Minus the Bear "Pony Up!" from They Make Beer Commercials Like This Live at The Loft Madison, WI October 6, 2006 PODCAST EXCLUSIVE!

The current Minus the Bear tour is kind of an odd one. I missed the first opening act, an instrumental metal act called Russian Circles. Next is a math-y emo band called the Velvet Teen, whose material I've enjoyed in the past, but who didn't really impress me live. They had a lot of their stuff pre-recorded, including keyboard lines that could've easily been played by, say, a live keyboard player; kind of disappointing, to be honest. The last opening act was a Twin Cities-based rapper called P.O.S., who seemed to have a small cell of his own dedicated fans front and center in the pit. He really put himself into his set, but I don't know how many of the rockists he won over. The idea of combining indie rock and underground hip-hop on stage is laudable, but I think it's vital that the opening act have great material. P.O.S. had a couple of interesting songs, but most of his stuff didn't stand out at all from the likes of Ludacris or DMX. Still, the show came off well and if the tour's managed to grow the audience for any of these acts I guess it was a success.