Boy & Bear

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Boy & Bear
OriginSydney, New South Wales, Australia
GenresIndie rock, folk rock, indie folk
Years active2009 (2009)–present
LabelsNettwerk, Island
Websiteboyandbear.com
MembersDave Hosking
Killian Gavin
Tim Hart
Jon Hart
Dave Symes
Past membersJake Tarasenko

Boy & Bear are an Australian indie folk band formed in 2009, consisting of David Hosking (vocals and guitar), Killian Gavin (vocals and guitar), Tim Hart (drums and vocals), Jonathan Hart (vocals, banjo, mandolin and keyboards), and David Symes (bass).[1] The band has released two EPs and four studio albums. The first two albums, Moonfire (August 2011) and Harlequin Dream (August 2013), reached the top ten of the Australian albums chart. Their third album, Limit of Love, was released on 9 October 2015, in Australia, New Zealand, the United States, and Canada, and on 30 October in the UK and Europe. On 27 September 2019, after a four-year break, they released their long-awaited fourth studio album, Suck on Light.

Boy & Bear performing with Boy & Bear in 2014.

History[]

Hosking performing with Boy & Bear in 2014.

2009–2010: Formation[]

Boy & Bear was formed in 2009 in Sydney, beginning as a solo project for singer-songwriter Dave Hosking.[2] In February 2009, Hosking uploaded a track, "The Storm", to the Unearthed program on radio station Triple J,[2] and it became a featured song at the station.[3] Hosking met Killian Gavin, who was a singer-songwriter and guitarist in Ovell, and the pair started jamming together.[2][4] Tim Hart, from another university band, Wintersound, joined as a drummer and singer-songwriter.[2][4] Then they expanded with Hart's brother Jon (ex-Wintersound) on keyboard, vocals, mandolin and banjo and Jake Tarasenko (ex-Tripartisan Approach) on bass guitar.[3][4][5][6] All five had fronted their own groups and became friends after regularly sharing the stage at gigs.[4] Their songwriting usually has Hosking strumming chords on a guitar, Gavin writing the hooks, and the Hart brothers providing backing vocal lyrics, keyboard parts and drum lines.[2] On 21 October, they issued an independent single, "Mexican Mavis", which was a featured song for the "Next Crop '09" segment on Triple J.[2][4] In November 2009, the band described its style as "a combination of drivey indie folk and choral harmonies".[7]

Aside from Triple J, the band received national airplay on NovaFM.[3][6] The group signed with Island Records Australia,[5][8] and in 2013, they signed internationally with Nettwerk.

After winning the 2009 Unearthed competition, they gained a performance spot at Homebake in December.[7][9] They later toured Australia backing Angus and Julia Stone and Hungry Kids of Hungary.[7][9]

In 2010, they toured the UK supporting Laura Marling and Alessi's Ark,[10] and later supported Mumford & Sons on their Australian tour. They also featured on Passenger's album 'Flight of the Crow'. In May Boy & Bear released their debut extended play, With Emperor Antarctica,[11] which peaked at No. 63 on the ARIA Singles Chart.[9][12] In the same year, they recorded the song "Fall at Your Feet" for He Will Have His Way, a tribute album to singer-songwriter brothers Tim and Neil Finn. Boy & Bear's version of "Fall at Your Feet" was listed at No. 5 on the Triple J Hottest 100, 2010.[13] Another of their tracks, "Rabbit Song", was placed at No. 45.[14] In November 2010 their cover of "Fall at Your Feet" peaked at No. 34 on the ARIA Singles Chart.

In April 2011, their early single "Mexican Mavis" was featured on US TV series 90210, season three episode "Nerdy Little Secrets".

2011–2012: Moonfire[]

On 5 August 2011, Boy & Bear released their debut album Moonfire. It was recorded in Nashville, Tennessee with producer, Joe Chiccarelli and reached No. 2 on the ARIA Albums Chart.[15] During that year, single "Feeding Line" debuted at No. 49.[16] In December, Moonfire finished third in the Triple J album poll of 2011. It also reached platinum sales. On the Triple J Hottest 100, 2011 Boy & Bear were listed three times, with "Part Time Believer" and "Milk & Sticks" at No. 50 and No. 49, respectively, while "Feeding Line" reached No. 4. At the ARIA Music Awards of 2011 Boy & Bear won in five categories: Breakthrough Artist – Single for "Feeding Line"; and Album of the Year, Best Group, Breakthrough Artist – Album and Best Adult Alternative Release for Moonfire.[17][18] The following year, the band received an ARIA nomination for Best Group.

