Bearos News Archive 2000

05/01/2000

Happy New Year to you all!

Now moved to a more spacious residence but most stuff still in boxes. The Jameson triple pack is selling fast and I've already sent copies to France, America and Australia. Bearos008 which is "Left handed" by Leicester's Lazarus Clamp is off to the pressing plant next week. If you liked the album you'll love this. It'll be out by the end of the month. Next month's release will be by Stylus. Some of you will be familiar with Daffyd's album on Ochre Records which received much praise from Mr. Peel. The track is "Kinski 2000", a remix of "Kinski" that appeared on an Ochre split single some time ago. More about these a bit nearer the time.

Jameson played a great gig when they launched the triple pack last month. Audiences get bigger every time they play. Hopefully there will be a review in "The Fly" in the next month. The Flapper and Firkin Xmas all-dayer was a stormer this year. The Starries and Baxter were well on form and Twist were great headliners. A lot of beer was drunk during the day and I managed to fall flat on my back whilst dancing, ripping the back out of my trousers! Paul, who produced the Broadcast album was doing the sound for part of the day and was teasing the audience with snippets from a closely guarded tape.

Jameson and Los Planetos del Agua play with Unisex (who used to be The Telescopes) this Saturday (8th January) at The Refinery in Burton on Trent 9-2am, £3.50 on the door. Jameson also play the next Bearos Showcase at the Jug of Ale on Saturday 29th January with Lazaus Clamp and the live debut of yellow6 (line-up includes Scott from Portal and possibly Mark from Bark Psychosis!) £3 on the door, 8.30 start.

01/03/2000

It's been a busy few months. We've had two very successful Bearos Showcase. As mentioned before the January gig featured Jameson, Lazarus Clamp and the live debut of yellow6. Jon and co. performed versions of various tracks including the Bearos single. The rawer sound was a good reminder that all those luscious textures on the records are mainly treated guitar sounds. Lazarus Clamp were well on form and Jameson had the crowd jumping around at the front (not a common sight in Birmingham these days!) Last Friday Saloon from Reading paid us a visit as honorary "Bears for the night" and played with The Starries and the ever improving Grover. Check out Saloon NOW!! There's a single out on Amberley at the end of the month. Grown men were seen to shed tears of joy during their set which sounded like Broadcast doing French pop.

In February The Action Time made a rare foray outside the capitol and played a blinding set. I spoke to drummer, Delia who works for Rough Trade and they are now stocking the Jameson triple pack. They've already sold out of the first box that I sent them!

The Stylus single is due to go off to the pressing plant this week as is the new 4 track single by Grover. Not as frantic as the last Bearos release - perhaps a bit more like a cross between Billy Mahonie and Radiohead. More delays for the Regulars as Paul who was to record the single has fallen (whilst exiting a pub!) and broken his leg. I've seen the artwork for the cover though!!

26/03/2000

Another great Bearos Showcase last night and a stunning performance by Jameson with much moshing at the front. Baxxter were beset with alcohol problems at the beginning of the set though seemed to sober up after a few false starts! The Grover single was supposed to be released to coincide with the gig but is stuck in transit at Heathrow airport. It'll be ready next week. I'll get them in the post to all of you who have sent money already as soon as possible.

Greg from Baxxter gave me a tape last night. The track listing is Russian Song, Blues Murderer, Patricia, Street Suicide and Corporal Hicks. I'll be picking a couple of tracks for a single that should be out in time for their BBC Music Live show at the end of May.

The Bearos Music Live shows at the Jug of Ale look like this at the moment:

Thursday 25th May: A night of electronic experimentation (chaos and confusion!) starring Crazy Horses (Tom from Telefunken and friends), J Foundation (Jameson doing their freeform moog driven stuff) and the live debut of Papa November who has recently signed to Too Pure.

