The Bear Quartet
| The Bear Quartet | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Luleå, Sweden |
| Genres | Indie rock |
| Years active | 1989–present |
| Labels | A West Side Fabrication, Sticky Records |
| Website | www.thebearquartet.com |
| Members |
Mattias Alkberg Jari Haapalainen Peter Nuottaniemi Jejo Perkovic Carl Olsson |
| Past members |
Johan Forsling Magnus Olsson Urban Nordh Björn Olsson |
The Bear Quartet is an indie rock group from Luleå in northern Sweden. They have been playing since 1989 and have been making records at a steady rate since 1992, often to critical acclaim but never resulting in large sales.
The Bear Quartet are Mattias Alkberg on vocals and guitar, Jari Haapalainen on guitar, Peter Nuottaniemi on bass guitar, Jejo Perkovic on drums and Carl Olsson on keyboards. Peter and Mattias write the lyrics, while Mattias, Jari and Carl write the music.
The Bear Quartet have spawned many side projects. Mattias sings and plays in Mattias Alkberg BD, whose debut album Tunaskolan released in 2004 was very well received by the critics and audience. Their music can be described as classic punk/new wave in Swedish, with influences such as Tant Strul and Imperiet, both of which they have recorded cover songs of. Jari produces lots of other artists, such as Nicolai Dunger, Ed Harcourt, Camera Obscura, Kristofer Åström, The Concretes and Frida Hyvönen, and used to play with Maria from The Concretes in Heikki. Carl has Paddington DC, some kind of noise electro pop.
The name The Bear Quartet is taken from Klas Östergren's novel Gentlemen. The album titles follow an interesting naming scheme: every title is two words, of which the first ends with a "y".
All albums, except 89 and Monty Python, are released on Skellefteå-based independent label A West Side Fabrication.
Members
- Mattias Alkberg – vocals, guitars
- Jari Haapalainen – guitars
- Peter Nuottaniemi – bass
- Jejo Perkovic – drums
- Carl Olsson – keyboards
Discography
Albums
- 1992 Penny Century
- 1993 Cosy Den
- 1993 Family Affair
- 1995 Everybody Else
- 1995 Holy Holy
- 1997 Moby Dick
- 1998 Personality Crisis
- 2000 My War
- 2001 Gay Icon
- 2002 Ny våg (Swedish for "New Wave")
- 2003 Early Years (2 CD compilation of EP tracks, demos and radio sessions)
- 2003 Angry Brigade
- 2005 Saturday Night
- 2006 Eternity Now
- 2009 89
- 2010 Monty Python
EPs
- 1994 Revisited
- 1995 It Only Takes a Flashlight to Create a Monster
- 1995 Flux Detail
- 1995 Tibet
- 1997 Before the Trenches
- 1997 His Spine
- 1998 Human Enough
- 1998 Mom and Dad
- 2000 Old Friends
- 2000 I Don't Wanna
- 2001 Load It
- 2001 Fuck Your Slow Songs
- 2002 Number
- 2003 All Your Life
- 2003 Ask Me Don't Axe Me
- 2005 I Have an Itch
Singles
- 1993 "Blizzard/Headacher"
- 2009 "Carry Your Weight"
- 2009 "Millions"
- 2010 "Fist or Hand"