Minus The Bear - OMNI
Rating
RIYL
Portugal. The ManMaps and Atlases
This Town Needs Guns
Release Date
05/04/2010
Label
Dangerbird RecordsTracklist
1. My Time2. Summer Angel
3. Secret Country
4. Hold Me Down
5. Excuses
6. The Thief
7. Into the Mirror
8. Animal Backwards
9. Dayglow Vista Rd.
10. Fooled by the Night
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It’s one thing to make a mediocre album, it’s another to make a mediocre album and back it up with some of the most uninspired, trite, clichéd lyrics ever heard in any love song in music history. Minus the Bear, unfortunately, did themselves no favors with their fourth full-length OMNI. As a band that is constantly praised for “pushing the boundaries” and “thinking outside the box,” with this album the band seems like they just wanted to fit in with the rest of the manufactured pop-drones in the industry.
Really, some of the songs are enjoyable... well, by enjoyable I mean they aren’t doing any sort of harm, but this album certainly isn’t progressing the Seattle quintet into any new realm of the musical stratosphere. A song like “Summer Angel” is a catchy jazz/rock fusion that is a hard song to deny, but “The Thief” sounds like some awful Maroon 5 ripoff where the band exercises their ability to play what could be considered a cheap form of funk. To make matters worse, the song has singer/guitarist Jake Snyder singing in the bridge, “I wanna steal you like a pearl / I wanna display you like a diamond.”
What? Seriously?
All right, I can get past that sort of thing. Let’s take a song such as “My Time,” with its prominent display of the omnichord synthesizer, one of guitarist Dave Knudson’s new gadgets, which has Nintendo-synth quality that can at first be a bit overbearing but soon turns into ear candy. Still, it is Snyder’s discomfited attempt at writing a song all about doing the dirty deed that spoils the track. For example: “And you’re holding onto me like an old love / that you know every inch of / when I feel you start to go / I’ll take it slow / until you’re body’s saying more.” Honestly, I cringed just trying to write all of that out.
Bassist Cory Murchy provides a bit of a reprieve with intrepid funk-flavored bass lines in tracks like "Dayglow Vista Road," where he dances all over distorted guitars and fluttering omnichord synth lines. And songs like “Secret Country,” where Knudson’s baritone guitar brings an 80’s flare and drummer Erin Tate’s samba tinged drum beat makes for some of the more impressive tracks.
While the omnichord synthesizer is brand new to the group, it seems to hurt most songs than it helps. “Into the Mirror” is the perfect example of an exemption to my theory, as it keeps the true identity of Minus the Bear intact. The Ninentdo-like synth proves to be a powerful tool with the opening line that has undeniable hypnotic rhythm. It flows effortlessly into the techno-drenched “Animal Backwards” that features a robotic synth backed by the crunching bass lines of Murchy.
Closing out the album, “Fooled by the Night” destroys any chance OMNI has of being anything better than an average record. Clocking in at over seven minutes long, the track is almost unbearable as Snyder sings some of the most lackluster lyrics he could have ever produced. Lyrics like, “Gone for days in the country / I am alone / this old wood stove / cooks my food and keeps me warm,” or, “He put the right music on / that music led her astray / touching her just like he should / but she was heading that way,” would give anyone a nauseating sensation.
Minus the Bear put their musical integrity aside with OMNI as the talents of the band go to waste on predictable, dull pop tunes. The band always had their own brand of prog-pop in albums like Menos El Oso or even Planet of Ice, which is where this album certainly evolved from. Snyder attempts at sensual romanticism bomb as his lyrics sometimes pass for lines most of us would use as moronic poetry that could be found in a Hallmark Valentine’s Day card. The gems are few and far between on this one, which makes it the least desirable of all the Minus the Bear albums.
--Andrew Beam
Comments
Lehigh Valley, PA
Insane. This album is nothing but amazing.
Minnesota
Insane. Bill is nothing but wrong.
I didn't dislike this album, but I was severely underwhelmed after I bought it. It feels very "cheap" and simplistic in comparison to their previous works. Yeah, yeah, yeah, they're trying to branch out, but I don't think they did it very successfully.
