Bear Cole

Bear Cole

I am an Arizona-based musician who writes songs, records them, produces them, and DJs. My song-based music is written with emotional honesty. I create music from electronic rhythm, memorable melodies, vibrant atmospheres, and the complex, strange reality of being a human. I write songs for people to move to. I write songs for people to sit with. A song may be reflective, playful, frustrated, hopeful, deeply emotional or some combination thereof before the second chorus. I listen to the feelings and allow each song to tell me what type of room it needs.

Songwriting is Central

Songwriting is at the core of what I do. Production provides each song with an environment: the pulse beneath it, the air surrounding it, and the details that make an idea tangible. Electronic music provides me with a vast vocabulary. When a song calls for them, house, funk, ambient spaces, cinematic scales, experimental textures and other sounds can be incorporated into the arrangement. Genre is helpful in searching for music; however, it is not where I start. I begin with the idea, the emotion or the phrase that won't leave my head.

Emotional Does Not Equal Humorless

To me, honesty is important; however, honesty does not mean that everything must always be serious. Wordplay, dry humor, playful observations, light sarcasm and unexpected twists can coexist with love, uncertainty, isolation, happiness and reflection. Even if a song has a pulse, it can still be serious. Even if a record is designed for dancing, it can still contain something personal. Music can express something real without being treated like a museum piece. Don't worry about being perfect. Just experience the music.

Catalog

My catalog spans multiple aspects of my creative identity. Writing Songs To Storms examines songwriting, atmosphere and emotional weight over an entire album. Love in the Time of A.I. (Complete Collection) brings together electronic production and human connections in the same uneasy conversation. Butterflies gathers another section of my catalog into one collection. The broader catalog contains releases including Treat You Right, All I Got, Arithmetic, Infinite Love, Celebrate, Oasis, Space and Time, Dip, One More Dance, Internal Luminous, They Don't Want Me To Win, Watermelon Lip Gloss, Shine Like A Discoball, Straight Jacket and Two Black Cats. Each release has its own story, collaborators, credits and musical direction. The complete catalog can be accessed via the Music page.

Arizona, Space and Contrast

Arizona is a significant factor in how I perceive atmosphere. Desert, mountain, heat, distance, weather, silence, city lights and vast areas of sky provide contrasts. These contrasts are reflected in my music -- not as mere costumes -- but as lived experiences. The natural environment reminds me that quietness and intensity can exist simultaneously. So can reflection and rhythm. So can a lightning storm and a dance floor.

Bear Cole and 1st Drop Music

Bear Cole is my recording artist name within 1st Drop Music -- the broader musical universe that I created.

Although there is a public and intentional relationship between Bear Cole and 1st Drop Music, Bear Cole continues to focus on its catalog, sound, visual language and listener experience. This website is the artist-facing representation of this work.

Explore the Music

Access the Music page for the complete catalog of releases, view playlists for curated listening, view videos, purchase physical copies of releases or merchandise from the Shop or use the Links page to locate where you can listen and follow. Wherever something catches your eye, begin exploring. There is no test at the end.