CTRL+ALT+DLT
self-released

Bands, as a rule, do not like to be categorized. This is largely due to the egotistical nature of the musicians, who cringe at the thought of being boxed in with any of their contemporaries. Most band members prefer to think that their music is far too unique and original to fit into any existing genre. Therefore, a growing number of bands label their sound as “unclassifiable” and proudly refer to themselves as “genre-benders.”

As often as not, the band in question can easily be dropped under the generic umbrella of rock, jazz or hip-hop. Museum of Science, however, is one of few area bands that can make a strong argument in support of the “unclassifiable” claim. In the opening lines of MOS’s latest album, “CTRL+ALT+DLT,” the band makes reference to its own music as electro-hip-hop. But the 16 tracks that follow shift between identifiable styles and experimental noises at such a dizzying pace that the listener is left baffled, unable to describe what he has just heard.

Much in keeping with the band’s 2004 debut, “Oblique Music For Soundtracks That Don’t Exist,” and its 2006 follow-up, “How to Dismantle a Waste Fat Explosive,” Museum’s new CD features a number of hip-hop tunes with comic, tongue-in-cheek lyrics. The opening track, “Periodical Emissions,” introduces the band in the style of a bombastic radio DJ promoting a 1970s R&B hit-maker. Two tracks later, in “Granite State Gangsta,” the group adopts Kid Rock-style vocals to espouse its excessive New Hampshire pride, giving a shout-out to “the Portsmouth ladies and the Winchester honies / Hampton Beach hotties and Jackson ski bunnies.”

But Museum of Science is composed of three musicians capable of producing much more than lyrical comedy. Guitarist and bassist Jon McCormack (a.k.a. MC Food Court), keyboardist and bassist Sean LaRose (a.k.a. LeBaron) and drummer Jamie Perkins (a.k.a. Dr. Bunsen Honeyjones) have a flare for the unpredictable. At times, the band members’ zany sense of humor may even work against them; those unfamiliar with MOS could listen to the first track on “CTRL+ALT+DLT” and write off the band as a bunch of self-righteous goofballs. Pity if they do not keep listening, at least until the second track, “Cheddah,” which demonstrates the band’s ability to combine tasty beats and deft samples with lowdown guitar rock, like a more cerebral version of Limp Bizkit.

The fourth track, “Baroo,” veers away from the hip-hop genre altogether. The song begins with a lazy but catchy melody and is soon embroidered with nifty instrumental adornments and Perry Farrell-style vocals. But before you can hang your hat on this highly palatable nugget, the band upholds its erratic compositional nature by shifting to something entirely different. The fifth track, “Tits ’n’ Robots,” sounds like something Prince and Beck threw together at a Marvin Gay after-party. During a sultry interlude, the vocalist showers his affections on a listener, promising to do laundry while she eats hallucinogenic mushrooms and watches “Oprah.” 

Another clear highlight came out of the band’s contribution to The Wire’s RPM Challenge 2007, for which Museum completed an album for the second year in a row. Based on an actual occurrence, “My High School Band Opened Up For Foghat” recounts the story of … well, just read the title. Indeed, Perkins’ high school band opened for the late-’70s rockers in Newport, N.H., in 1989, and MOS pays tribute to the experience with a stereotypical rock song written in the spirit of a live Foghat performance. The original show was a mixed success. Although the high school band’s guitarist got laid, Foghat’s drummer had trouble with the soundboard and struggled to locate cocaine. Free hotdogs and soda for anyone who can resist laughing out loud at this song.

Other portions of the CD, which is filled with just under an hour of music, feature dark and brooding heavy metal, reflecting the band’s fear of—or fascination with—robots (see “I’ll Get Out My Hammer). “Dragonstaff” dives into the realm of adventure rock, invoking Tolkien-esque narration of a grandiose tale, conveyed through rock ’n’ roll much in the fashion of Tenacious D.

Superlative sound engineering keeps the CD interesting from start to finish, although one wonders what the band might achieve if the members took themselves more seriously. Then again, there is nothing wrong with making music simply for the sake of having fun, and the trio of mad scientists who make up Museum of Science clearly had a blast with “CTRL+ALT+DLT.” McCormack, LaRose and Perkins produced and self-released the album, and LaRose contributed skillful programming, keeping the overall sound funky, but decidedly unclassifiable.

For more information about the Dover trio, which celebrated the release of its new album at the Dover Brick House with fellow Seacoast band The Texas Governor on June 2, visit www.mostheband.com or www.myspace.com/mostheband.