Like the onset of a buzz, Bear and Moose’s “Wear the Wolf” begins floaty and hypnotic, weaving honest lyrics with 12-string guitar and zither (played by Simon Lucas with a pint glass). Soon the peacefulness starts to give way to chaos as Eric Mueller switches to face-melting electric guitar with analog delay, bone-filled rain stick kicks in and the percussion drives it all forward. The sound of the song really brings home the subject: lapsing into drinking to numb the pain of a broken relationship. The “wolf” Mueller sings of is the out of control side that came out when he was drinking. Not unlike a werewolf, night and intoxication brought unpleasant transformation.
