The Beta Band broke up to very little fanfare sometime in the last two years. For a band that had a hugely promising focal point in a great movie (High Fidelity), it was strange to see such a unique and, let's be honest, agreeable band disappear. I remember the first time my (now reformed) Banana Republic sporting ass saw and heard "Dry the Rain" on the big screen. All those moments of trying to find my niche and what I was going to waste 90% of my time finally became clear. Record collector! But, it seems like time's unkind to bands like the Betas in recent memory. I've just been checking out The Three EPs, and, hell yes, these dudes could gel. Particularly on "B + A" and "Dog's Got a Bone" they take the mindset of a electronic act, manipulating their sound ever so slightly and minimally to reach the grand apex of release, but they're doing it within the claustrophobic boundaries of traditional rock music and instrumentation. Pretty impressive stuff. Now, you could point to plenty of earlier examples of this type of music, but rarely are they as genuinely enjoyable to listen to. It honestly seems that people are waiting another ten years until we can like this stuff again. So when you hear about the super-deluxe digi-release of the Betas epically mind-melting masterpieces, don't buy it - just enjoy it for what it is. Some very good grooves.(By the way, Daft Punk ripped off "Monolith" on "Technologic". Sayin'...)
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