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Lehigh Valley, PA
I think the "simplistic" approach you're talking about worked perfectly. I'm absolutely in love with this album.
Coopersburg, PA
I think this review is right on the money. The album is good background music but really uninspired, and "Into the Mirror" is the only song that stays with me after going through all the tracks multiple times. I never really liked Snyder's vocals, but they went well with the music on the past releases because the guitar work was so interesting, but now that the music has been dumb downed significantly, the flaws in his singing are more apparent.
Baltimore, MD
Though it's a bit of a let down, it's still better than much of the stuff out there...
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Lehigh Valley, PA
I hate Nick and Rick.
Somewhere in New York
I'm loving Nick and Rick. I was a bit worried to go out on a limb and give this album a bad score, but it is by far their worst album. This isn't branching out, it's dumbing it down for the casual music listener.
"If someone gives you a kazoo and toots around the house to MTV, they're not gonna fuck you." - David Cross
Coopersburg, PA
Yeah exactly. I'm all for a band simplifying their music, Circa Survive tried it on their newest album and it made them a better band. OMNI is downright weak though, and now for those of us who don't like it, we have to wait another few years until the next album, which is frustrating.
Lehigh Valley, PA
Ugh
Minnesota
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Somewhere in New York
Wow, that's dedication to a burn.
"If someone gives you a kazoo and toots around the house to MTV, they're not gonna fuck you." - David Cross
West Haven, CT
Yeah...I don't fu** around with Rick.
The Cityscape Burns Brighter By The Hour.
Fishers, Indiana
Wow.
It may take a few spins to catch, but this is a spectacular album. I don't think a band a diverse as Minus the Bear has a best or worst album, but this definitely isn't their worst. I can't even begin to comprehend all this hate for OMNI-- perhaps it just isn't what people were expecting after hearing Into the Mirror for the first time back in the November. This feels a lot like when Damiera released Quiet Mouth Loud Hands after M(Us)ic, and nobody knew what the fuck to do with it. I still remember the distinct polarizing effect Planet of Ice had when it first dropped, and that ended up being one of the contenders for album of the year here at Decoy that year.
And are you really going to pick on the lyrics? To be frank, all Snyder writes about and has ever written about are sex and drugs. If you're gonna say that the lyrics on OMNI are trite and cliche, you may as well knock the rest of the discography. White Mystery. Knights. This Ain't a Surfin' Movie-- off the top of my head.
I happen to really like all of the lines you groused about. To be fair, I'm a sucker for romantic lyrics, though. They're plain and simple, yes, but coupled with his voice, they're sensual and romantic, and they really fit the chill, stripped-down vibe the band have always had-- and not just on this album. And he's been sappy and romantic many times before-- We Aren't a Football Team. Drilling. Pachuca Sunrise.
On a technical note, you conclude by saying that MTB have wasted their musical talents on lackluster tuneage, but your review never really reflects that. You seem to have nothing bad to say about the instrumentation-- other than the omnichord, of course. You really just bitch about the lyrics in several separate paragraphs and slap a 2.5 on the album.
Blah blah music is subjective, but they have crafted some solid pop tunes. I'll concede that they're no longer driven by Knudson's noodly guitar lines ala Menos el Oso, but that makes the individual tracks much deeper. While his guitar isn't always prominent, it's still used to great effect. And if you listen closely, you can make out some points of excellent musicianship that aren't shown off, thrown to the front of the mix because they sound cool-- take the chorus of "Secret Country," when he's fuckin shredding in the background. Like it or not, Minus are "maturing." Though I guess for most people here, that's a "not."
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West Haven, CT
Besides the sophomoric lyrics(although I agree with Zach, Snyder has always written like this), I think this CD is pretty awesome.
The Cityscape Burns Brighter By The Hour.
Somewhere in New York
Zach,
I listened to this album at least ten times, so I don't know how many a few are but I would like to think I gave this album more than a fair listen. As far as the rest of the review, I stand by everything I've said in my review.
