1,324 BEARS IN TREES, The Happy Fits, Lexie Carroll, Bristol Fleece, Monday 29th April 2024

 

Bears In Trees, Jami’s favourite “Dirtbag Boyband”, announced their biggest UK tour in support of their sophomore, independently released album “How To Build An Ocean: Instructions”, including a Monday night date at Bristol’s Fleece, so despite this being on a school night, we booked tix for a daddy/ daughter gig! BiT had of course provided Jami with a serious “holy shit!” gig moment in Portsmouth last time out (gig 1,230), as guitarist Nick and keyboardist Callum had emerged from backstage to return her BiT art piece, fully signed; nothing like that in the offing tonight, but this should still be a good ‘un!

 So we hit the road before 6, listening to “Ocean” on the way, then joining a winding queue 20 minutes before doors, Jami chatting to fellow fans before we got in and bagged a barrier spot, albeit extreme house right. A sell-out, this, and very young and largely female/ LGBTQIA+-savvy crowd (many accompanied, like J, by slightly bemused parents!) were in enthusiastic fettle for opener Lexie Carroll, on at an early 7.20. A similarly young solo singer/ guitarist, backed up by those dreaded backing tape loops and beats, her set featured a couple of decent tracks in the chunky 90’s US alt-college pop feel of “Laundry Detergent” and the bouncier indie pop of “Never Made It To Glasgow” amongst some moodier, more dreampop-orientated pieces, all delivered in a fey, high and lilting voice (not unlike Beabadoobee, according to J) and lapped up by this young crowd. Despite my aversion to the backing tapes, I found myself tapping a toe along… 

Next up were main support, New Jersey’s The Happy Fits, dead on at 8; led by Calvin Langman, a big-haired and seriously buff vocalist/ cellist (there’s a phrase I don’t use often!), I initially struggled with their scattergun, overly beat-driven and terrace chant shouty set, which veered from Summery but throwaway Britpop to oompah carnival marches (!), and Langman himself coming over slightly patronising (“we’ve come from America!”). However, after a speech from the singer channelling the LGBTQIA+ element of the crowd, the subsequent “Little One” (introduced as “a song for my future kid”) was tremendous, a huge-chorused slice of bright chugging Redd Kross powerpop, and after that I seriously warmed to them. “Mary”’s glam rhythm recalled Chicory Tip, “Heart Of A Dancer” was a frantic galloping piece of NYC 70’s punk rock with Langman asking everyone to kneel down then jump up at the climax (not for me!), and after the singer fielded a question about how much he could bench (his bandmate retorting, “I’m pretty sure he lifted the tour bus!”), the change-of-pace hurtle and scat vocals of “Too Late” rounded off an overall set of two halves, albeit one constantly delivered with kinetic enthusiasm and gusto by a determined new band.

Jami and I took turns to squeeze through the packed crowd for quick loo breaks, but were back in situ for Bears In Trees, bounding onstage to a drumroll at 9.20 following a fiddly soundcheck. And they were straight into galloping, gabbling newie “Things That Look Like Mistakes”, the place, predictably, going utterly postal, the devoted audience already singing along to every word with unbridled joy. An early “Cassiopeia” was a slow/fast upbeat indie banger, with livewire bassist/ co-vocalist Ian, resplendent in facepaint and flowing old lady skirt, declaring at its conclusion, “we’ve released a new album and we did it totally independently!” thanking the BiT community for their support and underlining, as before, the close connection between band and crowd. 

Musically, Bears In Trees play upbeat buoyant TMBG/ C86-inflected jangle pop with occasional hints of harder-edged US alt-emo (early Del Amitri meets The Front Bottoms, maybe?), overlaid with overly wordy lyricism on themes of self-reflection and making sense of growing up in this messed up world. However, “live”, tonight felt less of a gig, and more of a tribal gathering, a safe haven for the kooks, the odd ones, the slightly out of place ones to identify with and celebrate their differentness. In that sense, it’s not unlike punk rock... “Permanence” (preceded by Ian's story of BiT’s last Bristol trip, the Thekla gig that I missed, during which he split his head open on the low-hanging stage amps!) underlined this, a slow burn voyage of self-discovery with a telling lyric of “I wish this came with instructions”; co-vocalist Callum broke out the ukulele for the stupidly jaunty “Mossy Cobblestones”; and “I Don't Wanna Be Angry” was a set highlight and the best of the new material, a cathartic and soaring banger with building verses. Before set closer, the grungy denouement of “We Don't Speak Anymore”, Ian urged everyone to look around at each other, stating “we're in this together”, again channelling the atmosphere of celebratory community.

Encores of a stop-start (due to a punter fainting but quickly recovering) “Apathy Is Boring” and the clipped Orange Juice jangle of “Heaven Sent Is A Coffee Cup” (during which Callum went walkabouts in the crowd, ending up in the viewing box at the back of the venue!) rounded off a fine set again played with effervescence and dynamism. We were then happily handed a list before clearing off early (school night after all!) for a quick hammer home. Fine gig; Jami loved it, which was the important thing, but in all honesty I thoroughly enjoyed it too. Nice one chaps!