Hard Work Proves That Bears Do Go To Heaven

bear_in_heaven

Brooklyn-based experimental rock outfit Bear In Heaven is proof that hard work and perseverance pays off. Formed by Jon Philpot in 2003 and despite having released two earlier records, the band finally has broken through in 2010. This year, they’ve re-released Beast Rest Forth Mouth, with a bonus remix album featuring The Field, Studio, High Places, Justin K. Broadrick (a.k.a. Jesu). Usually bands don’t have time to release a double album and tour, nevertheless a remix record on top of everything else. The band has received accolades from media outlets ranging from the BBC to Spin. Recently, guitarist Adam Wills took some time from the band’s busy tour schedule to catch up with Bestnewbands.com to rap about the successes of 2010, the excitement about touring down under in 2011 and whose idea it was to make a remix album

Daniel Kohn: With the momentum of strong 2010 almost behind you, what are some of the band’s next steps to catapult it to an even better 2011?

Adam Wills: This year has been pretty wild.  I don’t think we’ve ever been so busy, so, as we wrap up this final tour around the states rest and recovery is on our mind.  We’ll be taking a break for the holidays, spending time with loved ones, sleeping in, and detoxing.  We’re planning to hit the ground running in 2011 with very little touring and maximum writing and recording.  We’ve got a lot of creative energy just ready to bubble out, exactly what you would expect after 150 shows of playing the same set every night!

 

DK: Are you guys excited to be doing touring down under in February? Is this your first time heading to Oz and are there any festival you planning on checking out down there?

AW: Heck yeah we are.  Knowing that the instrument you play is the catalyst for traveling half way across the world, now that’s rad.  We’ve never visited Australia (my mom went for a month in the 90′s and brought me back a boomerang), so we’re stoked!  Also, we’ll be trading the dead of winter in NYC for the middle of the summer in Australia, expecting a killer tan and some scuba diving.  I’d also like to mention we have a half dozen Australian friends living in NYC and they are absolutely nuts, expecting some crazy times down there.

 

DK: The double album must have been an undertaking. How many songs did you head into the studio with and how many B-sides didn’t make the cut?

AW: Well, there seems to be some confusion here.  The double album is our record + a disc of remixes that we curated.  Our contribution took quite sometime, we went in with about half the record written and the rest of it materialized over about a year of simultaneous writing/recording/mixing, I think we had skeletons of 2-3 songs that didn’t make the cut this time around that I’m certain will get mangled and re-arranged for the next record.  The remix portion of the record came together quite easily… We had friends and strangers alike knocking on the door to remix some tracks and within a couple of months, more than half of the record was remixed, so it just took 4 or 5 emails to round out the rest of the disc, we’re really happy with it.  Not only did we get to work with some people we’re big fans of, but it’s a document of musical friendship.

 

DK: Whose idea was it to release a remix album and how did it come to fruition?

AW: It really was an idea that just kind of, I don’t know, happened.  We were listening to the handful of remixes we already had in the van while we were on the tour.  Someone said, “Why don’t we just get the rest of the record remixed?” So we simply made a list of people we’d like to put their stamp on a song, and a month later, all of those people we asked, delivered.  It was really the easiest thing ever to organize, which is new for us; we tend to move slowly and painfully.

 

DK: With all the critical acclaim you have been receiving, how is it easy to remain focused on writing great songs without the praise getting to your heads?

AW: Critical acclaim is kind of weird.  It’s something you’d like to see happen for your band, because it opens doors, but when it does happen, it doesn’t really seem real.   I tend to just zip through them and imagine they’re being written about a band, not, OUR band, if that makes sense.  Very happy that a lot of people dug the record, but I don’t think it’s going to affect the next one so much.  It’s certainly a factor we’ve never had to deal with before, but in general, we have a pretty strong “F U Who Cares” kind of attitude about writing songs.  We do our own thing… that being said, strong chances our next record will be super dancey, we’re tired of shoe gazing!

 

DK: What does 2011 and beyond hold for the band?

AW: Writing, writing and writing. Then recording.  We’re coming up with a strategy that works for everyone right now, but, we’re all super eager to write new songs, to see what lessons we’ve learned from writing the last record, what mistakes we want to repeat, etc. Ha. I dunno, 2010 was a blessed year, and we want to expand on that magic.  Whatever we’ll be doing, trust me, we’ll be busting our a$$ to do it.

 

With the momentum of Beast Rest Forth Mouth carrying them into the New Year and a focused, yet grounded attitude, expect to hear more from one of Brooklyn’s latest indie sensations on a wider scale. Here are the remaining tour dates:

11/7 Los Angeles, CA – Troubadour*%
11/9 San Diego, CA – Casbah*%
11/10 Tucson, AZ – Club Congress*%
11/13 Baton Rouge, LA – Spanish Moon*^
11/14 – Atlanta – The Earl*^
11/16 Charlottesville, VA – The Southern*#^
11/17 Philadelphia, PA –
Johnny Brenda’s*#
11/18 Cambridge, MA –
Middle East Downstairs*#
11/19 Brooklyn, NY –
Music Hall of Williamsburg*#

AUSTRALIA

2/04 – Alexandria Street, Fortitude Valley – Brisbane, QLD
2/05 – Footscray Community Arts Centre – Melbourne, VIC
2/06 – Sydney College of the Arts – Sydney, NSW
2/11 – Fowler’s Live – Adelaide, SA
2/12 – Perth Cultural Centre, Urban Orchard, Northbridge – Perth, WA

…with:
% Lower Dens
*Sun Airway
#Twin Shadow
^Cloudland Canyon