Saturday 27th May: A night of guitar driven pop starring Jameson, The Regulars and Baxxter. The evening will kick off with a talk/Q&A section on the music business given by Michael Ward from Monday Morning Music (manages Twist amongst others)

27/04/2000

Welcome back everybody! Hope you had a great Easter. Looking forward to my first weekend in Birmingham this month! On Saturday we've got another of the Bearos Showcases at the Jug of Ale. This one features the return of Los Planetos del Agua (unfortunately without David, who left earlier this month), The Bee-Men (ex- L'Augmentation members) and Unisex (ex-Telescopes members). 8.30 start, £3 on the door. Ma cherie for painting could not make it this time but will be back over some time later in the summer.

Highlights of the month have included Shellac at All Tomorrow's Parties, Butterflies of Love/Chemistry experiment dates and San Lorenzo/The Lapse/Hirameka Hi-fi here in Birmingham. Low points included Julian Cope's Brain Doner and Ash Ra Temple at Cornucopia (though Coil and Skyray were excellent) I missed the Starries Fierce Panda night in London this week. By all accounts it went really well and there are more labels showing interest.

The Jameson triple pack of selling fast after tracks were played on John Peel (proud owner of a Bearos T-shirt) and was "album" of the week on the Pop is Love site (www.popislove.co.uk) A London gig will hopefully follow soon.

The Regulars are in the studio early next month and there should be singles by them and Baxxter by the beginning of June. Saloon and San Lorenzo 10" will follow shortly afterwards as well as some more stuff by The Starries (that's if they are still available!)

08/06/2000

Three single at the pressing plant and the most hectic fortnight ever getting them all ready. Here's what's coming up: Bearos011, the much delayed debut by The Regulars. Pete croons like Edwin Collins on the poptastic Lie down and fight whilst Chopper takes over the mic for the slower North Star which reminds me of Love's Forever Changes. Bearos012 by Baxxter is a completely different beast! Seafood meets early Smashing Pumpkins in this manic pop thrill. Bearos013 is Saloon's follow up to the Amberley single Shopping. Electron is a beautiful lilting lullaby with Amanda's gentle vocals mixing with guitars, moogs and violins. If you like Broadcast and Novak you'll love this dreamy summer classic.

Next up will be the debut by Birmingham's Slinty King Crimsonites, Calvados Beam Trio. It was originally planned for release on Gringo Records but Matt's really busy with the San Lorenzo album and will be releasing the band's next release later in the year. We're working on some pretty impressive packaging for the transparent vinyl 7".

Birmingham really came alive for BBC Music Live 2000. John Peel was up for a couple of days and joined a few of us for a lunchtime curry. He was impressed by the size of the "family nans"! Later on he compered the Broadcast/Plone/Magnetophone gig which some of you might have heard on his 24th May show.

The party continued without him the following day with Tom from Telefunken teaming up with long term collaborator Dick AKA Magic City for a set of experimental/improvised noise. Not as unpleasant as it might sound - it fact it was one of the best gigs of the year, especially when they were joined by Jameson drummer, Nigel, for the encore. The line up was completed by the live debut of Papa November and a rare live appearance by The J Foundation.

Jameson played their first gig in London on 30th May at The Monarch. A very impressive show which has led them to be invited back. It's on a Saturday within the next two months but the date has yet to be confirmed. The last I heard they were also planning a free afternoon gig on the same day at Notting Hill Arts Centre (Rough Trade ROTA gig).

Next Bearos night here in Birmingham is 1st July and features Saloon, The Regulars and special guest M.J. Hibbert (on the train from Leicester, guitar in hand) It should be a good night and I'll be doing discounts on the Regulars and Saloon singles (that's assuming they arrive in time - fingers crossed!!)

24/07/2000

Just got back from a wonderful revitalising trip to the stone circles on the Isle of Lewis. I've come back so full of mystical energy that I've decided to go for another three-record release in August/September. I've now got the DATs for the Calvados single and for releases by Epic45 and The Workhouse.

The Epic45 tracks see them diversify from their mainly-Mogwai influences and the seven minute epic, Para Pintores de Escenaria, utilised a fair proportion of the school orchestra! The Workhouse are a band from Oxford who played with Jameson in London a couple of months ago. People may remember them from the single on Livid Meercat last year. More news on these a bit nearer the time.

