14 Iced Bears

They could sound poppy, scratchy, dreamy and psychedelic. Any way I love them.
I was first introduced to a song called 'Like A Dolphin' 4 years ago, and even though, this guys existed from 1985-1992, they always sounded fresh to me.

During my indie pop 'period' I could spend entire afternoons listening to tracks like 'Inside' and others (which unfortunately don't have any video).

Favorite Albums:
In the Beginning (Compilation)
Wonder
14 Iced Bears


Favorite Songs:
14 Iced Bears – Inside
Unhappy Days
Cut
Miles Away
14 Iced Bears – Sure to See

In The Beginning - Compilation (2001)

14 Iced Bears' songs alternate between straightforward, catchy pop and more obtuse post-punk-ish art songs. That duality is immediately apparent on In the Beginning, with the first two songs on the band’s first single—the musically gleeful pop of “Inside” and the more complicated rock arrangements on “Blue Suit.” 14 Iced Bears’ lyrical side is persistently multi-faced as well, shifting between enigmatic poetry and straight-from-the-heart raw expressions of love, jealousy, confusion and longing.

The more heart wrenching side of 14 Iced Bears is best capsulated on “Balloon Song,” their second single and a song that no doubt helped give them a following. It appears twice here, in studio and Peel session versions, and it could easily have been here a few more times without me minding. It’s both a truly perfect pop song, with a super glue hook and gorgeous singing, and a heartbreaking portrait of sad love. The chorus is worded just right, with word building upon word until it hits the right bittersweet note: “Don’t call me ever again / I think I’ve lost my only friend/a friend that happened to say that she loved me.”

14 Iced Bears - Mother Sleep (1989)