Bear Hat will rock at Fox Theatre
Over the past couple of decades, a truly singular sound has emerged from the mountain towns in Colorado.
It’s hard to pin down, but best described as a bluegrassy, folky, jammy bandy, singer-songwritery style that seems to flourish both in the foothills and way up high in the peaks of the Centennial state.
And while the members of Bear Hat — a Boulder-based band whose members have cut their teeth playing in places like Jamestown, Nederland and Gold Hill in bands like Poorfree and the Alcapones — are fond of the “Colorado” sound, they want people to know: Bear Hat is different than every other mountain-town band out there.
Instead, vocalist and mandolin player JD Songs insists the band is crafting a sound that is singular and wholly unique. After listening to some of the band’s original tunes, it’s hard to disagree with him.
Made up of Songs, as well as guitarist and singer Charlie White, upright bass player Clay Bedell, banjo player Josy Rosales, and Josh Wexler on flute (all members of the band sing, as well) the members of Bear Hat bring to life a sound that, while reminiscent of bluegrass, ebbs more on the side of Memphis blues than Appalachian roots. White’s rugged, low drawl sounds like it was plucked out of a cowboy dive in Dust Bowl Oklahoma, and just when you think you have Bear Hat figured out, Wexler comes through with a flute solo that changes the tone, ranging from whimsical to downright jazzy.
Bear Hat operates with a “core five,” sometimes adding musician Jonathan Gale in on fiddle if the occasion calls for it. The band includes two Berklee College of Music graduates, one sound engineer, one current and one former member of the band Poorfree, one seven-time Rockygrass academy graduate, and more than a century of musical experience. The members joined
together because they wanted to create a sound in Colorado that hadn’t yet been made. But at its soul, Bear Hat is just a group of dudes who really, really like each other — and really like music.
This weekend, Bear Hat will be taking the stage at the Fox Theatre, 1135 13th St., at its biggest show yet, with a co-headlining slot on Saturday night with Colorado jam band River Spell. The Daily Camera caught up with Songs ahead of the concert to talk about definitions, brotherly bandmate love, and why you should put on your Bear Hat and get grizzly this weekend at the Fox.
Q
: Bear Hat is made up of some pretty incredible musicians, who have all been around the Front Range music scene for awhile. What made you all want to come together and make a new sound in the form of Bear Hat?
A
: We formed during COVID, just some guys who wanted to get together and play music. And slowly we went from two to five. Over time, we’ve not only amassed this crew of highly talented musicians but also a group of people who bring different elements to the table. We each have different experiences in the music industry, whether it’s recording, business or performing.
We all live around here, and we all have day jobs — some of us teach music, some of us are audio engineers. I’ve been a real estate agent for 15 years and have two kids and a beautiful wife. None of us are looking to travel for music, we’re not built to go on tour, because we’re not in our 20s. There are so many venues here that we love that we can play at where we don’t have to travel very far, necessarily. But the main reason that we’re all in this together is because we just love hanging out and we want to play thoughtful, acoustic music.
The people are in Bear Hat because of the humans that they are. They’re obviously all shredders, but we are all in this because we love each other so much. I’ve seen plenty of bands and worked for plenty of bands that hate each other, but it’s so easy to talk about how talented and awesome the guys in this band are. We’re all good friends.
Q
: What’s it like to play with such a talented bunch?
A
: We rehearse every week, and we have for almost five years now. It’s starting to get to a point where we look at each other and are like, damn, this is tight. Because music is such a big part of life for all of us, half of rehearsal we’re just having conversations, bouncing ideas off of each other and asking each other questions instead of playing.
I will say, one of the best parts about playing with these guys is how professional every single person is. We’re very respectful. Every person in our band is gracious and thankful, and shows up on time with the right equipment. There’s no ego here. We’re particular, we’re meticulous — we’re just a professional group.
Q
: I know that you guys have a debut album in the works, planning to release either this summer or this fall. Is that still the plan?
A
: So, we’re recording the album ourselves independently, in one of our living rooms. With all of the degrees and knowledge swimming around between us — our fiddle player is literally an audio engineer — we’re fortunate enough that we can do it out of the comfort of our own home. We’re not rushing it, or putting pressure on ourselves to pay for studio time. If we don’t have something to record one day, we just sit around and play music instead. We want to take it slow.
Q
: You guys have such a unique sound, it’s kind of hard to define. For people who haven’t seen you guys live, can you try and paint a picture?
A
: We play with a lot of drive, so we’re a little more uptempo. This is definitely not a sleeping bag and pillow affair, like you’re going to get moving a little bit — maybe even a little sweaty. That’s really what we’re trying to do.
We’re not a jamgrass band. We’re not even a bluegrass band. We can do bluegrass really well, but we just happen to play acoustic instruments, the flute gives us this kind of swinging jazz vibe, but I would say we’re a blend of bluegrass, swing, old-time, soul, rock, and roll. We’re incorporating all of these different elements of music. It’s high-energy acoustics. We love our original material, but I will say, that we also know we have to play some tasteful covers throughout — some Billy Joel here, some Elton John there.
It’s kind of hard to have an elevator pitch for our sound. I tell people, you kind of just have to get out and see us for yourself.
To witness it firsthand, head to the Fox Theatre at 8 p.m. Saturday. Tickets start at $15 on the Fox Theatre website.