It’s been a year and a half since Seattle, Washington’s Minus the Bear played its March 2011 show at the Intersection. For its return in September 2012, the band brings what it hopes to be its strongest performance yet with a collection of new songs from its second full-length Dangerbird Records release, Inifinity Overhead, which dropped Aug. 28.
The five steady members find themselves reunited with frequent Minus the Bear producer Matt Bayles – and former Minus the Bear member – after the Dangerbird debut OMNI, produced by Joe Chiccarelli. From the first track of Infinity Overhead, “Steel and Blood,” the shift is immediately noticeable as instant electric guitar replaces the uplifting delayed keyboard hook of OMNI’s starter, “My Time.” Described by the band members themselves as an album that returns to the former values of the first three albums, Infinity Overhead certainly retains explorative moments akin to OMNI – just listen to the poppy chorus of “Lonely Gun” – but experience makes it a robust next step for the group of more than a decade.
“We’re all still on the same page and making music together and it feels good. I think it’s our strongest release to date. You always want to say that with every record, but I can definitely stand behind this one and feel really confident in saying this is the best stuff we’ve done to date," said Bassist Cory Murchy.
Infinity Overhead’s title derives from the album’s third track, “Diamond Lightning,” a story about an acid trip during Vocalist Jake Snider’s high school years. Expect several tracks to reflect the song’s combination of light, moody guitars, soulful vocals and layers of sounds, such as “Heaven is a Ghost Town” and “Empty Party Rooms.”
“’Diamond Lignting’ [i]s one of my favorite songs we’ve ever done, so it’s kind of cool to hear people react to it so strongly,” Murchy said. “It’s just one of those epic songs. Like, I can honestly say, even from being so close to it, it feels really good to listen to. Lyrically and musically, it has a lot going on. It’s just a great story and good, epic song, and it’s been really fun playing live.”
So far, singles “Steel and Blood,” “Diamond Lighting” and “Lonely Gun” are available for listening on the Internet, and as Murchy summarized the audience reactions thus far, “They’ve been pretty bitchin’ man.”
“We’re lucky that our fan base is so awesome and rabid, and we get a lot of people coming out and saying they’ve seen us 10 or 12 times. It’s pretty humbling to think that someone has paid money to come see us play that many times, but it’s awesome, so hopefully we don’t disappoint.”