In October 2012, it was announced that the original bass-guitarist Jake Tarasenko had left the band 'to pursue other interests'. He was replaced by David Symes, who had previously worked as a session musician for The Sleepy Jackson, Sarah Blasko and Marcia Hines. The group also announced that they had started work on a follow-up album.[19]

2013–2014: Harlequin Dream[]

Boy & Bear released their second album on 16 August 2013, titled Harlequin Dream. It debuted at #1 on the ARIA charts. Its release was preceded by the lead single "Southern Sun", a song which paid homage to Richard Clapton's relaxed 1970s steel guitar sound. In 2013 Boy & Bear were nominated for three ARIA awards including, Best Group, Best Rock Album and Producer of the Year with Wayne Connolly. The album was also nominated for a J Award and was ranked #7 in triple j's Top 10 Albums of 2013 poll in the same year. From Harlequin Dream's release until the end of 2014, Boy & Bear completed three international tours, covering AUS/NZ/US/CAN/UK/EU and totalling 168 shows.[20]

Boy & Bear received an ARIA nomination in 2014 for Best Australia Live Act. The album went Platinum in 2016.[21]

2015–2017: Limit of Love[]

From April to May 2015 Boy & Bear teamed up with producer Ethan Johns (Ryan Adams, Kings of Leon, Kaiser Chiefs) at Peter Gabriel's Real World Studio in the UK to record their third album. The album was recorded live and straight to tape, with virtually no overdubs.[22] On 13 August the band announced the album and its lead single "Walk the Wire", which was added to high rotation on triple j. Limit of Love was released on 9 October 2015 in Australia debuting at #1 on the ARIA charts, New Zealand, North America and Canada and will be available from 30 October in the United Kingdom and Europe.[23] The album was certified Gold in Australia in 2018.

2018–2019: Suck on Light[]

In July 2018 the band began posting pictures of them in a recording studio for their fourth album.[24]

The band's fourth album, Suck on Light, was released on 27 September 2019. Produced by the band and Collin Dupuis at Nashville's Southern Ground Studios, and mixed in part by mixer Tom Elmhirst, the 12-track album includes the singles "Hold Your Nerve", "Work of Art" and "Telescope".

2020: At Golden Retriever Studios[]

In April 2020, Boy & Bear announced the release of their forthcoming acoustic album titled At Golden Retriever Studios, set for release in September 2020. The band said "When we tour the USA we often get asked to perform our songs acoustically when we are on the radio... It gave us the idea to record a selection of acoustic tracks and present them as an album."[25]

Discography[]

Studio albums[]

List of studio albums, with selected chart positions and certifications shown
Title Details Peak chart positions Certifications
AUS
[26] 		BEL
(FL)
[27] 		NL
[28] 		NZ
[29]
Moonfire 2 — 91 —
Harlequin Dream
  • Released: 16 August 2013
  • Label: Island, Universal
  • Formats: CD, LP, digital download
 1 80 — —
Limit of Love
  • Released: 9 October 2015
  • Label: Island, Universal
  • Formats: CD, LP, digital download
 1 — 83 31
Suck on Light
  • Released: 27 September 2019
  • Label: Island, Universal
  • Formats: CD, LP, digital download, streaming
 7 — — —
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Live albums[]

List of live albums, with release date and label shown
Title Details
At Golden Retriever Studio
  • Released: 4 September 2020[33][34]
  • Label: Island, Universal
  • Formats: CD, LP, digital download, streaming

Extended plays[]

Title Details Peak chart positions
AUS
[12]
With Emperor Antarctica
  • Released: 7 May 2010
  • Label: Island, Universal
  • Formats: CD, digital download
 63
iTunes Live from Sydney[35]
  • Released: 4 November 2011
  • Label: Island, Universal
  • Format: Digital download
 —
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Singles[]

