Bear Mountain was a

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indie band from

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

. They released their first album ''XO'' on

Last Gang Records Last Gang Records is a record label formed by Canadian music industry lawyer Chris Taylor (businessman), Chris Taylor and concert promoter Donald K. Tarlton in the Fall of 2003 at the Pop Montreal Music Festival. Last Gang was nominated as Indepe ...

in May 2013. Bear Mountain have toured as direct support for

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and have played major festivals including

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, The Governor's Ball,

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and Austin City Limits. After a successful showcase at SXSW 2013, ''Billboard magazine, Billboard'' wrote that "The fact they could catch so much attention says something about the potential and staying power of their music."

History

The group was originally formed as a solo project by Ian Bevis of the band Top Less Gay Love Tekno Party. After playing several shows solo as Bear Mountain, Bevis invited fellow University of Victoria student Kyle Statham to join the band. The pair wrote and recorded their debut album XO in their home studio, and self-released the EP in August 2012. Initial reception for the EP was positive, with taste-maker blogs The Fader and Consequence of Sound praising the sound. Ian's twin, Greg Bevis, and Kenji Rodriguez were added to the Bear Mountain lineup, with Bevis playing drums and keyboards, and Rodriguez performing live visuals. The band continued to perform in Victoria, and ''XO'' was re-released by Last Gang Records.Sarah Murphy
'Bear Mountain "Faded"'
''Exclaim!'', May 22, 2013. The rereleased album garnered national radio airplay for the single "Faded". In 2014, the band released a cover of Tears for Fears' song "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" in conjunction with Toyota's promotional Scion Sessions, with a video that featured the band dancing in front of the Vancouver Public Library. In 2015 the band released the single "Hopeful". This was followed in 2016 with a second album, ''Badu''. In advance of the new release, they performed a studio session for the Canadian music magazine ''Exclaim!'', performing an acoustic rendition of "Faded" in the Last Gang Records offices. In 2018, Ian Bevis and Greg Bevis left the band. Ian began a solo career and Greg moved to Los Angeles to work as a composer for the film industry.

Discography

*''XO'' (21 May 2013,

CD) "Bear Mountain: XO"
''AllMusic''. *''Badu'' (9 September 2016, Last Gang Records)

References

{{Authority control Canadian dance music groups Canadian indie pop groups Musical groups established in 2012 Musical groups from Vancouver 2012 establishments in British Columbia