Grizzly, Panda, Polar…musicians with bear monikers are somewhat in vogue at the moment, creating often beautiful, experimental and refreshing music. Ryan Beattie, aka Himalayan Bear, has taken time out from the day job as guitarist of Frog Eyes to release a second solo effort and add his significant talents to the bear collective. With a damaged and wistful tone, Beattie’s voice ranges from deeply resonant to delicate falsetto in an instant (as on the tender The Lost Love), augmented by soft tremolo guitar, swooning backing vocals and touches of ukulele. As if this wasn’t enough, lyrics of poetic beauty find their way through the sad dissonances and carefully tumbling rhythms. On The Captain, the listener is told: “as a Himalayan bear attacks the brilliant air…the sun felt good on your sweater. Piano strings don’t break under tension”. So evocative; abstract images conjured in so few words. A melancholy pleasure to listen to, followed by a creeping sadness at its completion: the only solution is to keep listening.