Year Title Peak positions Certifications Album
AUS
[26] 		BEL (FL)
[27] 		FRA
[36]
2009 "The Storm" — — — With Emperor Antarctica
"Mexican Mavis" — — —
2010 "Fall at Your Feet" 34 — — Finn Brothers covers album
He Will Have His Way
2011 "Maryanne" (Georgia Fair featuring Lisa Mitchell & Boy & Bear)[37] — — — Times Fly (Georgia Fair EP)
"Feeding Line" 46 —[A] —
  • ARIA: 2× Platinum[38]
 Moonfire
"Milk & Sticks" 100 — —
"Part Time Believer" — — —
2012 "Big Man" — — —
2013 "Southern Sun" 63 — 82
  • ARIA: 2× Platinum[38]
 Harlequin Dream
"Three Headed Woman" — — —
"Harlequin Dream" — — —
2015 "Walk the Wire" 121 — — Limit of Love
2016 "Limit of Love" — — —
"A Thousand Faces" — — —
2019 "Hold Your Nerve"[39] — — — Suck on Light
"Suck on Light"[40] — — —
"Telescope"[41] — — —
2020 "Telescope" (acoustic)[42] — — — At Golden Retriever Studios
"Wicked Game" (acoustic)[43] — — —
"Bad People" (acoustic)[44] — — —
"Southern Sun" (acoustic)[45] — — —

Notes

  1. ^ "Feeding Line" did not reach the Ultratop chart, but peaked at number 27 on the Ultratip chart.

Awards and nominations[]

APRA Awards[]

The APRA Awards are presented annually from 1982 by the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA), "honouring composers and songwriters".[46] Boy & Bear have been nominated for one award.

Year Nominee / work Award Result
2012 Boy & Bear (Killian Gavin, Jonathon Hart, Timothy Hart, David Hosking, Jacob Tarasenko) Breakthrough Songwriter of the Year[47] Won


ARIA Awards[]

The ARIA Music Awards are presented annually from 1987 by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). In 2011 Boy & Bear won five awards from seven nominations.[17] The group performed their leading single, "Feeding Line", at the awards ceremony.[18][48] They received further nominations in 2012, 2013, 2014 & 2016.[49][50][51]

Year Nominee / work Award Result Lost to
2011 "Feeding Line" Single of the Year Nominated Gotye - "Somebody That I Used To Know (with Kimbra)"
Breakthrough Artist – Single Won N/A
Moonfire Album of the Year Won N/A
Best Group Won N/A
Breakthrough Artist – Album Won N/A
Best Adult Alternative Album Won N/A
Moonfire – Joe Chiccarelli Producer of the Year Nominated Gotye - "Somebody That I Used To Know (with Kimbra)"
2012 "Big Man" Best Group Nominated The Temper Trap - The Temper Trap
2013 Harlequin Dream Best Group Nominated Tame Impala - Lonerism
Best Rock Album Nominated Tame Impala - Lonerism
Producer of the Year Nominated Flume - Flume
2014 National Tour Best Australian Live Act Nominated Keith Urban - Light The Fuse Tour
2016 Limit of Love Best Rock Album Nominated Violent Soho - Waco

Australian Music Prize[]

The Australian Music Prize (the AMP) is an annual award of $30,000 given to an Australian band or solo artist in recognition of the merit of an album released during the year of award. The commenced in 2005.

Year Nominee / work Award Result
2011[52] Moonfire Australian Music Prize Won

J Awards[]

The J Awards are an annual series of Australian music awards that were established by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's youth-focused radio station Triple J. They commenced in 2005.

Year Nominee / work Award Result
J Awards of 2013[53] Harlequin Dream Australian Album of the Year Nominated
J Awards of 2015[54] "Walk the Wire" Australian Video of the Year Nominated

National Live Music Awards[]

The National Live Music Awards (NLMAs) are a broad recognition of Australia's diverse live industry, celebrating the success of the Australian live scene. The awards commenced in 2016.

Year Nominee / work Award Result
National Live Music Awards of 2016[55] themselves International Live Achievement (Group) Nominated

References[]

