When I first started getting into experimental electronic music, Majestic Casual was one of my main sources for finding new artists. Shortly after I started following Majestic, they posted a song called Taste My Sad. As always the art lured me in and with a name like Bear//Face the artist must be pretty unique. Little did I know I was about to fall in love. The song brought so many different things to the table. Sadness. Hope. Tears. Longing. In the desperate state of life I was in at the time, this music was everything I needed to help me through the hard times. Majestic went on to post a few more songs from Bear//Face and for some it took a few songs or a few listens to make up their mind on the Belfast based artist… But I for one fell in love within the first ten seconds I heard his music. Bear//Face automatically became one of my favorite artists and I have been keeping up with him ever since. 

This year at SXSW, I had the amazing privilege of going to the #spf420 house party. Among the performers were some of my favorite artists of all time including Giraffage, Spazzkid, Different Sleep, Ryan Hemsworth, and none other than Bear//Face. He was the second artist to play (just after Tony Hawk Pro DJ) and I was shaking with excitement. One of the greatest musicians in my mind was about to play a set for me and a handful of other people. The set was my favorite of the night. I got to hear some familiar songs, unreleased tunes, and of course, the song that started it all, Taste My Sad. After a few more sets I finally got the courage to go over and say a few words. He was so humble and kind and at the end of our little conversation I felt like I just got done talking to a long time friend. One of the beautiful things about music is that even if someone lives in another country and has never met you in their life, you steel feel a connection because of a similar passion for music. 

When I returned home, I messaged Bear//Face on Facebook and asked if I could interview him and I was overjoyed when he agreed to answer some questions for me! So, without anymore talk, here is my interview with the great Bear//Face.

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Hey man! How are you doing?

Great! thanks for asking. 

I had the amazing honor of seeing you play at SXSW and your set exceeded my high expectations. So, speaking of live performances, what is the craziest thing that has happened during one of your live performances? 

I haven’t played that many shows so nothing really insane to be honest, playing the spf420 show while dogs pooped in the kitchen adjacent to me was chill. 

This was my first year at SXSW and it was also your first year. What did you think and what were some highlights of your trip? 

Had so much fun, too many highlights, the aggressive dance circle we started down 6th street while being surrounded by a group of people pounding african drums was an experience though.

For SXSW you made the long trip from Belfast to Austin. How is the music scene in Belfast? 

I actually flew there from Anguilla, but the Belfast music scene is pretty strange. Mainly consists of bands and stuff, very little electronic music unfortunately. Some good bands though.

I first discovered your music through Majestic Casual when they posted your track Taste My Sad. I automatically fell in love. That was your first Majestic feature and since then you have been featured on the channel seven more times. How did you feel the first time you saw that Majestic had posted your track and do you still feel the same way when you see that they have uploaded another one of your tracks? 

Thank you! It was really cool when I saw they posted it, I was aware of them before so it was cool to get that recognition. They definitely helped me a lot. 

Many young artists like yourself would say that your music has been an inspiration for their own musical endeavors. When did you start making music and what affect has it had on your life? 

I started like properly writing music around 15 or so when I was playing in bands and things like that. I’d say it’s had a pretty big affect on me, theres not much else that I feel as comfortable doing. 

You released Beat_Tape in October of 2012 and it got a ton of love. What was the process of that release? Did you expect such a huge response to the album? 

To be honest it was just a load of tracks I threw together that I had been working on over the past year. It was a totally passive release, I really wasn’t thinking much about it. I just wanted to get some feedback from people who weren’t my friends, the response felt pretty crazy. 

You are a member of Moose Records along side your friends Dream Koala, Andrea, and Julia Losfelt among many other talented musicians. How did you get involved with Moose and what do you think of the label as a whole? 

I’m actually not officially a part of Moose Records or anything, I’m just affiliated with the dudes who run it. All great people by the way, super super talented. I was introduced to Andrea online through Yndi (Dream Koala) initially, and have just been talking and stuff ever since. 

Who were some of your musical inspirations when you first started making music? 

In terms of electronic music, dudes like Gold Panda, Balam Acab, Aphex Twin, Flying Lotus etc. But all the music I listen to definitely inspires me to some degree, regardless of genre. 

If you could collab with any artist in the world who would you choose and why? 

Young Thug. I really don’t think I need a reason. 

It’s been a while since you have posted new music. You must be working on something good! What can we hope for from you in the year to come? 

Sitting on a lot of new stuff at the moment. It’ll all make sense soon. 

Thank you so much for spending the time to chat, my friend! Take care! 

No problem, thanks for hitting me up!