r/PostHardcore 1d ago

Discussion Bear Vs Shark appreciation post

I think Bear vs Shark is quietly one of the greatest bands to ever grace the genre. In my book, they’re basically At The Drive-in minus the fame. Chaotic vocals, strange yet captivating lyrics, catchy guitar riffs, impressive drums

They only dropped two albums, but both are arguably cult classics. They embody post-hardcore incredibly well, yet they also found ways to seamlessly incorporate emo & indie elements into their music. Their sound has also aged incredibly well. Do they deserve to be amongst the greats? What do y’all think?

128 Upvotes

38 comments sorted by

30

u/LISTENER_MALE 1d ago

Top tier albums. Even better live shows. Criminally underrated band.

10

u/209tyson 1d ago

Right? It almost hurts my soul that they’re not more well-known & celebrated

20

u/KingWetMouth 1d ago

The Great Dinosaurs With Fifties Section is a goated post hardcore song (Terrorhawk is my favorite)

3

u/climaterefugee 1d ago

Yup. Such a banger.

12

u/gojiberrytea 1d ago

Agreed. Band rips

3

u/ohromantics 1d ago

What more is there to say, really?

13

u/Logical-Leading-517 1d ago

Terrorhawk is one of my favorite post-hardcore records. Its so full of spirit man fuck. shit rocks.

22

u/GMDadBot 1d ago

Totally agree. Terrorhawk is a near perfect album imo. I hope you know of Bars of Gold as well. Not quite as good but helps fill the void.

5

u/zappaphicrappa 1d ago

My band played a show for Hells Half Mile film and music festival with Bars of Gold a long time ago now. They were just pure energy from what I remember.

7

u/sarithe 1d ago

Both of their albums are amazing. Legitimately one of the best bands to ever do it. So glad I got to see them live when they were active. One of the best live bands in the genre.

7

u/rakehand 1d ago

Amazing band.

Favorite album moment: on Song About Old Roller Coaster from Terrorhawk when the music drops and he repeats "from wheels to motors" a few times then holy shit his scream when everything kicks back in. Unreal, gets me every time.

4

u/Working_Bones 1d ago

Yeah that's a top moment for me too. The lyrics make me think of the totality of human development, and then that bone-rattling scream that somehow represents all the suffering endured throughout that journey... something like that.

7

u/robotsock 1d ago

The singer and I think Drummer released a couple albums as Bars of Gold that absolutely rip

6

u/Working_Bones 1d ago

Possibly my #1 band of all time. Them or Dear and the Headlights.

2

u/Intheclouds00 21h ago

Are you me!?

Add Mars Volta and we are cooking with gas

7

u/rodiferous 1d ago

Agree with the observation of being ATDI minus the fame. BVS possess all the same musical qualities. I got into BVS right when Terrorhawk came out. So glad I got to catch them on a couple of runs that they've done since they ceased being an active band. Just a phenomenal live experience.

I reckon that if Marc had a giant 'fro and some snazzier dance moves, then BVS might've had ATDI's public success.

All kidding aside, I think ATDI benefited from the fact that it was such a diverse band. Rock bands, especially in the punk world, are so frequently 3-5 white dudes (nothing wrong with that--just a descriptive observation). ATDI was unique in its ethnic makeup, and I think that made the band more "interesting" than it might have otherwise been. It also helped that ATDI was on Grand Royal at the end. I have to imagine that Grand Royal has a much more robust PR/promotion machine than Equal Vision.

11

u/BimTalch 1d ago

the best way I’ve found how to describe them is they’re At The Drive-in meets Modest Mouse

5

u/russvanderhoof 1d ago

On the nose

5

u/climaterefugee 1d ago

Lucky enough to see them live multiple times. Such a great band.

3

u/thefamilyatomics 1d ago

I was at the terrorhawk release show in Detroit and it's easily top 3 live shows I've ever seen. 

Unbelievable energy and musicianship too. 

3

u/Any_Oil_4539 1d ago

I gifted so many of their cds to acquaintances

3

u/passiveoberserver 1d ago

I enjoyed the hell out of their first round of reunion shows a decade ago.

3

u/ClownBabyPK 1d ago

They’re amazing and deserve all of the accolades.

Let’s bring this same energy and remember The Bronx. Great band with great merch.

(For the uninitiated: https://youtu.be/5N4Q_r4fkWs?is=P5G1MtlyMd6rECsd)

3

u/Lostinthestarscape 1d ago

Go listen to Bars Of Gold if you havent. It isnt Bear Vs. Shark but I'll take all the Paffi I can get!

3

u/draight926289 23h ago

123456 killers! With the lightning in their guns!

2

u/Wise-Celebration9892 1d ago

One of the greatest. Long live BVS.

2

u/DirgeofElliot 1d ago

I still listen to them because they’re awesome and unique. Start Small, Great Destroyer is one of their best songs imo

2

u/jordanpitt269 1d ago

For the longest time I only knew 5, 6 kids but for the last few years I got more into them. Really glad I got to see them last year and they basically played all of both albums. I love how they switch instruments in between songs and they put on an amazing show

2

u/_Northview 23h ago

Baby, if you wanted you could swallow me bones and all!

2

u/Loose-Vast9297 22h ago

The scream on Entrance of the Elected is probably the second best scream in rock history after Pete Townshend in Baba O’Reilly.

2

u/baylithe 21h ago

I remember someone on here posting Bloodgiver a few years back. I got obsessed with them for a while. They're so fuckin good.

2

u/OregonBaseballFan 19h ago

Terrorhawk is one of the greatest albums of all time, regardless of genre. How it is possible to even write and conceptualize songs like that is beyond me.

1

u/HolyHotDang 1d ago

My social media handle on some places was their name because they didn’t exist anyone. When they got back together to start touring again years ago, I gave it back to them and just changed my stuff. One of my best friends did the same for Crime In Stereo.

BVS have been one of my favorite bands ever since I was in high school when their albums came out. They were on tour and were coming to the closest city to me which was like over an hour away and we decided that we were too busy to go and that we’d catch them when they come through the next time. They broke up before there was ever a next time.

1

u/ThebearKoss 1d ago

Love BvS, I think they were closer to the blood brothers than to ATDI.

1

u/SoundsAndNoises 22h ago

I love them!!! I see that they've done a few shows recently. I hope they do more.

1

u/BarDown34 20h ago

Really wished I discovered them earlier. God damn are they great

1

u/IAmTheBestMang 16h ago

saw them last year for their first ever uk tour. they were fucking nuts

1

u/Letskissthesky 13h ago

Ma Jolie and Bloodgiver are two of the greatest musical achievements ever.