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'We Are Scientists' Sell-out Maxwell's

Brooklyn bands 'We Are Scientists' and 'Bad Girlfriend' performed a sold-out show at Maxwell's on Saturday, Jan. 23.

Bands who play danceable "indie" type music are not all that rare–but bands that will make you laugh between songs? Well that's We Are Scientists, who took the stage at Maxwell's on Saturday night to a packed house.

Opener Bad Girlfriend, hailing from Brooklyn, began the show promptly at 10 p.m., burning their way through a grungy pop-rock set that seemed vaguely reminiscent of 1960s girl groups.

Christian Owens (guitar), Brianna Lance (vocals) and Savannah King (bass) formed in 2008, after the disbandment of Tomorrow's Friends, a band that Owens and Lance were involved with. The pair began to write material, and only weeks before their first show, recruited King to join on as bassist.

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For their last song, the girls issued an open invitation for fans to come onstage and shake a tambourine or play some bells. It was a delightfully harmonious racket and a "fantastic, great time," according to Kate Mulcahy, 23, of Boston, Ma., who shimmied onstage with hand bells.

But the main draw for the crowd, of course, was We Are Scientists, comprised of Keith Murray (guitar, vocals) Chris Cain (bass), and touring drummer Danny Lee Allen. A Brooklyn-based band by way of Berkeley, Calif., the Scientists play decidedly poppy rock'n'roll that will keep you dancing.

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In the past, the band opened for indie stalwarts Art Brut, Editors and Kings of Leon, but they played their own sold-out headlining show on Saturday to a crowd of mostly 20-something fans.

Before launching into their set with "Cash Cow," bassist Cain whipped out a quick Snoop Dogg impression, which may sound strange if you only casually know the band. But humor is a mainstay for We Are Scientists, and the stage banter between Cain and Murray is almost a show in itself.

Bad Girlfriend joined the Scientists onstage with tambourines and bells for their second song, "Impatience," a jangly anthem for the high-strung. It was a cute moment that elicited a nice sing-a-long from the crowd.

Before playing "Inaction," a song that could have been dug up in a time capsule from the 1970s, Murray reminisced about the last time the band played at Maxwell's, to which Cain added with a laugh, "You got drunk, I got drunk."

The group played some new material, notably "Nice Guys," giving fans a taste of their upcoming album (still in the recording stages).

And while the reactions to the new songs were positive, fan Diana Badger, 27, from Union, said that they are "totally different from the older stuff."

Of course, the Scientists played "After Hours," which has arguably been their biggest hit since it was featured in the film "Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist." Cain joked that it was also in this year's blockbuster, "Avatar," used in a montage as the Na'vi are trying to find their way to a Bishop Allen show. Fans bum-rushed the stage, and the song easily got the best crowd reaction of the night.

The "tour" that We Are Scientists has been on, if one could call it that, has been a three-city, four-day trek from Washington, D.C., to Philadelphia to Hoboken, which they dubbed the "Big F---in' Deal Tour." They even made T-shirts.

Cain apologized for his "sallow" appearance and cracked jokes about their arduous weekend journey, while Murray wondered aloud, "How are we going to get back to Brooklyn?"

For their last song, the guys played "The Great Escape," which culminated with Murray wading deep into the crowd, finally returning onstage to fall into Allen's drum kit (he was fine). It was a fitting ending to a night that felt more like you were hanging out with a group of friends than paying to see a band play.

Mere moments after the show, Allen was mingling with fans at the bar, a testament to the band's approachability. While only playing his fourth show with Cain and Murray, he said they are "the funniest, most supportive guys to be in a band with."

"They try to make it the best time for everyone in the room," he said.

Fan Melissa Assuncal, 27, from Union, agreed, simply wondering, "Why doesn't everyone know who this band is?"

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