CREDIT: DAN MONICK
American band We Are Scientists makes its Forest City debut on October 7 at Call the Office to perform hits from its new album, TV en Francais.

It’s a rare band that is born in California relocates to Brooklyn and becomes oddly famous in the U.K., but then there is a lot about We Are Scientists that could be called rare.

One example would be their sense of humour, as evidenced by the decal on the band’s latest record TV en Francais that reads, “the expensive new album” from the band, or its recent music video covering the smash single “Take My Breath Away” from the movie Top Gun.

It’s also rare of late that the band ventures into Canada, as its album release tour in the spring featured appearances only in Toronto and Montreal. This week’s show will be the band’s London debut.

We Are Scientists will perform live at Call The Office on October 7, appearing with Surfer Blood and Eternal Summers.

Although released March 4, TV en Francais was actually recorded and completed close to a year earlier; bassist and singer Chris Cain explained that the band, which includes guitarist and singer Keith Murray, wanted to take the time to get the right team on board.

“In theory we could’ve released it without a label, straight onto the old Internet if we had wanted to,” he said. But that wasn’t the direction the band wanted to take. “So we had to spend some time shopping the record around. We could have before it was finished, but we like to make records without any outside input or interference, and then show them to people ... and if they respond to the record as it’s going to exist in a positive way, then we know they’re the right folks for the job.”

TV en Francais is a catchy indie record that isn’t afraid to blur the lines between rock and pop. The album boasts many highlights and listens well – the garage–infused tones of opener “What You Do Best” draw the ear right away, and when the first single “Dumb Luck” begins next it’s cascading guitar riff and loping bass line take the song in a new energetic direction.

According to Cain, the group takes a straightforward approach to composition and tries not to overthink the process. “We’ve always set about making a record by just writing the best songs that we can.”

“We’re never particularly tempted to make a country album and in a position of having to hold ourselves back,” Cain said. “It’s just the kind of music we make when left to our own devices, this is what our minds seem to drum up. If we find ourselves uninspired, we’re definitely not going to just keep cranking out music for the sake of keeping the job, it’s not really lucrative enough to justify that. As long as we feel like we’re writing better songs than ever, we’ll keep doing it.”

Much of the material on TV en Francais was actually road-tested before sessions for the album begin, including notable album cuts like “Make It Easy” and “Return The Favor.” When it comes to the band’s live show, Cain says that they maintain a pretty no-frills approach to gear and don’t play any keyboards to perform the album.

“On our second record, we traveled with a fourth guy who played an extra guitar or keyboards, it gave us a lot more freedom to perform the arrangements as they are on the records,” he said. “But we found that we also lost a certain live flexibility that you have as a three-piece; where you can really push and pull the tempo a little bit, but also be a little more extemporaneous ... it just made the shows a lot more exciting for us, and – we thought, at least – more so for the audience, so we’ve gone back to that.”

The band is joined on tour by drummer Keith Carn, are excited about playing its first show here in London. They’ve all been playing together as a unit for a year and a half, and the chemistry that’s grown as a result has made for a memorable experience.

For more on We Are Scientists and the band’s new album TV en Francais, visit wearescientists.com or follow @wearescientists on Twitter. The show with Surfer Blood and Eternal Summers is a licensed/ all ages event, doors open at 8 p.m. Admission is $15, tickets are available from ticketfly.com.