photo by Adam Wilde
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Who:
The Bears
www.bearspop.com
Charlie McArthur: vocals/acoustic guitar/child's drum
Jared McGrath: keyboards/vocals
Patrick Tripto: guitars/Farfisa organ/percussion
Rachel Hart: glockenspiel/keyboards/percussion
Sean Sullivan: bass
Craig Ramsey: vocals/drums
What:
A succulent cornucopia of tastes and delights that will make you wish for a cool summer night.
Where:
Cleveland, OH
Featured song:
"Walk Away" from Bears (2006)
Listen: (preview via MySpace) 
"Walk Away" was the first song we wrote, and it’s what made us excited about our band. We mostly wrote and recorded it in two sessions, and it is probably our most collaborative song. I came over to Craig’s house with the guitar parts, and he came up with a melody, and then we wrote lyrics together, and it just kind of happened. In that way, it's kind of reflective of what our band is all about: a couple of friends getting together and having a good time.
What kinds of non-music skills do musicians need to survive?
I think it's important to have some sort of business sense, at least if you want to try to get your music heard outside of your local scene. I don't really like to think of a band as a business, but there is definitely a side of it that you need to be aware of. I've found that it's pretty important to be able to look at contracts and other legal documents and have some sense of what they say (or at least have someone who can look at them for you!). And we've learned that there's no reason to sign the first contract that someone presents to you, because if the company (distributor, label, etc.) wants to work with you badly enough, then they will most likely change the points of a contract (or forego the contract entirely) to carry your record.
I guess the most important thing about any band is the quality of the songs, but after that, you need to know how to market them. Then there is also a lot of luck involved...but if you can get the music heard by the right people, things will sometimes fall into place. Yes, I know that is kind of a vague statement — but I guess being able to actively push your music to the right ears is important. It can be really fun, too, when people like it a lot.
What's the best thing about being in a band?
Holding the CD of new songs in your hand after a recording session. I usually end up listening to our new songs over and over after we're done recording, and I love the excited feeling of hearing them on the stereo. It was also pretty great when the first pressing of our album was delivered. And then there's the part of the band where you're friends with your bandmates. I've been in bands before where we weren't friends, and that ends up totally sucking after a while. Bears is great because we can all hang out, and it's always a lot of fun.
– Charlie McArthur, vocals/acoustic guitar/child's drum, the Bears
The Bears, Bears (2006)
Posted December 2006
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