TEN 4… BEAR
1… Who is BEAR?
BEAR is every thing I have wanted to make since I remember. I’ve been in bands and I love them but there is always compromise. This allows me to focus my passion in BEAR. It is disco music, but has influences from many other genres.
2… Your best Mayday memory?
Drinking a bottle of absinthe and not trying to jump off the bridge, that was pretty special. But the best was my brother got married on 30th April and his best man was manager of Turl Steet Kitchen which we took over until 6am, then the bridge and afters. My mum and youngest brother made it into the local papers. It was particularly wonderful because all my cousin’s and new family saw Oxford at its best and maddest.
3… How have you found lockdown so far?
I am ok, although I live alone I am very lucky to have a lot of space and garden to move about in. I also have a beautiful set of endless friends who are all so supportive of each other which means I never really feel alone. I also recently got two cats, Pharaoh and Monch (greatest rapper of all time) at the beginning of lockdown so it is nice to have movement and cunty cat behaviour in the house.
4… How has the Oxford scene influenced your musical taste and development as an artist?
From an early age I completely immersed myself in all music, I would go to metal gigs and then to jazz nights, Americana to DnB. I ran Dubstep, Reggae and Hip Hop nights and have been privileged to meet some of my heroes (some good, some bad). There is no restrictions on music for me, I either like it or I don’t, no one can tell me any different and I can’t tell them. Oxford is truly lucky for it’s size to have pretty much anything you want a few miles from your door. Even now the variety of streams are coming out through lockdown, I can’t keep up! This has hugely influenced the way I write as if I am offered everything so easily I offer just the same influences back.
5… From promoting with Wordplay and Dubpolitics to managing a local venue, all before emerging as an impressive disco DJ & producer - you’ve worn just about every hat possible on the Oxford scene. What have been your career highlights to date?
Haha thank you! Hands down was GHOSTFACE KILLAH from Wu Tang Clan. Putting him on at the Bullingdon four years ago was the most surreal moment of my life, when his foot hit the stage (1.5hours late at 38 degrees) I swear I had such a rush it was almost an out of body experience.
I have worked with so many more legends, David Rodigan at the cellar on a weds in-between Xmas and new year was so special, Jay Electronica, Akil the MC (Jurassic 5), supported Max Romeo when he played ‘wet dream' for first time in around 20 years. The list is endless. I know how lucky I am.
6… Tell us about Musical Medicine.
So the disco scene is filled to the brim with the most lovely people who genuinely just want to put on great parties for people to smile and dance and hug at. Musical Medicine is an Oxford based disco night where the party does not stop. It’s a collection of 6 different people with love for disco and bring each difference to the night and it works so well. Being part of that family has be bouncing ideas off them and taking each of their influences to mine. Truly great people and so honoured to be part of it.
7… And what about Jive Talk. Those guys really seem to have helped you bring the ‘BEAR’ project to fruition.
Now Jive Talk, are just really naughty boys haha! They are fantastic at smiling and won’t let you stop. They came to a Musical Medicine party and have never really left, when they invited us to play at Gottwood I dropped ‘Wanna Think About It' and they ran up asking what this was when I told them it was me and pretty much signed it on the spot to their label ‘Cheeks’. They gave it huge promo and it peaked at #4 in charts and was being reviewed by some huge names. I couldn’t of wished for better people to release first single.
8… Your ‘Mitchell’ tune on the MAYDAY album felt like a real breath of fresh air - the perfect choice for our sunrise track! Could you let us know how the tune came about?
So the vocal I have had stuck in my head for 10 years and nothing ever felt right. One day it clicked. It’s super subby, even more so than some Dubstep tracks so I was a bit curious how the disco crowd would react to it. It made me dance (badly) though and that was key to it being right, then everyone else started to dance and it was done. The name is from a legendary bartender who has worked at all the pubs/bars/clubs, great guy and I used to shout ‘Mitchell baby' at him, I’d seen him the night before the track got laid down.
9… From your unique vantage point, how would you characterise the state and direction of the Oxford music scene?
Its always different and always what no one expects. There are some staples of Oxford night scene that would make the city a very different place for worse if they were not there, Nick Gladwin, Aiden Skylarkin and Sam Zappi. Everything else has come and gone so many times with new names and ideas. All of this is so good as there is a bar that everyone is trying to raise higher. This makes everything exciting. I truly believe that even with Radiohead, Supergrass, Zion Train, Foals, Teed etc coming from this tiny city the best is yet to come and no one knows what it is and when it will happen.
10… Once things are back up-and-running, what have you got coming up?
I think what this lockdown has taught so many people is that life is for living as well as working regardless if it’s your passion or not. Bullingdon and all its events won’t be going anywhere and neither will Musical Medicine and all the other promoters. The parties will still be going and there is more BEAR music to come out. Finally, of course, people will still complain about toilets at The Bullingdon x
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