I've just done an interview with The Regulars that will appear on the web-site soon. It will also be on the next mail-out. This may be the last of the snail-mail exercises as it's proving rather expensive to get the stuff to the 300+ people on the mailing list. I've started an e-mail list that you can subscribe to but there will be the opportunity to the few of you without access to a computer to continue to receive hard copies (there will be a reply card with the mail-out)

Birmingham's been rather quiet recently. Stand-out shows have been by the likes of Buick6 (debut single Drunk on my porch out now on Winnebago Records, Billy Mahonie (watch out for a Bearos Glider single before the end of the year!) and the Bearos Showcase that featured Saloon, The Regulars and Mark Hibbert.

05/09/2000

Hectic times at Bearos Towers! Still decorating and the hi-fi remains in bits so we're surviving on a little music cube. Recently received some great CDs from Ochre Records. There's a great live compilation from last years Ochre 5th birthday party and the tracks by Creeping Meatball (Lupine Howl + guys from Portishead), Skyray and EAR bring back some lovely memories of a fantastic day.

Dudley JBs celebrated it's 30th birthday and tempted both Balaam and the Angel and Ned's Atomic Dustbin to reform for the day. Both bands were well on form and I hope that it will not be the last we see of either band. The gig was held in the courtyard of Dudley castle, just above the zoo. We were told that the elephants had to be moved to another location as they got a bit freaked out by the sound checks! The day was rounded off by a rousing set by Terrorvision.

On 9th August the Amberley tour hit Birmingham. Beautiful sets by Curtis Newton, Mahoganny and Saloon. I'd forgotten to confirm with Saloon to see whether they were staying over and on the day ended up with all sixteen of the three bands staying. It was a good opportunity to drink all those drinks you enjoy on holiday but never touch that bottle you brought back. Even after a heady mixture of Czech liquors, peppermint schnapps and chili vodka we were all surprisingly healthy the next day. Later that week Jameson headlined 'The Splendid Afternoon' at the Custard Factory in Birmingham. A rather rainy day for an open air gig but the puddles were fun (especially when Greg from Baxxter went head over heel into one during 'Heroes of Hi-fi').

Continuing delays with Bearos014(Calvados Beam Trio)/015(Epic45)/016(The Workhouse). The Epic45 minidisc we sent was damaged so we've had to dispatch another. Give it another fortnight and we'll be ready to ship them out. Feel free to reserve your copies, details on the product page (Epic45 have promised some handmade sleeves for the first 20-30 copies)

This weekend is ArtsFest2000 and Sunday 10th September looks like Bearos day. Here's how it shapes up:

4pm Senseless Prayer at the Flapper and Firkin

4.30pm The Regulars (acoustic) at the same venue

5.30pm Grover on the main stage in Centenary Square

7.30pm Jameson on the same stage

10pm The Starries (left) at the Flapper (last gig with drummer, Steve, and last performance of old material before a change in style - not sure what direction as yet)

All are 30 min sets, loads of other great stuff going on on Friday, Saturday and Sunday

And so,to finish for today, we're back to birthdays. Bearos Records is two years old!!! On Sunday 24th September we've got the Bearos Second Birthday Bash. It's at the Custard Factory, Gibb Street in Birmingham, runs from 4.30-10.30 and will feature The Regulars, Grover, Baxxter, newcomers Og's Bunkadoo Band and will finish with one of those rare appearances by The J Foundation (who may be joined onstage by KlusterB with whom they are doing a Christmas Bearos split single.)

San Lorenzo and Glider singles will be out on Bearos in November and watch out for details of the Bearos/Catapult Club Christmas party on Wednesday 20th December

17/09/2000

Just thought I'd put up some pictures from last Sunday's ArtsFest performances. On the left is Jameson on the main stage in Centenary Square joined by dancers, Greg and Russ from Baxxter (pictured) amongst others. Introduced by local TV celebrity, Nina Nannar, the band played to a packed audience (and at times a packed stage!) The set included old favourites and showcased some impressive new material: Way of the exploding fist, The Zodiac, Silverado, C.L.E.A.R. R.O.C.K., Majik Band, Heroes of Hi-fi and The Style. I'll try and add some mp3 samples of the performance at some stage.

