Sneak Peek of Minus the Bear's New Album, Planet of Ice

A few days ago I came across a copy of Minus the Bear's new album, Planet of Ice, which will be officially released on August 21^st. To be perfectly honest, I didn't really know what to expect from Minus the Bear's newest release. I read quite a number of opinions regarding this album on various blog websites. Quite a few people were expressing negative opinions regarding the "new sound" of Minus the Bear, while others thought that Planet of Ice was a remarkable piece of musicianship. After listening to this CD a number of times over the past few days, I must agree with the ladder opinion. Planet of Ice is an absolutely brilliant album; period. In this review I will first describe as best I can what kind of music Minus the Bear has created in Planet of Ice, as well as why Minus the Bear fans who disliked their newest release should really consider giving it a second chance.

Musically Fascinating, Yet Peaceful and Smooth

One of the things that Minus the Bear does so well in this album is create a very beautiful and somewhat mellow sound in each of their songs, while keeping the listener interested through the use of their vast knowledge of music theory. Now, you may be thinking right now "There are quite a few good alternative bands out there who write mellow music that is musically interesting. What makes Planet of Ice stand out from the many other alternative/experimental rock bands that are attempting to create a similar mellow sound?" The answer to such a question lies in the way that Minus the Bear constructs so many of their songs on this album. Often times on Planet of Ice, a song will begin with a very simple, two-bar guitar riff in 4/4. However, before you know it, all of the other instruments add a very unique and interesting addition to the guitar riff. The result: An extremely full sound in which you can distinctively hear each instrument play its part.

More Mellow? Yes. Less Brilliant? No.

One of the most common negative opinions I read regarding this upcoming release was something along the lines of, "I don't like Minus the Bear's new sound. I want to hear something more like 'Highly Refined Pirates.'" While it is true that Planet of Ice has a much different sound than Minus the Bear's first full length album, Highly Refined Pirates, it does not mean that their new sound any more or less pleasing. I believe that Minus the Bear fans should take into consideration that if Minus the Bear, or any other band for that matter, did not mature musically, the inevitable result would be a number of songs that used similar chord progressions, which would turn Minus the Bear into another one of the many Indie bands that can't seem to write more than one or two styles of songs. So, instead of beating up on Minus the Bear for not writing faster songs, Minus the Bear fans should be thankful that Planet of Ice highlights the bands immense musical talent through a number of songs that are quite different from anything Minus the Bear has previously attempted.