Bear World Playlist Featured Artist: Paul Andrews
This week’s Bear World Playlist featured Artist is Paul Andrews!
Paul Andrew’s Songs on Playlist: “Versailles,” “Borrowed Time”
Current City: Bushkill, PA
Hometown: Silver Spring, MD
Bear World Magazine: What can you tell us about the songs?
Paul Andrews: “Versailles” is a glam rock song about the gay history of the city during the reign of King Louis XIII and King Louis XIV. You know, a typical pop song! “Borrowed Time” is a light summer-sounding pop song that deals with the heavy subject of getting older and losing people around you. But we repay our borrowed time by loving others.
BWM: What is your favorite bear bar, event, or party that you’ve been to over the years?
PA: I would have to say Sunday Beer-Blast at the Dugout in NYC (this was a while back). That was where I met my husband!
BWM: In descriptions of your sound we see the word “sophisti-pop” a few times. Can you explain what that is, and how you arrived at it as your sound?
PA: Sophisti-pop is a genre from the ’80s that combined jazz, soul, and new wave into a pop package. Usually the arrangements are very polished, with rich chords and instrumentation like strings and brass. I’ve always gravitated towards melodic songs that had an elevated use of harmony. Though I try different styles all the time, there’s always a sense of sophisti-pop at its core.
BWM: What themes inform the lyrics of your most recent album, From the Distance?
PA: From the Distance was my “Covid” album, so there was a lot going on in my head at the time. Some main themes are creativity, loss, authenticity, determination, social media addiction, depression, resiliency, and domestic bliss.
BWM: You have a sexy man-to-man cover of Toto’s “Georgy Porgy” on your Spotify. What made you cover that song in particular?
PA: I was approached to do a cover of a Yacht Rock song for a compilation. I picked “Georgy Porgy” because it’s one of my favorite songs. I changed the lyrics a bit to represent me as a gay artist, so that’s why Georgy was kissing the boys, not the girls!
BWM: What other artists from the Bear World Playlist have you admired?
PA: Homer Marrs! I love when one hears character in a voice. Not too many people have that.
BWM: You’ve been married to your husband for a few years now. What would you say is your secret to making an LTR work, particularly in the pandemic?
PA: Laughter. We’re always laughing!
Hear Paul Andrews and more bear musicians on the ever-changing Bear World Playlist
Paul Andrews’ From the Distance is available on Apple Music, Spotify and all other music platforms.
For more information on Paul Andrews, visit his website at www.paulandrews.org and follow him on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube!
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