Boy & Bear/Boy & Bear/Community Music
3.5 Out of Five Stars
Videos by American Songwriter
Their unlikely name aside, Australia’s Boy & Bear can claim a consistent trajectory dating back to 2009. The musical vision of founder David Hosking (vocals and guitar), also benefits from the collective contributions of Killian Gavin (vocals and guitar), Tim Hart (drums and vocals), Jonathan Hart (vocals, banjo, mandolin, and keyboards), and David Symes (bass). To date, the band has released five full albums and two EPs, a number of which have reached the upper realms of the Australian charts.
Nevertheless, it’s been a few years since the band’s last effort, a delay due to the pandemic by still a terribly long time when it comes to maintaining a presence in the fickle realms of popular music. Fortunately, the eponymous Boy & Bear find themselves ready to make up for their absence. The songs are consistently compelling, courtesy of the pulsating rhythms that propel them forward and Hosking’s constant croon, which adds its own allure. It’s a fine line/It’s a long view/There are those amongst us/Who are not afraid if they lose, he sings on “Magnus,” one of several decidedly driving songs in the set.
It’s that divide between certainty and circumspect that underscores Hosking’s somewhat melancholy mood. That’s not to say the band lack in enthusiasm. “State of Flight,” as befits its title, literally seems to soar. “The Wheel” is edgy and aggressive. Songs such as “Silver Moon” and the aforementioned “Magnus” plow forward courtesy of an unwavering stride. Even when the band opts to reside in more ethereal realms, as in the aptly-named opening track “Strange World,” the pace never slackens — which in this particular case, manages to culminate with pure auditory overdrive.
In many ways, Boy & Bear bring to mind the moody mindset of mid-’80s outfits like Echo and the Bunnymen, Depeche Mode, and Spandau Ballet, but a somewhat folkish noir prevents those prog precepts from dominating their designs entirely. Hosking and company are a thoughtful bunch, obviously eager to embrace a common cause and take their listeners to a higher plain. Boy & Bear proves that the bite still remains.
Photo courtesy Stunt PR
