Bear’s Den – new video and single, Elysium. Debut album due in October

At the start of June 2014, filmmaker Marcus Haney arrived in Seattle to film his brother's friends at the end of term time. A friend of Bear’s Den and a frequent collaborator with their label Communion, Marcus had gone with the intention of making a clip for the band’s track Elysium with the blessing of the film’s subjects. During Marcus’ four days filming, a lone gunman – Aaron Ybarra – attacked the University campus where Marcus’ brother and friends lived. The Elysium film reflects the group’s actions over the course of those four days. Despite – or perhaps because of – difficult circumstances, each participant elected to continue filming as events unfolded. There are no actors involved in the video; events are portrayed as they happened.

Talking to NPR Music, Marcus said of the video, “’Elysium’ became very personal to me very quickly. It made me think about my younger brothers and their transition from kids to adulthood. I wanted to document the actions and emotions of people at this age… I wanted to freeze the last remnants of youth still left in my brother… Soon after I arrived in Seattle, an armed man walked onto campus and shot four students. One of them died. That weekend, my brother and his friends wanted to finish the video, in honour of Paul (Lee, the victim of the gunman’s attack). The end result is a video that depicts real friends, real teenagers, experiencing something far too real.”

Watch the remarkable video here.

Released as a single on July 21st, Elysium is an elegiac paean to the redemptive power of friendship and the song that marks the point Bear's Den go from best kept secret to your new favourite band. The single release is backed by three live recordings of tracks from previous EPs Agape and Without/Within (Don't Let The Sun Steal You Away, Isaac and Sophie, all recorded live at the Brixton Electric on 13th May 2014).

Bear’s Den are Andrew Davie (guitar, vocals), Joey Haynes (guitar), and Kev Jones (drums, bass). Since forming in 2012, the London based trio have built a fervent fanbase through their live shows and a dedicated DIY aesthetic that originally saw them self-fund tours and sell hand printed CDs direct to fans at gigs.

In two short years, Andrew, Joey and Kev quietly went from pub shows to a jaw dropping headline gig at the Brixton Electric in front of 1500 people. Their appearance at Mumford & Sons’ Summer Stampede saw them play in front of a 60,000 strong, sold out crowd in London’s newly landscaped Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. In the US, the band played support tours with Mumford and Sons and Daughter and festival shows on the Gentlemen Of The Road Stopover Tour in both the US and Canada.

Following on from their two acclaimed EPs, Bear’s Den are currently working on their debut album in a North London studio. It is due for release in the autumn on Communion via Caroline International. The band play UK summer shows before heading off to the US for a series of dates. All tour dates can he found at the bands webpage.

For press pictures please visit: www.presskit.to/bearsden

For more information and interview requests please contact Malin Persson, malin.persson@caroline.com