With former members of other startup indie projects, notably Sisteray, Happy Science is the new project that comes with a much more trippy and hard-edged vibe.
Taking inspiration from various places, the more mature sound brings a much darker feel than a lot of contemporaries right now. There’s a very droning feel to Future Vertigo, a mixture of sounds that are hypnotic and get in your head with dangerous ease. The use of long drawn out guitar notes with distortion and clever mixing makes for a fantastically haunting hook.
The drums are made up of everything from gentle cymbal taps that ring out with a deafening quietness, right up to more traditional flourishes. There’s a slow building urgency to the tempo through Future Vertigo, adding to the haunting atmosphere, picking up pace as the song progresses.
When it comes to the vocals and lyrics, Happy Science paints a chilling picture of someone’s day with their words. Describing a day in slightly vague details that are hard to nail down. It’s a day described through the eye of a smeared lens in a way, you can see what’s going on to some degree. But there’s something not quite right, and it’s impossible to see the details. The floaty and downbeat feelings are dark and could be interpreted as allegories for everything from drug use to depression. The titular Future Vertigo itself is vague in a way that leaves it up to excellent interpretation.
Happy Science is an interesting concept and show the maturity of its members who have seen the music circuit before. It’s not their first rodeo, and has certainly affected the themes explored, but has not compromised the excellent songwriting capability or musicianship.