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It seemed appropriate to begin my musical passion blog with one of my favorite albums from one of my favorite bands. The album title is Highly Refined Pirates and the band name is Minus the Bear. Although it has received little, if any, positive critical reception, it still holds a special place in my heart. To me, this is one of those albums that I grew up with and have attached many emotional memories to. Critics may say that Minus the Bear uses too many traditional and cliched musical dynamics in this album, but I see this album as a marking of time. It both characterizes the early "sound" of the band and serves as a fond memory in my late childhood. Its difficult not to listen to this album and immediately feel the rush of emotions that I have subtly attached to it. Music has so much power in this respect.
In terms of actual analysis of the album, the album and band tend to embody the genres of math rock, electronic, and indie. This album fuses these genres in an affecting way. The complex time signatures, employed under the math rock influence, and the melodic additions of the myriad synthetic varieties prove to create a unique sound unlike the band's distinct components. The band creates existing styles and creates their own sound from them. Although they are constantly playing on the archetypes of these genres and the traditions of song structure as a whole, the complex combination of the three styles hits the listener in a strange way. On the surface, the music seems relatively simple and played out. However, looking under the surface reveals the complexities that makes Minus the Bear their own in a time of the band finding themselves. I feel that critics fail to see this and are only focused on their relation to other bands. From a compositional level, this album is overwhelmingly enjoyable to me.
The writing and conceptual aspect of the album is also telling of my emotional attachment to it. The writer and lead singer Jake Snider once said when asked about the album, "I was definitely more just writing about what people at that age do, what it’s kind of all about.....Not the going to work from 9-to-5 and whatever other bullshit you have to deal with. There’s some fun to be had, and I think that the escapism aspect of life at that age is what I was focusing on then, as far as I can remember." This parallels my childhood outlook on life in that my main focus was on the visceral aspects of life, having fun. In an even greater expanse of childhood fun, the song titles of the album are simply ridiculous. They tell nothing of the individual song concepts and are just supposed to be comical randomness.
All of the widespread elements of this album still allow for it to be a pleasure to listen to through and through. Although a critic can find rampant errors and common musical structures and attitudes in this album (I do recognize them) it still holds a special place in my heart. In a time when the band was finding themselves, I too was in the process (and still am).
Minus the Bear - Highly Refined Pirates - Absinthe Party at the Fly Honey Warehouse
