Minus the Bear announce their break-up as a band after about twenty years as a group. They have announced final shows. One last tour before they call it quits.

This is the official statement from the band:

“Friends,

After almost two decades of writing and touring the world together, we have decided to close this chapter of our lives as Minus the Bear.

What started as a silly inside joke inside the dingy confines of Seattle’s original Cha Cha Lounge back in 2001 quickly snowballed into years of adventures, creativity, and friendship. We could have never predicted the wild journey about to begin. We’ve accomplished so much over the past 17 years, and we are grateful for the experience.

Undoubtedly we owe all of these adventures to you, our fans. Without all of you, the memories of traveling the world, exploring different cultures, and witnessing the delight of your beautiful faces singing along wouldn’t have been possible. Your support weathered us through storms that easily could have scuttled the band. Throughout the years, it’s you who kept us going. We cannot thank you enough.

This Autumn we head out on our final tour in support of our upcoming 4-song EP “Fair Enough” courtesy of Suicide Squeeze Records.

These final shows are a celebration for the community of fans who gave us so much through years of dedication. We’ll be digging deep in the MTB catalogue and we are honored for the opportunity to play our hearts out for you one last time.

Love,

Alex, Cory, Dave & Jake”

”The Farewell Tour” starts this fall. Tickets will go on sale July 18^th. Before they say goodbye for good, the group will release an EP, Fair Enough, on October 19^th. This album will come through Suicide Squeeze Records. Their new single, Fair Enough, is out along with an exclusive interview from the band.

The band had a moment with the song that they put on the shelf for a while. They pulled it down and tried to work it into the album. The band stated that the first version of the song was “very pop, but collectively it didn’t seem to fit.” Then they said of the second version, “we tried a more ambient one… it just ended up being one of those songs that didn’t beat the others.” But soon enough, they found a version that worked with the sound that they were going for.  They said of an early version of the song, “It jumped out as sounding done,” Rose recalls. “I touched up the mix, fixed a few edits and sent it to everyone while we were on the recent Planet of Ice anniversary tour. The other guys all listened together and by all accounts had ‘a moment.’  I think the song had taken on new meaning after we decided to end the band.”

The  going back to the beginning with this song gives the band a chance to say goodbye.