"If someone gives you a kazoo and toots around the house to MTV, they're not gonna fuck you." - David Cross
Fishers, Indiana
Hey now, I never said you didn't give it a fair listen. I said it takes a few spins to catch, though it never "caught" you, and that's fine.
And I'm not necessarily criticizing the content of your review. It's well-written, but the body doesn't seem to reflect the conclusion. The only time you ever say anything disparaging about the instrumentation is that the one track is a "cheap form of funk." After that, you're either complimentary or neutral, but you conclude by saying they've put their integrity aside and churned out some dull pop songs, which kinda comes out of nowhere in the context of your review. Obviously, what you're saying is totally grounded, because people tend to agree with you-- it's just not congruent with what you said before that.
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Washington, DC
This band tries too hard to be sexy, and anything they do without noodly guitars is boring. Haven't really done anything good since Menos El Orso.
"Standing still is where we've gone wrong" - The dingees
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Sunshine Coast, Australia
Zach, this isn't an essay on Minus the Bear... ease up.
Rick... best motivational poster I've ever seen. Now I have something to visualise when I don't agree with something.
"If you want something done right, get a fucking Australian band to do it" - Chris Cheney
Raleigh, NC
My least favorite MtB album, but I don't know that I'd give it a 2.5.
Lehigh Valley, PA
You think that's good?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! Rick and I have been going back and forth (as well as Chris here and there) with these for weeks on FB. This is one of Rick's weaker ones.
I still stand by the fact that this album is amazing. It makes me HOTTTTTTT.
Coopersburg, PA
I'm not trying to take sides, although this album definitely hasn't "caught" me, but I just wanted to make the point that a 2.5/5.0 is a neutral rating, which reflects the neutral comments made in the review. I agree that attacking the lyrics may not be the best way to justify the rating, but as Andrew stated, there's nothing particularly wrong with the music so it's hard to really pinpoint specific negative points.
Just like you can't fathom how people don't like it, I can't understand how anyone thinks it's more than average. That's the beauty of music though, and it's always interesting when bands like this try something different because you're going to have differences of opinion.
Minnesota
Yeah, this demotivational poster was a little weaker than others, but it fit the context so that rates it as a win.
On the topic of this album, I think the biggest problem most MtB fans have (and I'm totally basing this off of my personal thinking) is that this isn't a direction that seems natural for the band. If you told me this was another band and I listened to it, I think I might be a little more ok with it, but knowing it is MtB, I feel let down that I wasn't getting what I wanted. Good for them for doing what they want to, but it's not jiving with my expectations for a MtB effort. I feel like I was a victim of bait & switch a bit. I bought the album (yes, I bought it blind without downloading a leak) because I thought I knew what MtB would give me, but instead I got MtB channeling a sleazy hipster writing simple love songs while playing with a new toy (the omnichord).
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Somewhere in New York
The lyrics got to me quite a bit. I'm a long time Minus the Bear fan, and I know their lyrics, but this time felt like Snyder tried too hard. What may have pissed me off was reading press releases where Snyder went on about the sensual lyrics saying something like, "I didn't even intend to write the album like that, it came to me," was so fucking cheesy that it annoyed me. I think he used to be a little more clever than what he wrote for this album, especially in songs off of Highly Refined Pirates or Menos El Oso were so much more interesting than anything found on this album. The bad lyrics coincide with the mediocrity of the music, resulting in the score I gave it. I've gotten mixed reviews from everyone I've talked to about this album, but I really just think this one lacked the effort.
"If someone gives you a kazoo and toots around the house to MTV, they're not gonna fuck you." - David Cross
Coopersburg, PA
Synder always seemed like a douche to me, your comments about the press release have helped confirm that, haha.
Somewhere in New York
I never used to think that. After reading the press release, it made the band seem like they were all pretentious douches. I was sick of hearing how great the omnichord synthesizer is, they relied too heavily on it.
"If someone gives you a kazoo and toots around the house to MTV, they're not gonna fuck you." - David Cross