Bear Vs Shark

Terrorhawk

[5] With so many bands emphasizing style over substance these days, Bear Vs Shark are an enigma in today’s musical landscape. Their sound is not one that is easily definable: Words such as “aggression,” “melody,” “dissonance,” “passion,” “force” and “emotion” could easily be parlayed into a series of buzzword-linked sentences that may hype the record in question, but would do no justice to the music it contains or the people who created it. Essentially, words cannot describe the majesty that is Bear Vs Shark. The Michigan quintet play by their own rules on Terrorhawk: Sometimes it’s spastic and intense (“5, 6 Kids”); others times it’s moody and subtle (“Song About Old Roller Coaster”). The band aren’t afraid to shuck typical post-hardcore conventions, either, making use of a horn section (with Morphine’s Dana Collie on baritone sax) in “Baraga Embankment”-something ambitious enough to sink any typical sing/scream/repeat clone. That’s just one of the reasons why Bear Vs Shark are better than most; there are about a thousand more on Terrorhawk, waiting to be discovered. (EQUAL VISION)-Scott Heisel