Minus the Bear/INVSN/Slow Bird

Known for consistently kickin’ ass and churning out reliably solid math rock albums, Minus the Bear have steadily ascended among their contemporaries over the years. Cuts from albums like 2012’s Infinity Overhead prove as much. Lead-off track “Steel and Blood” captures the band’s ability to weave different time signatures together and still craft an incessantly catchy tune. Onstage, the poppy undertones carry over quite well. Minus the Bear has probably garnered more fans throughout the years for its live show, though the one-two punch of Menos El Oso and Planet of Ice last decade did a lot to push the band closer to the mainstream press. Oh, yeah: The band has also released a couple of acoustic albums, which lend complementary pleasantries to their catalog. “Pachuca Sunrise” as an acoustic number is really terrific. (Sandy)