The Starries closed the festival with a storming set at The Flapper and Firkin which was possibly the last gig with drummer, Steve. The band gave their all and the venue was turned into a heaving mass of people. Stage invasions interrupted the latter half of the set with the band discarding instruments and joining in the fun at one stage! The gig overwhelmed the capacity of my mini-disc which seems to have captured more of the quantity rather that the quality of the sound!

Great sets earlier on in the day from Grover and an acoustic set from The Regulars.

Don't forget the Bearos Second Birthday Bash this Sunday (24th Sept) at The Custard Factory in Digbeth. It runs from 4.30-10.30 and will feature The Regulars, Grover, Baxxter, newcomers Og's Bunkadoo Band and will finish with one of those rare appearances by The J Foundation.

21/10/2000

Well here I am, full of the flu, but chilling out to the new Don Caballero album. Sorry to everybody who had to wait ages for mail order stuff but there were delays with the Calvados Beam Trio sleeve and then I went on holiday for a fortnight just as it was ready.

Much fun was had by all at the Bearos Second Birthday Bash. Due to technical delays the afternoon of music did not start until 6pm but we managed to fit all of the bands in! Jameson put a note on the door saying that they had got out of bed the wrong side, split up, but had sent their friends, The J Foundation to fill the gap (actually drummer, Nigel, was on holiday.) It proved to be one of the high spots of the day; Richard was back on the drum stool joined by Steve from Pram. Music varied from Neu! style spacerock to some groovy jazz-funk that really got people dancing.

I now have the DATs for the Glider and San Lorenzo singles but I'm not giving any release dates or taking any money as the label designs have yet to be finalised. The J Foundation Xmas track is out there somewhere after the addition of sleigh bells. KlusterB tracks for the split single are probably going to be re-recorded as the band are trying to achieve what they call a triophonic sound - more details as I get them! Watch out for a Jameson track (probably Sprinkle the Axis on a forthcoming Fierce Panda single.

On Saturday 18th November the old Hummingbird on Dale Street reopens as The Birmingham Academy. This will be Birmingham's first decent size venue for almost 10 years and will hopefully compete with the newly refurbished Wolverhampton Civic Hall. Moby and Richard Ashcroft are already confirmed with Ocean Colour Scene playing on the opening night. Not my favourite selection of bands by any means but good to see the place open again.

Anybody want a Bearos t-shirt? I've got a limited number left form the Birthday Bash with the bear logo on the front. Medium in red or large in bright pink or green. Only £4 inc p&p, all proceeds go to the Macclesfield Hospital MAST appeal (that's why I was on top of Ben Nevis last week - and that's also where this streaming cold came from!)

29/11/2000

Back in good health after a quiet month. The Glider and San Lorenzo singles are packed and ready to go (details on the Product page) so please send me lots of money .It'll go to Cargo in the next few days but will not be in the shops for another week or so.

Great gig by Low in Wolverhampton. Beautiful music played so quietly that they had to turn off a noisy ventilator fan! Godspeed were back on form in Manchester with a set that topped two hours. Closer to home, Jameson played a storming set at the Flapper and Firkin (which I missed) and a J Foundation set the following week complete with super-hero wrestling masks that I brought back for them from Mexico (I've not had the pictures developed yet).

The Saloon single got a great review in Record Collector, two months after I'd sold out of the copies I kept back for mail order. Cargo still had a few the last time I checked so you should be able to order a copy from good independent stores.

Anyone in London really ought to go and see Jameson at The Monarch on 15th December. The band also support The Crockets here in Brum at the Flapper and Firkin on 20th December. Sprinkle the Axis from Somewhere Forever Inside will appear as a track on a Fierce Panda double pack single in January with the possibility of a single to follow.

The J Foundation/Kluster B single is recorded and awaiting a touch of mastering. Ready by Xmas? Can't say at the moment - I'm sure it'll be worth the wait!