Minus the Bear Say Bye-Bye with EP, Tour

Minus the Bear are saying bye-bye (for now – we all know how these things go), but before they do they’re embarking on a farewell tour, for which the Atlanta date on Oct. 11 at Masquerade is the third stop. They’re also dropping a final EP, Fair Enough, which Suicide Squeeze will release on Oct. 19.

The Seattle fretboard tappers, who have thrived by melding cerebral prog/art-rock mannerisms with crisp electronic tricks and beats, go out on a satisfying note with Fair Enough. The title track was written for the quartet’s last album, VOIDS, but after numerous permutations was sidelined. “Viaduct” possesses the clean, efficient momentum that has always marked their best work. Another new song, “Dinosaur,” and a remix/reinvention of VOIDS’ “Invisible” round out the offerings.

The EP’s cover art is a painting by bassist Cory Murchy. “The picture on our first EP – This Is What I Know About Being Gigantic – was a blurry photo of the band walking through the forest,” Murchy explains. “The cover to Fair Enough is a nod to that almost 20 years on. The figures are much more defined, coming into their own colors, a little less unified but still working within each others’ orbit. The wonder of the woods has been replaced with a milled piece of working lumber as the canvas. I think it reflects the music in a lot of the same ways – distilled by time and purpose.”

Photo by Chona Kasinger.