A historically significant concert taking place at Paradise Rock Club? What are the odds of that? Last week, Minus the Bear’s farewell tour was added to the long list of the venue’s legendary moments in Boston’s rock scene. But what was set to be the band’s last show ever in Boston was quickly thwarted by their many fans’ sheer demand to see them again. So after selling out their first October show, Minus the Bear decided to extend their tour and come back to Boston just a week later to fulfill this request.
But before diving into Minus the Bear’s performance, keep in mind that there was another factor that made their show extra special, as hometown heroes Caspian sat in the supporting slot. Despite this being their first non-headlining hometown show in years, Caspian graciously accepted the opening role and delivered as if it was their show. The five piece instrumental crescendo core silently took to the stage as ethereal sounds faded in, and the voice of god came over the audience, delivering a short poem with a soothing grandfatherly tone. Their signature atmospheric tones grew slowly and began to take shape, as drumstick on drumstick brought in the beat and led the band into full waves of emotion. Just like that, the hometown crowd was getting slapped in the face with a brand new (and still untitled) song. Still in shock over this realization, it took fans a moment to grasp that this was in fact new music, not just an elaborate intro track.
Guitars noodled, bass fluttered and crash cymbals, well, crashed. The song was over far too soon, which in Caspian time is the length of about four traditional rock songs. After this initial re-introduction, Caspian only had time for another four songs, and they wasted no time piecing these songs together. Unsurprisingly, the band favored their 2015 LP Dust and Disquiet with their remaining time, bringing in great guitar tones on “Rioseco” and “Darkfield,” while slipping in “Halls of Summer” from Waking Season, and ending with the epic “Castles High, Marble Bright.” As the members departed the stage and the final cascades of sound slowly faded out from the still vibrating guitars, the audience had a brief moment of despair before realizing, “Oh, wait. That was just the opener!”
After what felt like an eternity (but was really just the standard 30 minutes), Minus the Bear finally took to the stage. By this time, the upstairs railings of Paradise were two and three bodies deep, as fans crammed in for a better vantage point. Downstairs, the taped off “walking lines” were completely disregarded, as the bars were emptied out and throngs of cigarette smokers rushed back into the venue. The audience settled in for the long haul (or as much as you can settle while standing on tiptoes), and it was a good thing they did, because holy crap did Minus the Bear deliver.
Touching on essentially every release in their catalogue, they forced parts of their six full length albums and three EPs into a measly 25 song set. Heavily favoring fan favorites Highly Refined Pirates and Menos el Oso, Minus the Bear opened with “Drilling.” Twinkling guitar leads shone through for a moment before they were overpowered by the audience, who beat vocalist Jake Snider to the first line, “This is us on a western atlantic coast.” This intense level of participation was matched throughout the rest of the set, whether it was singing along to the chorus, humming to guitar solos, or merely shaking in time with time changes.
Pure nostalgia seeped out of every pore in the room as the audience was transported back to a simpler time: the early 2000’s. Looking around the room, it was easy to imagine every person as a decade-younger version of themselves, singing along to “Absinthe Party At The Fly Honey Warehouse” or “The Game Needed Me.” And though 25 songs may sound like a lot, when you’re reliving the prime of your youth it’s only a fleeting blur of emotion, escaping from your grasp before you know it. And fans knew their time was short as the staccato bursts of notes from “Knights” flooded through the venue.
After the band departed the stage, panic ensued as everyone tried desperately to recount which songs they had not yet played, knowing that this was their last chance to hear that deep cut they’ve been waiting to years to see live. As per usual, Minus the Bear over-delivered with their encore, coming back out with five more tracks consisting of deep cuts and hits alike. And when they finally ending with their famed “Pachuca Sunrise,” the band ushered in the most impactful sing-along of the night.
Minus the Bear played their second show at Paradise Rock Club last night. It was their last show in Boston, and the last show of this leg of the tour. They’ll pick up the second leg in a month as they take on the South and West Coasts with long time friends Tera Melos before vanishing into the stuff of legends.
Setlist:
1. Drilling
2. Last Kiss
3. Lemurs, Man, Lemurs
4. Absinthe Party at the Fly House Warehouse
5. Thanks for the Killer Game of Crisco Twister
6. Diamond Lightning
7. My Time
8. Summer Angel
9. Cold Company
10. Fair Enough
11. The Fix
12. Fine +2 Pts
13. I’m Totally Not Down With Rob’s Alien
14. This Ain’t a Surfin’ Movie
15. The Game Needed Me
16. Invisible
17. White Mystery
18. We Are Not a Football Team
19. Knights
20. Let’s Play Guitar In A Five Guitar Band
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21. Hey, Wanna Throw Up?
22. Get Me Naked 2: Electric Boogaloo
23. Into The Mirror
24. Throwin’ Shapes
25. Pachucha Sunrise
See below for photos from the show (in order: Minus the Bear and Caspian):