Minus The Bear - Highly Refined Pirates

Minus The Bear was described to me as a band that could "hand grandaddy's ass to them on a platter." Being the fan of Grandaddy that I am, I had to check this band out. A few downloads later, I found myself seeing the band live.. and purchasing their previous EP and their latest full-length, Highly Refined Pirates. Through all of this, one thing has become abundantly clear about Minus The Bear - they love to drink. Practically every song on this disc has a reference to drinking or at the very least an allusion to drinking. In addition to their fondness for drinking, the band apparently names their songs while in a heavy state of inebriation. Tracks like "Get Me Naked 2: Electric Boogaloo", "I Lost All My Money At The Cock Fights", "Booyah Achieved", and my favorite "Monkey!!! Knife!!! Fight!!!" pretty much captures the mood of the album. Friends drinking, writing songs about drinking and ladies, and just having a good time. Fortunately, this fits the band perfectly. Their songs are upbeat pop/rock songs interspersed with languid verses. The album has lots of great keyboard and sample loops mixed with more guitar tapping styles than you might be able to handle. Actually, not that you'd even notice the guitar tapping styles - it's done in a manner that fits the whole style of music, not some over the top Eddie Van Halen insanity. So does Minus The Bear "hand Grandaddy's ass to them on a platter." No. While in the same category, I'd personally place my money on Grandaddy to win the fight - but Minus The Bear would be a worthy contendor. They'd share drinks at the very least. [www.minusthebear.com]