Like Bears - The Grand March EP (EP)
Melbourne band Like Bears have released their debut EP titled The Grand March. From the word go, I expected at least thirty grown men in bear costumes, or at least resembling grizzlies, to be pounding drums and playing bugles. What I got wasn’t entirely what I expected, but somewhat close.
The opening track Try Not To Think About It oozes the indie charm you could only find being played by bands in the corner of a dingy university bar. No bear costumes or bugles, but it really was a well written song. The rest of the sub three minutes tracks vary in pace, however Something To Talk About caught my attention due to its heavy use of Hammond organ, an instrument much neglected in modern music. The nasal and punk-esque vocals came as a surprise combination to the overly indie sound, however after a couple of listens the two seemed to accompany each other nicely.
I really try not to compare the recording quality of signed artists to that of local bands … but sometimes I’m left with no choice. The ‘lo-fi’ effect can add a certain character to a track, but when a full band tries to keep the garage sound, as in this EP, the end result is often overly muffled where the listener struggles to pick the individual instruments. Sadly, all of the tracks on The Grand March are plagued by poor recording quality and low production which I feel are by no fault of the band.
Like Bears have potential, and like many of the local bands I have seen and also bought their EPs, feel that there is a vast difference to what I would hear live and what they recorded. Even if they don’t dress up ‘like bears’, if you live in the Melbourne area please try and see these guys, I imagine they would put on a very solid gig.
