Scars

With bands like Scars, I'm reminded of how pop music, Top 40 and underground alike, and regardless of genre, is all about flavor-of-the-month trends. As with everything else available in our capitalist marketplace, we must create an abundance of choice and maintain a level of homogeneity while simultaneously seeking out first-, second-, and third-place winners in order to maintain focus and inertia. As the rewards for the winners are high, there's incentive to throw one's hat in the ring, despite the fact the odds of success—and sustained success—are minuscule. And you only have one shot; five years or so is the average lifespan of a band, and those that exist longer will never be cool in the most valuable way—via novelty—again.

I'm not cynical at all!

Scars' Magic 8-Ball was certainly in their court: they were part of the art-punk scene in Edinburgh, Scotland, rubbing shoulders with Postcard and Fast Product groups, and benefitting from the roads the elder acts had paved. They played with Fire Enginers, which, while definitely not a big deal these days, does linger around, through reissues and nods from dance-punk stalwarts, the Rapture and Franz Ferdinand being most prominent. And, additionally, "Your Attention Please," a track from their debut single, was included as a gold flexi in the first issue of i-D. Can't get any more hip than that.

Perhaps internal conflict led to a speedy breakup, but I'd like to think they quickly read the tea leaves and quickly figured it wasn't worth it. They existed in a funky sort of netherregion that almost feels as though it was settled on through democratic negotiation. The guitars are shiny, wet, brittle—Modern English without the handclaps and made-for-karaoke choruses. The drumming is often a spot-on impression of Siouxsie and the Banshees' Budgie or early Monochrome Set—propulsive, aggressive, precise, and yet somehow playful. And, at moments, especially with the slower tunes, they pull off a perfect Cure impression, dirgey bass chuggers that buzzsaw rhythm guitars lift.

Abundance of choice!