Minus Six, a four-person group from Moline, Illinois, is a musical enigma which combines elements of jazz, pop, piano rock and even hints of Broadway sound into its songs. This guitar-less rock band uses piano, saxophone, bass and drums to create a unique and unparalleled sound in their album “Hidden Deep in the Green.” I was lucky that my first exposure to this group was live in Illinois this past summer. Minus Six’s strange and refreshing sound, paired with their catchy melodies and lyrics, immediately grabbed my attention. At first, the absence of a guitar threw me off but as I continued to listen, each song became increasingly appealing to me. While a true appreciation for Minus Six is certainly an acquired taste, their album is still worth a listen. The album starts on an upbeat note with “Lost At Sea.” This track starts with a bass playing, and quickly picks up with up-tempo saxophone, piano and percussion parts. This particular song is a great showcase of the band’s musicality, as the instrumental aspect of the song is highly impressive and catchy. “Lost At Sea’s” only negative aspect lies in the vocals. Lead singer Kevin Carton, while an excellent pianist, has limited vocal abilities. This hindrance is not as big of a problem when the lyrics are more complex, however this particular song’s strong point clearly lies in its instrumentals. “Secrets In Our Awakening,” is a ballad that serves as a welcomed break in “Hidden in the Green,” which is a generally fast-paced album. The first forty seconds or so consist of a great piano and saxophone duet. After that initial portion, the song is mostly a piano and vocally focused one that is reminiscent of Ben Folds Five’s music. This track is vocally unchallenging, and Carton’s voice is well-suited for it. Much less jazzy than the rest of the album, “Secrets In Our Awakening” is an unexpectedly pleasant and intriguing ballad. Whenever I listen to an album for the first time, I always start off listening to the first track, and then jump to the last song. I usually do this because these two songs give a good general overview of the group in my experience. The first track was satisfying, but I was not quite as happy with the last track, “In The Garden.” The keyboard part of this song is classical with a twist, with the beginning of the song essentially sticking to Broadway. One aspect of this song worth noting is the lyrics, which denote relations to biblical stories. However, the song on the whole was not the greatest way to wrap up the album. Track four, “Good Days,” is by far the best song on the album and the track that initially attracted me to the band. When introducing the song, Carton described it as a song about growing up in the Midwest, reminiscing about good times, and realizing how things change. “Good Days” is a highly relatable song about the innocence of youth and the experience of growing up. The chorus particularly drew my attention, as well as the instrumental parts of the song, which are also the best of the album. If I had to recommend only one song from the album, I would not hesitate to say “Good Days.” Minus Six is a distinct musical phenomenon that is unparalleled in my experience. Their guitar-less, piano, jazz, rock style might be hard to appreciate initially, but the uniqueness tends to grow on people. While I wouldn’t count on a Minus Six appearance on the pop charts any time soon—if ever—their style is a rare find in the music world that is definitely worth a listen. Grade: 4
