The Daily Reveille sat down with Bear Hands’ bassist Val Loper. Bear Hands played the Altar Stage at Voodoo Music & Arts Experience on Friday.
Bear Hands, currently on tour with Foals, released “You’ll Pay For This,” their third studio album, in April. Their single, “2 AM,” was the #1 most added song on the BDS Alternative Chart and was featured on Spotify’s Viral 50.
The Daily Reveille: Can you describe your music? What would you call your style?
Val Loper: Indie rock. Who cares rock? Just simple rock and roll.
TDR: You released an album this year. Let’s talk about that.
VL: It came out in April. It’s like our little baby child. We love it very much. We’re trying to show it off to the world right now by going on tour. We worked on it for about a year.
TDR: I see that y’all have been together since 2006. How do you think the band has evolved since the beginning?
VL: We’ve gotten to accept each other’s idiosyncrasies and quirks. We’re more patient now. Being with the band is great. It’s my life. I love it.
TDR: What accomplishment are you most proud of?
VL: Staying together for ten years with the same people. We had the anniversary in August and that felt really good to have that level of commitment and camaraderie.
TDR: How do you stay connected with your audience?
VL: The relationship doesn’t change. I do the best I can. If I see people reacting positively, I know to keep doing the same thing. Do the right thing until it’s wrong.
TDR: Who are your influences? What goals do y’all have as a band? Who do you learn from?
VL: We want to be as big as all of our influences– people like Kevin Gates. We want to nip at the heels of people we respect. Sometimes it works sometimes it doesn’t.
TDR: How does it feel to be playing at Voodoo? What’s that like?
VL: Great. It’s nice. It’s like getting drunk in a field. It’s cool. It’s like every other festival except people are wearing cooler costumes.
TDR: Buzzfeed called y’all one of the 22 rising acts this festival season. How does that feel?
VL: Thanks to my friend who put us in the list. But in all seriousness, it validates what we’ve been doing. It’s reassuring to know that people have faith in you. It keeps you going when you’re not sure if you have faith in yourself.
TDR: You also performed at Austin City Limits. How is the Voodoo experience different from ACL?
VL: We had a bigger crowd at ACL but we’re happy to be here. I’m just happy to play for people.
Val Loper, bassist of Bear Hands explaining the band's history and musical style on Friday Oct. 28, 2016, at the Voodoo Music and Arts Experience (Voodoo Festival) at City Park in New Orleans, Louisiana.
