Bear's Den (band)

Bear's Den
Bear's Den performing in 2017
Background information
Origin	London, England
Genres	Alternative country indie folk
Years active	2011–present
Labels	Communion Caroline International Dew Process
Members	Andrew Davie (see touring members)
Past members	Joey Haynes Kevin Jones
Website	bearsdenmusic.co.uk

Bear's Den are a British alternative country and indie folk band from London, formed in 2011 and consists of Andrew Davie (lead vocals, electric guitar, acoustic guitar), along with touring members Christof van der Ven (banjo, acoustic guitar, bass guitar & vocals; since 2016), Marcus Hamblett (electric guitar, acoustic guitar, vocals, horns, synths; since 2014), Jools Owen (horns, drums & vocals; since 2015), and Harry Mundy (electric guitar; since 2016). While Andrew is the sole official member, the others are technically session or touring musicians although they're often seen by fans and Andrew as integral to the band (especially for live music).

Kevin Jones (vocals, drums, bass, guitar) left the band in June 2025, with his parts since shared fairly evenly among the remaining touring members. Previous members also include Joey Haynes (vocals, banjo, guitar), who departed in early 2016.

Bear's Den have released four studio albums: Islands (2014), Red Earth & Pouring Rain (2016), So That You Might Hear Me (2019), and Blue Hours (2022). Islands peaked at number 49 on the UK Albums Chart. They have also produced one TV series soundtrack, one special project album, issued nine EPs and numerous singles.

The band has been nominated for several music awards throughout their career, with "Above the Clouds of Pompeii" earning them a nomination for the Ivor Novello Award for Best Song Musically and Lyrically, in 2015. They received two nominations at the UK Americana Awards in 2016, as Artist of the Year and Song of the Year, for "Agape".

In 2025 the band toured to celebrate the 10 year anniversary of their Islands album which included gigs in London, Gateshead, Edinburgh, Manchester, Cologne, Amsterdam and Brussels.

History

2011–2014: Early years and tours

Kevin and Andrew were previously members of the band Cherbourg, but in 2009 Andrew and Kevin decided to create a new band, in a 2022 interview with Atwood Magazine, Andrew confirms what happened and how the band became named:

"My grandparents had a barn in this town just next to Bearsden, called Milngavie, and I used to go there and write songs. 'Cause it's just they owned it, but they never went there, and it was just like this literally empty barn with like a desk in it, and like a small kitchen set up and a bathroom, I would just go there and write songs. And all my friends thought I was really weird, probably, and correctly thought I was weird. I would go there for a couple of weeks and just write songs set up by with a laptop and just do stuff. And, yeah, and then I wrote these songs, I came back and me and Kev went for a coffee or a milk shake... It was a milk shake, I think. We were like, "Let's start a band." but then, "What should the band be called?" I was like, "Bear's Den." And then a year later I went back and it was like, "Oh fuck, that's probably why," the town next door is called Bear's Den."

Kevin in a 2014 interview said: "We [Andrew and him] met Joey through mutual friends, basically, about three years ago, we were, looking for like a sort of third guy, we wanted to find somebody that was kind of multi-instrumentalist who could play different things"

The band's first tour involved them travelling across the United States in Volkswagen camper vans with Ben Howard, Nathaniel Rateliff, and the Staves. It was made into a 2014 documentary titled Austin to Boston by James Marcus Haney, which premiered at the 58th BFI London Film Festival. Joey Haynes in an interview said "it did feel to me that the Austin to Boston tour...was like the first time where it felt like, [we] gelled in a certain way... thats when we became a band... it was that tour that was kind of bit of a birth to the band" to which Andrew Davie confirms by saying "definitely" .

Since then, the band has toured the US several times, in support of Mumford & Sons and Daughter and as headliners. They also toured the UK supporting Smoke Fairies in 2012 and Australia with Matt Corby in October 2013.

In June 2014, the band received the £2,500 Momentum Deezer Award from the PRS for Music Foundation.

2014–2016: Islands

On 20 October 2014, Bear's Den released their debut album, Islands, on Communion Records, a label founded in 2006 by Kevin Jones, with Ben Lovett of Mumford & Sons and producer Ian Grimble.

The album spent ten weeks on the UK Official Charts, peaking at #49. Islands appeared at #7 in the first official UK Americana Chart and at #9 in the top-selling Americana albums of 2015.

In March 2015, the song "Above the Clouds of Pompeii" was nominated for the Ivor Novello award for Best Song Musically and Lyrically.

In October, Islands was re-released as a deluxe edition featuring an extra CD of live tracks.

That year, the band sold out their extensive UK, Europe, and US tours. They performed at international festivals such as Reading and Leeds, Glastonbury, Lollapalooza, Citadel, Somersault, NOS Alive, BBK, Squamish, Pukkelpop, Lowlands, Bonnaroo, and Dockville.

On 4 February 2016, Joey Haynes announced via the band's Facebook page that he was leaving the group to spend more time with family and friends.

On 14 October 2016, just under two years since its release, Islands was certified Silver by the British Phonographic Industry, in recognition of 60,000 sales. It was certified Gold in 2023.

2016–2019: Red Earth & Pouring Rain

Bear's Den playing in 2017 in New York City at The Bowery Ballroom

On 4 April 2016, the band released a trailer in anticipation of their second album, Red Earth & Pouring Rain, which came out on 22 July. They also announced a tour of Europe for Autumn 2016, including their biggest headline show to date, at Brixton Academy.

