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Minus



The Great Northern Whale Kill 7˝ ( 2008 )
Cats Eyes / Black And Bruised / Shoot The moon / Kiss Yourself / Throwaway Angel / Not Afraid / Rip It Up / Rhythm Cure / Futurist / Shadow Heart / Weekend Lovers

Mínus are an Icelandic metal band from Reykjavík and also, according to Kerrang, 'The first great rock 'n' roll gang of the 21st century.' 'The Great Northern Whale Kill' is their third LP and was released 3rd of March, 2008. So, it's out there for all you guys to buy! The cover art, as you can see above, is pretty gruesome. For those that aren't familiar with Minus, which I guess is a lot of you unless you move in similar metal/hard rock circles, they have a singer who sounds like a proper rock 'n' roll guy, kind of like Eddie Veder on crack. Minus musically specialise in simple riffs and lots of noise, always a fairly good combination of things to listen to, at least in our house. They have an unpolished sound in terms of production with fuzz and feedback and clashing cymbals and thundering bass and clattering drums and melodic guitars and vocals right in the mix, rather than upfront with polished, quiet and polite musical backing thanks to a producer who wants the band to get on the radio. No, Minus seem to have the right mix. 'Black And Bruised' is a good example of their sound, although not necessarily the best tune on the album. I do have to say that 'Cat's Eyes' is a great introduction. It powers along like a Dio fronted Black Sabbath recorded in a muddy field with blankets over the speakers. Yes, that is meant to be a postive description!

A good thing about 'The Great Northern Whale Kill' is that no bad tracks as such are included. A bad thing is that several songs do appear to serve, let's say, rather the same function as each other. Really, you've got about half the album that's melodic and half that's pure head-banging, exhilarating stuff. 'Not Afraid' reminds me of a good Queens Of The Stone Age, so if you like them, Minus are certainly the stuff you for. Indeed, one of the bands they've supported on tour is indeed QOTSA, which makes sense. So, whilst I have reservations about the LP being any kind of classic as a cohesive whole statement, to dip into every now and then this is a pleasurable experience.

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