Huggy Bear
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Huggy Bear is an English riot grrrl band, formed in 1991 (see 1991 in music) in Brighton. The band did not take their kitschy name from Antonio Fargas' character in the 1970s TV show Starsky and Hutch, police informant "Huggy Bear" Brown, but were given it through an early misspelling of their intended name, Huggy Beat.
Inspired by the Olympia, Washington-based riot grrl movement led by feminist bands like Bikini Kill, Huggy Bear had both male and female members, Chris, Niki, Jo, Jon and Karen; they refused to be photographed or interviewed, and they never gave their full names once they began releasing records formally. They were however more forthcoming to the John Peel show - for their first session they gave their names as:
Chriss Rowley (Vocals) Jo Johnson (Guitar) Jon Slade (Guitar) Niki Eliot (Bass, Vocals) Karen Hill (Drums)
In spite of a major label bidding war, Huggy Bear stuck with Wiiija, an indie label; Huggy Bear did agree to sign to Nude Records, but only if the band Suede was dropped from the label's roster. Nude Records refused to drop Suede, its best-selling act and one of the top British bands of the time.
Their avant-garde debut EP, Rubbing the Impossible to Burst, was released in 1992 (see 1992 in music) and began working closely with Bikini Kill as riot grrl's popularity peaked on both sides of the Atlantic, culminating in a split album on Catcall records (Huggy Bear) and Kill Rock Stars (Bikini Kill) called "Our Troubled Youth/Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah", the names of the Huggy Bear and Bikini Kill sides, respectively. "Our Troubled Youth" featured higher production values than a lot of their recordings, humorous fillers between tracks and some stylish harmonising. Huggy Bear then released a long series of EPs, often with cryptic pseudo-political free motivational inserts, which would be collected on Taking the Rough with the Smooch. No longer featuring Jon on guitar, Huggy Bear would release Weaponry Listens to Love in late 1994, their first full-length album as well as their final release. Jon joined I'm Being Good and Comet Gain (whom he currently plays with) after leaving Huggy Bear; Chris later did some artwork for Skinned Teen; Karen joined Phantom Pregnancies while Niki and Jo joined Blood Sausage. Chris and Jo also formed Thee Element of Crime in 1993 with Dale from Blood Sausage, Layla from Skinned Teen, Andrew from Linus and Daryl from Sister George and released a single, "The things you do for love...".
Huggy Bear is also the nickname given to Bob Huggins, the new mens' basketball coach at Kansas State University.
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