2019–2020: So That You Might Hear Me

In January 2019, Bear's Den changed their social media design after almost three years, and a website was sent to people affiliated to their official page, called "So That You Might Hear Me", the title of their next album. Four days later, it was revealed that the record would be released on 26 April 2019. They also released two singles the next day: "Blankets of Sorrow" and "Fuel on the Fire". On 4 March, they issued a third single, "Laurel Wreath". On 12 February 2019, a podcast bearing the album's name was announced. Hosted by Danny Carissimi, each episode explored one song on the album through interviews with Davie and Jones.

In 2019 the band supported Neil Young with run of stadium shows in Germany in August 2019, the band headed off on the Highlands and Islands tour of Scotland, it was a stripped-back acoustic affair, and they were joined onstage by Christof van der Ven and Marcus Hamblett.

2020–2023: Fragments, Blue Hours, Trying: Season 3, White Magnolias and First Loves

On 26 June 2020, Bear's Den posted a snippet of the Fragments version of "Fuel on the Fire" and changed their social media design. Over the next two days, the Fragments versions of "Napoleon" and "When You Break" were teased.

On 1 July 2020, the band announced a studio recording of the Fragments shows they had done with Paul Frith in 2018, consisting of orchestral reinterpretations of the band's music.

On 17 November 2021, "All That You Are", the first single from the band's fourth studio album, Blue Hours, was released. This was followed by "Spiders", on 19 January 2022. At the same time, the band announced that Blue Hours would be published on 13 May 2022 and accompanied by a European and North American tour, their first since 2020.

On 22 July 2022, Season 3 of the TV show Trying was broadcast on Apple TV, the band created 9 unique songs for the season with collaboration from Maisie Peters, Jade Bird and Monica Martin. In 2023, the Bear's Den Song 'All That You Are' was featured in the Apple TV+ show Ted Lasso Episode 309 La Locker Room Aux Folles.

In 2023, the EPs White Magnolias and First Loves were released, the band played four gigs at Union Chapel, London and three gigs in New York City to celebrate the release. The band then recorded and sold tickets via Moment (now part of Patreon) for fans to stream their "A Midwinter's Evening with Bear's Den" show.

Bear's Den at The Royal Albert Hall on 13 March 2025

2024 onwards

In 2024, the band announced a 10 year anniversary tour of Islands (to take place in 2025) and released a version of Above The Clouds of Pompeii featuring Dermot Kennedy.

In 2025, Kevin Jones announced on the band's Facebook and Instagram page that he was stepping down from the band but that "Davie, Christof, Jools, Marcus and Harry will continue to make music together well into the future with Davie's songwriting at heart of the matter.", the band then went on to play Glastonbury Festival, headline Folk by The Oak Festival and announce an Australian tour amongst other gigs for the year.

Members

Studio

Andrew Davie (lead vocals, guitars) (2011-onwards)

Live / Touring Members

• 
  Andrew Davie (lead vocals, guitars) (2011-onwards)
• 
  Christof van der Ven (banjo, acoustic guitar, bass guitar & vocals) (2016-onwards)
• 
  Jools Owen (horns, drums & vocals) (2015-onwards)
• 
  Harry Mundy (electric guitar) (2016-onwards)
• 
  Marcus Hamblett (electric guitar, acoustic guitar, vocals, horns, synths) (2014-onwards)

Previous Members

• 
  Kevin Jones (vocals, drums, bass, guitar) (2011–2025)
• 
  Joey Haynes (vocals, banjo, guitar) (2011–2016)

Discography

Studio albums

Title	Details	Peak chart positions						Certification
		UK	BEL (Fl)	GER	IRE	NLD	SWI
Islands	Released: 20 October 2014 Label: Communion Formats: Digital download, CD, vinyl	49	16	—	—	29	—	BPI: Gold
Red Earth & Pouring Rain	Released: 22 July 2016 Label: Communion Formats: Digital download, CD, vinyl	6	9	26	61	5	53
So That You Might Hear Me	Released: 26 April 2019 Label: Communion Formats: Digital download, CD, vinyl	13	4	40	—	7	63
Blue Hours	Released: 13 May 2022 Label: Communion Formats: Digital download, CD, vinyl, cassette	6	21	—	—	20	—

EPs

• EP (2012)
• Agape (2013)
• Without/Within (2013)
• Elysium (2014)
• Only Son of the Falling Snow (2019)
• Christmas, Hopefully (2020)
• The Quiet Winter Light (2022)
• First Loves (2023)
• White Magnolias (2023)

TV Series Soundtrack Albums / Special Projects

• Fragments (with Paul Frith) (2020)
• Trying: Season 3 (Apple TV Original Series Soundtrack) (2022)

Singles

• "Agape" (2013)
• "Writing on the Wall" (2013)
• "Above the Clouds of Pompeii" (2014)
• "Elysium" (2014)
• "Think of England" (2015)
• "Auld Wives" (2016)
• "Emeralds" (2016)
• "Dew on the Vine" (2016)
• "Berlin" (2016)
• "Fuel on the Fire" (2019)
• "Blankets of Sorrow" (2019)
• "Laurel Wreath" (2019)
• "Crow" (2019)
• "Only Son of the Falling Snow" (2019)
• "Christmas, Hopefully" (2020)
• "All That You Are" (2021)
• "Spiders" (2022)
• "Blue Hours" (2022)
• "A Good Love, Pt. 2" (2022)
• "Please Don't Hide Yourself Away" (2022)
• "Team" (2022)
• "Stitch in Time" (2022)
• "Honest Mistake" (2022)
• "Evelyn" (2023)
• "Summer & Smoke"
• "Loneliness (2023)
• "Honest Mistake" (2023)
• "Above the Clouds of Pompeii feat Dermot Kennedy" (2024)

External links

• Official website