  1. ^ Morrow, Guy (2013). 'The influence of Dirty Pool on the Australian Live Music Industry, A Case Study of Boy & Bear' in Peter Tschmuck, Philip Pearce, Steven Campbell (eds.), Music Business and the Experience Economy: The Australasian Case. Berlin: Springer. pp. 142–152.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f Dave Hosking, Killian Gavin (interviewees), Dom Alessio (interviewer) (9 November 2009). Boy and Bear Interview (Radio broadcast). Sydney: Triple J. Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). Retrieved 2 June 2012.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b c Alessio, Dom (6 October 2009). "Boy and Bear – Mountain Folk". Home & Hosed. Triple J. Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e "Featured Artist: Boy & Bear". Unearthed. Triple J. Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). 6 October 2009. Archived from the original on 9 June 2012. Retrieved 2 June 2012.
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b Murfett, Andrew (4 June 2010). "Right to Bear's Arms". The Age. Fairfax Media. p. 8.
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b "Boy & Bear", Dolly, p. 8, 31 March 2010
  7. ^ Jump up to: a b c Alessio, Dom (9 November 2009). "Boy & Bear – Next Crop '09". Home & Hosed. Triple J. Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). Retrieved 2 June 2012.
  8. ^ Wallace, Ian (6 June 2006). "The ARIA Report" (PDF) (1059). Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA): 4. Retrieved 2 June 2012. Cite journal requires |journal= (help) Note: A free, open-source original online document for this reference does not exist. In this case, the original is from Pandora Archive and was preserved there on 11 June 2010.
  9. ^ Jump up to: a b c Dengate, Cayla (3 June 2010). "Barefoot & Ballsy". MX (Australia). p. 21.
  10. ^ "Out of Their Den and Ready to Play". The Mercury. News Limited (News Corporation). 27 May 2010. p. 30.
  11. ^ "Australian Rock's Hidden Gems". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. 13 May 2010.
  12. ^ Jump up to: a b Peak positions for extended plays in Australia:
  13. ^ "Triple J Hottest 100". Triple J. Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). January 2011. Retrieved 2 June 2012.
  14. ^ "Triple J Hottest 100". Triple J. Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). January 2011. Retrieved 2 June 2012.
  15. ^ "Nominations > Breakthrough Songwriter of the Year – 2012". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) | Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS). 2012. Archived from the original on 12 May 2012. Retrieved 28 May 2012.
  16. ^ Hung, Steffen. "Discography Boy & Bear". Australian Charts Portal. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2 June 2012.
  17. ^ Jump up to: a b "The Countdown Begins....Nominations Announced". Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). 11 October 2011. Archived from the original on 16 October 2011. Retrieved 2 June 2012.
  18. ^ Jump up to: a b ARIA Awards 2011 at Allphones Arena begins with battle of the red carpet – news.com.au – Retrieved 28 November 2011.
  19. ^ "Tarasenko leaves" Kiel Egging, 'Boy & Bear Bassist Jake Tarasenko Quits The Band', Music Feeds, 8 October 2012.
  20. ^ Handley, Andrew. "BOY & BEAR ANNOUNCE AUSTRALIAN TOUR". Rip It UP. Rip It Up. Retrieved 8 October 2015.[permanent dead link]
  21. ^ Handley, Andrew. "BOY & BEAR ANNOUNCE AUSTRALIAN TOUR". ARIA. ARIA. Retrieved 16 February 2017.
  22. ^ "Boy & Bear spill the beans on their new album, premiere 'Walk The Wire'". triple j. triple j. Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  23. ^ Hennessy, Kate (19 October 2015). "Boy & Bear: Limit of Love review – crisp, risk-free folk-pop that will offend no one". The Guardian. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
  24. ^ "Boy & Bear on Instagram: "Sunny arvo in the writing room...hope everyone's having a good week!"". Instagram. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
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  31. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2013 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 27 October 2014.
  32. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accrediations – 2018 Albums". ARIA. 31 December 2018. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
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  38. ^ Jump up to: a b "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2020 Singles". ARIA. 2020. Retrieved 3 July 2020.
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  40. ^ "New Music Releases for 29 August 2019". noise11. 29 August 2019. Retrieved 31 August 2019.
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  43. ^ "Boy & Bear – Wicked Game (acoustic)". Apple Music. 14 February 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
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  47. ^ "Winners for the 2012 APRA Music Awards Announced". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) | Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS). 28 May 2012. Archived from the original on 31 May 2012. Retrieved 2 June 2012.
  48. ^ Boy and Bear dominate ARIA awards – Australian Broadcasting Corporation – Retrieved 28 November 2011.
  49. ^ "Winners & Nominees Announced". Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). 3 October 2012. Archived from the original on 3 October 2012. Retrieved 5 October 2012.
  50. ^ "2012 ARIA Awards Winners By Year". Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  51. ^ "2013 ARIA Awards Winners By Year". Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Retrieved 3 December 2013.
  52. ^ "Winners & Shortlists". australian music prize. Archived from the original on 29 July 2019. Retrieved 22 August 2020.
  53. ^ "The J Award 2013". Triple J. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 2013. Retrieved 15 August 2020.
  54. ^ "The J Award 2015". Triple J. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 2015. Retrieved 15 August 2020.
  55. ^ "Nominees 2016". NLMA. 2016. Retrieved 5 September 2020.

External links[]

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