30-08-2012, 12:28
online listen
press keeps telling me I'm supposed to like these guys
went for the last one only to be let down
only 1 track here I like on first listen, Heaven Is A Ghost Town
I guess Steel And Blood is the single, which is a borderline like
1.5 from me and a converted 2.0 from the pros at allmusic
from the album - Steel And Blood
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdPpFpB4NYo
released August 28th 2012
![[Image: 220px-MinusTheBearInfinityOverhead.jpg]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/0/00/MinusTheBearInfinityOverhead.jpg/220px-MinusTheBearInfinityOverhead.jpg)
Bio - from allmusic
With catchy song titles like "Hey, Wanna Throw Up? Get Me Naked," "Monkey!!! Knife!!! Fight!!!," and "Lemurs, Man,
Lemurs," it's hard not to be at least a little bit curious about this Seattle-based quintet. Featuring members of
Botch, Kill Sadie, and Sharks Keep Moving, Minus the Bear emerged on Seattle's music scene in 2001 with the release
of their six-song EP This Is What I Know About Being Gigantic. The band comprised guitarist Dave Knudson, vocalist/
guitarist Jake Snider, drummer Erin Tate, and bassist Cory Murchy. Though the band entered the studio before they
ever played a show, they toured aggressively in support of the EP, then returned to the studio to record 2002's
Highly Refined Pirates, their first full-length album. Both the EP and LP were released by Seattle-based Suicide
Squeeze Records.
Though the song titles may lead one to believe that they're a novelty act, Minus the Bear provides polished,
shrewdly arranged songs. Finger-tapped guitar riffs mixed with catchy melodies and unexpected time changes keep
listeners interested and entertained. Minus the Bear issued two EPs in 2004: Bands Like It When You Yell "Yar!" at
Them on Suicide Squeeze and They Make Beer Commericals Like This on Arena Rock. Their next full-length, the self-
produced Menos el Oso (Spanish for Minus the Bear), appeared in August 2005; the remix album Interpretaciones del
Oso followed in early 2007. The band released the full-length Planet of Ice later that year. In 2009 the band went
into the studio with My Morning Jacket producer Joe Chiccarelli, and the following year released the album Omni
through Dangerbird Records. Their fifth album, Infinity Overhead, followed on the label in 2012.
Album Review - from allmusic
After the more laid-back, electronic-focused Omni, Minus the Bear return with a little more bite and purpose for
their fifth album, Infinity Overhead. Where their last effort went for smoothness through layers of synthesizers,
this album finds Minus the Bear falling back in love with their guitars, getting back to the intricate, mathy sound
of their earlier work. "Toska" and "Cold Company" show off a return of the tapped-out guitar lines that helped to
define their sound, with the latter featuring some truly dazzling flourishes. More impressive than the guitar work,
however, is how casual the whole thing manages to sound. Whether they're firing off lightning-fast guitar licks or
delivering something more languid and nuanced, like the plaintive and atmospheric "Heaven Is a Ghost Town," the
effort level feels generally the same, with the band remaining in control. While this can sometimes cause the
album's pace to feel a bit homogeneous, Minus the Bear's keen ear for layered melody provides a lot of depth for
listeners to explore. Though Infinity Overhead isn't exactly a return to form for Minus the Bear, it does find them
moving back toward what they do best, and is a step in a promising direction for fans hoping for the band to return
to the more vigorous sound of Menos el Oso, and even though the album may lack a bit of fire, it feels like an olive
branch to fans who may have been disappointed by Omni's more electronic sound.
Track Listing
1. Steel And Blood
2. Lies And Eyes
3. Diamond Lightning
4. Toska
5. Listing
6. Heaven Is A Ghost Town
7. Empty Party Rooms
8. Zeros
9. Lonely Gun
10. Cold Company
press keeps telling me I'm supposed to like these guys
went for the last one only to be let down
only 1 track here I like on first listen, Heaven Is A Ghost Town
I guess Steel And Blood is the single, which is a borderline like
1.5 from me and a converted 2.0 from the pros at allmusic
from the album - Steel And Blood
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdPpFpB4NYo
released August 28th 2012
Bio - from allmusic
With catchy song titles like "Hey, Wanna Throw Up? Get Me Naked," "Monkey!!! Knife!!! Fight!!!," and "Lemurs, Man,
Lemurs," it's hard not to be at least a little bit curious about this Seattle-based quintet. Featuring members of
Botch, Kill Sadie, and Sharks Keep Moving, Minus the Bear emerged on Seattle's music scene in 2001 with the release
of their six-song EP This Is What I Know About Being Gigantic. The band comprised guitarist Dave Knudson, vocalist/
guitarist Jake Snider, drummer Erin Tate, and bassist Cory Murchy. Though the band entered the studio before they
ever played a show, they toured aggressively in support of the EP, then returned to the studio to record 2002's
Highly Refined Pirates, their first full-length album. Both the EP and LP were released by Seattle-based Suicide
Squeeze Records.
Though the song titles may lead one to believe that they're a novelty act, Minus the Bear provides polished,
shrewdly arranged songs. Finger-tapped guitar riffs mixed with catchy melodies and unexpected time changes keep
listeners interested and entertained. Minus the Bear issued two EPs in 2004: Bands Like It When You Yell "Yar!" at
Them on Suicide Squeeze and They Make Beer Commericals Like This on Arena Rock. Their next full-length, the self-
produced Menos el Oso (Spanish for Minus the Bear), appeared in August 2005; the remix album Interpretaciones del
Oso followed in early 2007. The band released the full-length Planet of Ice later that year. In 2009 the band went
into the studio with My Morning Jacket producer Joe Chiccarelli, and the following year released the album Omni
through Dangerbird Records. Their fifth album, Infinity Overhead, followed on the label in 2012.
Album Review - from allmusic
After the more laid-back, electronic-focused Omni, Minus the Bear return with a little more bite and purpose for
their fifth album, Infinity Overhead. Where their last effort went for smoothness through layers of synthesizers,
this album finds Minus the Bear falling back in love with their guitars, getting back to the intricate, mathy sound
of their earlier work. "Toska" and "Cold Company" show off a return of the tapped-out guitar lines that helped to
define their sound, with the latter featuring some truly dazzling flourishes. More impressive than the guitar work,
however, is how casual the whole thing manages to sound. Whether they're firing off lightning-fast guitar licks or
delivering something more languid and nuanced, like the plaintive and atmospheric "Heaven Is a Ghost Town," the
effort level feels generally the same, with the band remaining in control. While this can sometimes cause the
album's pace to feel a bit homogeneous, Minus the Bear's keen ear for layered melody provides a lot of depth for
listeners to explore. Though Infinity Overhead isn't exactly a return to form for Minus the Bear, it does find them
moving back toward what they do best, and is a step in a promising direction for fans hoping for the band to return
to the more vigorous sound of Menos el Oso, and even though the album may lack a bit of fire, it feels like an olive
branch to fans who may have been disappointed by Omni's more electronic sound.
Track Listing
1. Steel And Blood
2. Lies And Eyes
3. Diamond Lightning
4. Toska
5. Listing
6. Heaven Is A Ghost Town
7. Empty Party Rooms
8. Zeros
9. Lonely Gun
10. Cold Company
