Mostly Bears: The Ed Mitchell Clinic

Adventurous and never boring, Mostly Bears have stirred up a hornet’s nest of buzz since a SXSW showcase earlier this year. And based on this album, they have quite a few things going from them. Although the vocals bring to mind Arcade Fire, there is plenty of oomph and jump to the opening “The Digital Divide” which is drenched in fuzz guitar. Meanwhile, “Leda Atomica” is a lighter, roots-oriented, earthy pop ditty as is the soft but sincere “Airports”. Mostly Bears shine on the lengthy, prog-leaning “The Pharmacist” which finds its groove early on while “Eclipse the World (Oh, My Brain)” is a dirge-ish, creeping kind of song that evolves into a spacey, psychedelic effort. Although there are two “radio edit” versions which close the record, Mostly Bears shine best on the Muse-like “Melancholyism” as the big beefy chorus works quite well. Perhaps the highlight of the album is a dark and somewhat mysterious “Your Smile Decorates the Afternoon” as singer Brian Lopez leads his band mates through.