The Punk-Rock Band BEAR HANDS Discusses their Music, Their Favorite New Artists And More!

Meet the Brooklyn-based punk rock band, Bear Hands! Dylan Rau, Ted Feldman, Val Loper and TJ Orscher make up this group. This past spring, they released their latest album entitled “You’ll Pay For This.”

“2AM” is the first single from this album and it’s about the regrets of getting older and realizing that “nothing good happens after 2am”. It was #2 Most Added on Alternative Radio this summer and it was #17 on the iTunes Vital 50 charts.

They’re managed by Q Prime (Red Hot Chili Peppers, Muse, Black Keys, Baroness, Metallica, Silversun Pickups, etc.).

 Learn more about Bear Hands in the following All Access interview:

Thanks for your time! So, how’s 2016 treating the band so far? What were some highlights for you all so far?  Anything you are looking forward to for the second half of the year?

2016 marks our 10 year anniversary so we’ve been celebrating wherever possible, champagne and oysters mainly. Highlights include doing our first arena tour with Cage the Elephant and the release of our third studio album “You’ll Pay For This.” Coming up we’ll be performing at ACL, Voodoo Festival, and a support tour with Foals.

So looking back, after celebrating your 10^th anniversary in a band, can you remember the moment that you decided to start this group? 10 years later, what important changes help you as a band continue going forward?

I was writing songs all through college without a band to perform them with so it was certainly on my mind early on. I think learning to love each other despite our weaknesses and giving each other space on tour contributed to our longevity.

Can you talk about the inspiration behind your first single, “2AM”? How did this song come together exactly?  Has anything good happened after 2AM?

“2AM” was written about emerging as a post-FOMO adult and no longer feeling obligated to spend marathon nights out at the bar. That kind of thing ages you unnecessarily. I used to have plenty of fun after 2AM but times change quickly especially when part of your job is to party and be out there.

Photo Credit- Nina Westervelt

Your sound has changed through the years. Is that a secret of your longevity in a band?  Does the sound changes keep things interesting?

Keeping things fresh sonically is really important to maintaining interest in any musical project. To rewrite the same song over and over is such a depressing idea that we go out of our way to try and avoid it.

Who are some of your current favorite artists? Are there any bands you’d like to work with in the future?

I really love this band Harriet out of LA. There’s a band called Tony Castles out of Brooklyn who are good friends of ours and a great band.

At the end of the day, what do you hope is the message of your music? What do you hope listeners take away from your songs?

Just causing an emotional reaction or inciting multiple listens is very validating. Every time someone reaches out on the Internet with reference to a certain song it makes me smile. Hope we have 10 more years in us.