finds them bucking their veteran status with a handful of nervy anthems that recapture the classic post-punk and power pop energy of their best work. Produced by the band with mixing by Claudius Mittendorfer, the album follows 2018s Megaplex and once again features the combined skills of lead singer/guitarist Keith Murray, bassist Chris Cain, and drummer Keith Carne. Huffy also arrives on the heels of the group helming its own podcast, which they launched while in quarantine during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Titled Dumpster Dive, the podcast worked as a way for the band to communicate with fans and associates while also analyzing and listening to their past work. The process seems to have paid off. Huffy is an album of whip-smart songs, rife with buzzy guitar riffs and driving beats. All of this kinetic riffage nicely frames Murrays often wry and humorous lyrics, as on the cheeky quarantine anthem I Cut My Own Hair. Equally potent moments pop up throughout the album, as on the sugar rush-inducing Contact High, the swaggering, falsetto-tinged rocker Fault Lines, and the buoyant, new wave Tropicalia of Sentimental Education. Maybe it was the chance to revisit their music and drill down into what made their best songs work, or perhaps it was quarantine forcing them to find new avenues of creativity, but either way, We Are Scientists found a way to boil down their sound to its most essential and thrilling elements on Huffy. ~ Matt Collar